I'm looking into upgrading my factory exhaust system. Naturally there are alot to choose from and I'm looking at either 3 inch single exhaust or true duals. I've got an '01 with a 360 and have already purchased Fastmans 52mm TB along with a K&N gen II. I've got my heart set on Pacesetter longtubes and flowmaster mufflers. If I go the single route I'd like to get the Pacesetter collector, 3in high flow cat, and Flowmaster Force II. If I go with the true dual its gonna be a custom fit job with 3" pipes, cats, and mufflers.

Now heres the questions.
Will I loose bottom end power with the true dual?
Which system will provide the most consistant gains accross the revs?
Does the dual system need an X pipe?
Can anyone point me to dyno charts or seat of the pants write ups for either system?

 

Our trucks seem to benefit more from single exit exhaust, true dual sounds awesome but I do believe you lose a bit of power.

 

Well I guess I have to ask if howcome you will only do a single inlet/single outlet, and not a single inlet/dual outlet? That way you can get the dual exhaust look, and still get to keep the power you have with a single inlet/outlet. True duals are great, and you aren't going to loose any noticable horsepower, but you won't gain much more with it either unless you step the mods up more (even past longtubes). I think you should stick with the si/so or si/do system, and you will save yourself some money with parts in doing so too. Let us know what you decide to do so we can guide you in the right direction for what you want to do with your truck!

 

I'm leaning away from single inlet/dual outlet because of the loss in low end torque and because I've read (more than once) that when the exhaust is split it doesn't flow as well. Honestly I'm not going for looks, I'd much rather have the system work. I want to build power without pushing my powerband into the high rpm.

 

Personally, I like the single exit exhaust in 3" variety, more for the sound than anything else. However, duals sound great too. In answer to your question, yes you need to build a crossover pipe of some sort (x or h style) in a true dual setup.

 

i run dual 2 1/2 all the way no cat , headers of course. it sounds so very sweet, but rougher idle and loss of low end . i do have an x pipe but more hassle than it was worth. going to si so any recomends
95 5.9 under drive pulleys tb spacer 160 t headers accel 8.8 and super coil

 

you can run true duals... you will have to keep the diam to 2"~2.25" max, expect to loose some low end but you'll gain top end. you need to decide what is most important to have in your truck. top end HP or low end TQ... or somewhere in between.

I had dual out flowmaster setup and ran dual 2.25" and didnt loose much low end with that setup. for a 5.9 QC 4x4 my best mileage was in the high 15's, averaged mid to upper 13's.

 

It's all preferance really though. I mean honestly, exhaust really does not affect performance THAT much, it's really just a base step when it comes to performance. Obviously if you dig heavily into mods,then the more important your exhaust will become. Other than though, you will only lose/gain minimal results in different parts of the powerband. I've seen it all, we've run si/so systems, si/do systems, and then true duals, and there are really minor differances, and all of them sound pretty much the same in loudness. So it is all about what looks best to you, and what you want. Like steveo said, pick where you think you want your performance level at. Really though, with a truck, most of it no matter what, will be low end torque, it just what happens with a v8 pickup truck lol. Exhaust systems in my view though, are very overhyped. Personally, I did my exhaust system for loudness and looks. I knew it wasn't going to give me that much horsepower. It sounds VERY loud, and it looks really awesome, but I didn't notice anything too incredible. Obviously as I get more mods like a intake kit, headers, and a chip etc. then the exhaust system will become more valuable, but nothing too crazy.

 

I say go for the 3" SI/SO With a 4.5-5 inch tip, put a flowmaster 10 on it and you're good to rock n' roll man. That's my plan. Have it exit in front of the rear wheel. That's what I plan on doing.

 

4.5-5" tip?! LOL, I don't know...maybe if it were diesel. Then agian I really shouldnt talk because I run two 4" diamater tips, so hell go for it!