So I'm running a smallblock '85 302 5.0 in a 57 ford fairlane500 with 2.5 exhaust. More custom than hot rod, but it is a stick shift. The bellflower tips I would like to run are roughly 2 inches. Approximately how will this restriction effect my performance? Thanks!
Not all that much because that far back the exhaust has lost a lot of heat and has slowed down quite a bit. If you were racing and 0.003 seconds counted you might not like them but you probably won't notice any difference on the street.
I'd have to agree with 'bang, you wouldn't notice any drop in HP. The biggest restriction in free flowing exhaust is 'cold' air and the exhaust has cooled a bunch by the time it gets there. You can hold your hand over a tail pipe, not so much with the collector end of headers or short systems that dump at the front of the rear axle.
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