Due to the change in seasons and simply not driving our old cars as much as our family car the mufflers fill with water , condensation and rust out in a short time. They never get hot and dry out.On my 49 Ford I,m replacing muffers about every 3 years. I'm getting ready to buy mufflers for a new project . The prices of stainless is very high compared to steel. The stainless advertized are( not all stainless anyway), only the outside shells are stainless in many cases or just a few of the inside components. My question: Is buying stainless worth the high cost and is their a good muffler on the market that you have been happy with from your own experience.? I should add- I like loud and throaty... Gene
Mild steel mufflers on my DD did the same - rot out and fall apart every 3 years or so. I put in a stainless Magnaflow probably 8 years ago and haven't had to touch it since. So, yes, the increased cost provides increased value. The MF mufflers are basically glasspacks with fiberglass allowed to move about and turn exhaust noise into heat. Relatively quiet-ish at idle, but straight through design acts like a straight pipe at higher RPM. As always, your mileage and experience may vary.
Look up "mufflers never-rust exhaust systems" on he web......about $90/muffler. They are 100% non-magnetic stainless steel. Had mine for over 20 years! Sound good too. They are in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Stainless exhaust came with my 01 Olds Aurura and the mufflers lasted 13 years .....rest of the original exhaust is on the car ( now 16 years ) so ....yes they are worth it IMO .
I put stainless baffled mufflers on my sedan . Got them from " Stainless Specialties "about 20 yers ago and they are still like new, my car doesnt get driven as much as it should either. They are 304, thats the key as the stainless most mufflers are made from is not as corrosion resistant as the ones made of 304. Mitch.
My new set of Stainless specialties is 10 years old, the old ones probably over 20. Pricey, but cheap in the long run
Porter mufflers are available in stainless. Traditional muffler, tradional sound, no rust. https://portermufflers.com/
X3 or 4 on Stainless Specialties mufflers. Have them on my DD big block El Camino for 15 or so years. This car is reversed in on an incline and they are still holding up. Sound great too.
I always thought a pair of circa 1970 Thrush Side Pipes would look very cool on the side of any car. To me they make a big time ultimate power statement. The outside is polished aluminum, which will corrode but not rust. The looks of those Thrush Side Pipes really hold up after 47 years.
Still have the OEM muffs on my 99 F150 and 00 Expy. Not sure what they are made of, but they sure have lasted.....
I put stainless Holley grass packs on my ride 18 years ago, they sound the same today as they did when I put them on. IIRC they were a 100 bucks back then and I would do it again in a minute.
Drill holes in it. lots-o-holes. Holes in the bottom to drain. holes in the top to vent. Then take them off, throw them in the lake. They make nice fish sanctuaries
I haven't bought a muffler in about 50 years, maybe 60, so I don't know what they look like now. But way back, mufflers had one weep hole at the down low, so moisture dripped out. I assume the hole was large enuf to drop water but not enuf to affect the gasses.
They have not put the weep holes in mufflers for at least the last 20 years. How could they sell you more if they didn't rot out? I've got plain old mufflers on my stuff. I drive the vehicles long enough to completely dry out the exhaust at least once a week during the driving season. My 4x4 has the most recent muffler install, and its about 5 years old now. The muffler looks great, I'm not so sure about the pipes at this point. Gene
Buy stainless steel, you won't regret it. Here's the deal of the year at Summit. Thrush Polished Stainless Steel Glasspack Mufflers 24239 on clearance for only $29.50 each. Regular price is $99.97. I bought a pair just to have them on the shelf but the only size at this price is the 2 1/4" which is just fine for most applications. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/wlk-24239/overview/
An afterthought about my experience with a Magnaflow Stainless Steel muffler with a lifetime guarantee on my tow vehicle, a 1999 Chevy short box crew cab big block I've had for 17 years that's pulled its guts out for 158,000 miles for me. I blew the guts out of the first one and they replaced it and the tailpipe for free and its been fine ever since. Nothing kills mufflers like towing a heavy load. In fact, I just sold my old girl yesterday. It still has the original untouched engine and trans. It was the best truck I've ever owned.
I bought my '37 Chevy coupe in 1993 and the PO had installed a stainless steel muffler on it several years previously. I drive the car about 2-3k miles a year and the muffler sounds & looks as good as it did when I bought it 24-years ago.
One of you made a interesting point. Years ago when installing a new muffler we alway drilled a 1/8 inch hole in the lowest point on the muffler for water to run out. A few local muffler shops still do that for customers. So why isn't everyone doing this? It seems like this makes a lot of sense ! Gene
stainless good, but i've never had aluminized pipes rust out--one of the benefits of unleaded gas. don't think there are many more...
I bought similar S/S glass packs to above (#18) and had the entire system done in S/S for longevity etc. Plus I had the cast headers coated for similar reasons.
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