This past weekend a friend and I went to town on my 2.7's exhaust system and took the muffler off, replacing it with straight pipes. The motor and the rest of the exhaust system are completely stock except for an upgraded oil baffle. My friend only has a little experience with welding, but after seeing prices on pre-fabbed options I decided this would be worth a shot. The entire process from loosening the clamps to get the muffler off to tightening them back on to secure the straight pipes took just over 4 hours and less than $100 in materials.
This thing is massive and probably weighs a good 30lbs. The replacement is much lighter!
Testing the fitment after welding extensions on the 90 degree bends we bought.
One half of the system with the hanger installed. The halves were eventually welded together.
The freshly installed piping. There's so much room under there now!
And finally, what it looks like on the ground. Keep in mind we made no attempt to make this look good- my only requirement was that it exit at the stock location and not be crooked or uneven. I do wish we'd gotten the pipes to stick out a bit further. Adding a tip in the future is an option.
A few observations after romping around for a bit followed by a 2 hour drive home:
- The sound is, in my own words and the words of others, mean. Extremely aggressive, with pops and snarls when you let off the throttle.
- Volume is a little on the loud side when on the throttle, but certainly not the loudest street car you'd see on a weekly or maybe even daily basis.
- Drone at highway speeds is merely moderate. It's there, but it's not overbearing or intolerable.
- Idle volume is quite quiet, the cooling fans have the potential to make more noise.
I am absolutely satisfied with the result we got. I don't mind the car being on the loud side though. If you feel the same way and can put up with a little drone, you should seriously consider having a shop do something along these lines before dropping four figures on a pre-fabbed muffler.
And, of course, a video:
Boxster 2.7 Muffler Delete - YouTube