I have a question about x pipes for my 67

I dont plan on racing and the car is a resto mod in nearshow condition.

Im running your basic 289 with the Edelbrock performer manifold 600cfm carb. From there down im running a set of Headman headers into dual Flowmasters 40 series. My engine has been professionally tuned.

Since I have joined, many people rave about their x pipes so it has me thinking what will they do for my setup? Already I havean even back flow and a great sound from what im running.

Will the x pipes really make a difference for my car or as the old story goes, if it aint broke dont fix it?

 

As far as I know they equalise pressures in both pipes saving the need for equal length pipes.

 

this is one of those questions where it comes down to opinion - and you'll get a different one from every member here

Here's how i understand it...an h-pipe or basic balance pipe helps equalise the exhaust between firing of opposite banks of cylinders. it is as simple as a piece of exhaust tubing welded between the 2 pipes. As far as i am aware, all factory twin exhausts used to run an h pipe.

an X pipe needs to be properly designed to be effective and requires the pipes to be routed to it and away again. i have seen it achieved by actually welding the 2 pipes together with a hole cut between them as well as the branded ones. theoretically it makes a difference, but i wouldnt spend the money for a stock or mild engine.

either an h or x will make a difference to the exhaust sound making it more even. some people like the "out of balance" sound without one. my car sounded like a speed boat till i fitted an H!!

 

well as I said my car sounds good, nothing like a boat. When I start the car and listed to the exhaust, it sounds even to me. So with this being the case with my car, I wont notice a difference??

 

IMO, no you wont notice a difference in performance. it may sound a little different than now, so if you like the current sound, leave it alone.

btw, got any pics of the car????

 

thanks for the info! Pics will come very soon.

 

Sound-wise, you lose most of the characteristic V8 rumble with an "X" pipe. That's a function of the firing order that sometimes alternates bank to bank and sometimes fires two in a row from the left bank and two in a row from the right. As long as the two exhaust lines are kept separate or mostly so, the rumble comes from the alternating "two on the left" then "two on the right" sequence

The "X" merges everything together and splits it back so that both mufflers receive the same flow. The sound tends to take on a slightly higher pitched snarl, and tends to sound like you're turning more rpms than you actually are. Part-throttle, it's normally a little quieter. There is a small power benefit to be had, because fully sharing the flow between both mufflers all the time results in a little less backpressure, though I wouldn't count on gaining more than about 1 or 2 percent if you've got free-flowing mufflers to begin with. If you know of somebody who has a car that runs a single catalytic converter and the exhaust then splits off into a pair of low-restriction mufflers, that's a quieter version of what you can expect. FWIW, that's the way the exhaust on my thumbnail car is set up.

An "H" equalizes the pressure pulses somewhat, but isn't nearly as effective at equalizing the flows themselves. This less-than-100% equalization is what keeps the 'rumble'.


Norm

[IMG]local://upfiles/62186/FF31376BDD884AAB83A0BC3905CA3FB4.jpg[/IMG]