My car is too quiet!

[SteveT]

My TC is fitted with a SS exhaust system by the previous owner so I dont know its origins. But it's too quiet, I'd rather like it sounding a little more like a sports car. It has a single muffler/silencer like usual but I wonder if there are some options?

[Steve Simmons]

I'm sure there are lots of options, but when my original rusted away, I installed a 1.75" aluminized pipe from the header back, with a 24" x 2" glass pack in the stock muffler location. It has a very sporty sound without being obnoxious. After more than 10 years now it's getting louder so maybe time to think about replacing it.

I know it isn't totally accurate sound, but here's a video where you can sort of hear the exhaust. Anything I have going faster has a lot of wind noise (top is always down). You can hear more revs toward the end of the video.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLFXJKbGrMc

[Ray White]

I have to say I am surprised that you find a stainless exhaust too quiet. In my experience they are usually too loud; certainly noisier than a mild steel one.

I remember There was a batch of stainless steel exhausts made to the original design (at great expense!) for the Austin 7 Swallow and I bought one with high hopes for my car... but had to remove it because it made such a racket.
(Incidentally, for that car I eventually made an exhaust to my own design from copper tubing and wrapped it for most of it's length. I since found out that copper exhausts are illegal!)

[Steve Simmons]

Stainless costs more, so exhaust systems made of it are often thin-walled. This does make them a little louder, but more importantly it seems (to my ears) that they let more high frequency sound out. Low tones are far less annoying to the ear, so to me a loud system with low tones is more pleasing than a quieter one with higher pitched tones.

My MGA has a Falcon SS 1.75" system, and my MGB has a Peco mild steel 2" system. I like the MGB sound a lot more

[TC9800]

The reproduction stainless steel muffler on my TC is also too quiet. The muffler is of a straight through design and it has occurred to me that by sliding a pipe right through the muffler the sound would become completely unmuffled. By drilling holes in the inserted pipe or similar means (angle grinder slots) the sound could be adjusted to suit your taste. The appearance of the exhaust system would remain unchanged while the aural effect may be enriched.