When you step on the gas pedal of a car that has a standard exhaust system installed in it, it doesn’t make a whole lot of noise. Standard exhaust systems are designed to muffle the sound of a car engine so that it doesn’t produce too much noise and create a disturbance. But when you step on the gas pedal of a car that has a straight pipe exhaust system installed in it, it’s a much different experience. These exhaust systems are set up to allow a car engine to flex its muscles and to make as much noise as it wants. They’re known to make a car very noisy when they’re installed. Learn more about what a straight pipe exhaust is, how it works, and the pros and cons of installing one below.
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What Is a Straight Pipe Exhaust System?
In a few minutes, we’re going to talk at length about all the advantages (and disadvantages!) that come along with installing a straight pipe exhaust system in your car. But before we do that, it’s important for you to have some general idea of what a straight pipe exhaust system is. This will make it easier for you to understand how a straight pipe exhaust works and what it adds to your car once it’s in place.
A straight pipe exhaust is, as its name would suggest, an exhaust system that involves the use of straight pipes that start up at the exhaust headers of a car and run straight back to the rear of the vehicle. Unlike standard exhaust systems, these systems don’t usually have a catalytic converter or a muffler, so there is absolutely nothing standing in between the sounds that your engine produces and the back of your car. It’s why cars that have a straight pipe exhaust system installed are so much noisier than those with a standard exhaust system.
What Does a Straight Pipe Exhaust Do?
The first thing you’re going to notice about a car with a straight pipe exhaust system installed is the noise that it allows a car’s engine to produce. But before we get too deep into talking about straight pipe exhausts, we should point out that they do play an important role in the overall well-being of your car. Just like standard exhaust systems, straight pipe exhaust systems are in charge of taking the gases and fumes produced in your engine and carrying them to the rear of your car so that they can be dispelled out into the atmosphere.
For this reason, it’s important for a straight pipe exhaust to be installed properly in your car. If you don’t take the time to install one the right way, your car might struggle to get rid of the dangerous gases and fumes that your engine produces. Whether you choose to install a straight pipe exhaust system yourself or hire someone else to do it for you, you should make sure the job gets done the way it’s supposed to from start to finish.
How Much Does a Straight Pipe Exhaust Cost?
If you know your way around cars and have some experience installing exhaust systems yourself, you may want to take a crack at installing a straight pipe exhaust on your own. But generally speaking, installing a new straight pipe exhaust system in your car is something you should leave up to the professionals if you’re going to do it. Installing a straight pipe exhaust involves the use of welding, which is something that most people aren’t qualified to do.
That being said, it shouldn’t cost that much for you to install a straight pipe exhaust in your car if you want to do it. The parts associated with installing a straight pipe exhaust will often only cost a couple hundred dollars, and it’ll usually only require a few hours of labor at most to install a straight pipe exhaust. This should keep your costs on the lower side. But it’s worth mentioning that everything from the type of car that you have to the specific parts that you need to buy could have an impact on the final price. It’s not uncommon for some people to install straight pipe exhaust systems that cost well over $1,000.
What Are the Advantages of Having a Straight Pipe Exhaust?
Now that you’re a little bit more familiar with what a straight pipe exhaust is and how it works, let’s get into the specifics as far as the pros and cons of installing a straight pipe exhaust are concerned. There are a lot of advantages that you’ll get to enjoy when you have a straight pipe exhaust put into your car. Here are some of the biggest benefits of doing it:
- More noise: As we’ve mentioned a couple of times now, a car with a straight pipe exhaust in it is going to be loud. Very loud. So loud, in fact, that you’re going to want to look up your local noise laws before having a straight pipe exhaust installed. There are lots of cities and towns that have outlawed cars with noisy exhaust systems in them because of how much noise they make.
- Better performance: Most of the cars that you’ll find with straight pipe exhaust systems in them are racing cars. Reason being, a straight pipe exhaust provides a car with much better performance than a standard exhaust system. A straight pipe exhaust will reduce the amount of pressure that is put on an engine by exhaust gases, which will let an engine function better overall. You’ll see an increase in both horsepower and torque when you put a straight pipe exhaust into place.
- Improved aesthetics: From the second you install a straight pipe exhaust, you’ll notice that your car will look a lot faster and sportier than it did before. Even though people won’t be able to see most of your new exhaust system, the pipes sticking straight out the back of it without a muffler will enhance the appearance of your car in a major way.
- Less weight: Removing a standard exhaust system from a car and outfitting it with a straight pipe exhaust isn’t going to make a car dramatically lighter. But by removing a catalytic converter and a muffler from the equation, a car will become a little bit lighter than it was before. This may help make a car faster than it would be otherwise.
- Better fuel economy: Many vehicle owners are surprised to see their fuel economy improve after installing a straight pipe exhaust. This is due in part to the design of a straight pipe exhaust and the way in which it expels exhaust gases from a car and improves the performance of an engine. It’s also due in part to the reduced weight of a car with a straight pipe exhaust. Either way, you should see a slight bump in fuel economy.
After reading through the advantages of installing a straight pipe exhaust, it’s not hard to see why so many people choose to put one into place in their cars. A straight pipe exhaust can produce more than just more noise. It can also provide people with a long list of benefits.
What Are the Disadvantages of Having a Straight Pipe Exhaust?
As you’ve just seen, there are many advantages that come along with installing a straight pipe exhaust in a car. But on the flip side, there are also some disadvantages that you’ll have to keep in the back of your mind when you decide to install a straight pipe exhaust. Check out some of these disadvantages below:
- Too much noise: Yes, it’s nice to drive around in a car that makes noise, especially if you enjoy people looking at your car and taking notice of its power. But at the same time, there is such a thing as a car making too much noise, as we alluded to earlier. You could run afoul of the law if your straight pipe exhaust helps your car produce more noise than is allowed. It’s why most of the cars with straight pipe exhaust systems installed are used exclusively on race tracks.
- Increase emissions: Your car’s exhaust system is in place to do more than just keep exhaust gases and fumes moving along. It’s also there to prevent your car from producing too many harmful gases that could hurt the environment. The catalytic converter in an exhaust system, in particular, is designed to convert harmful gases into less harmful gases that won’t do as much damage to the planet. If you take your car’s catalytic converter out of the mix, this won’t be possible anymore, and your car will start to produce too many emissions every time you drive it.
- Added expenses: When you buy a car, it obviously comes with at least a standard exhaust system in it. That system will do the job that you need it to do and keep your car in good shape. If you choose to replace it with a straight pipe exhaust, you’ll be adding an expense to your car maintenance routine that wouldn’t otherwise exist. Even if you install an affordable straight pipe exhaust, you’re still going to be taking on an expense that most people wouldn’t consider necessary.
- Decreased worth: In some situations, you might be able to sell a car with a straight pipe exhaust for more than you would be able to if it had a standard exhaust system. If, for example, someone is searching specifically for a racing car with a straight pipe exhaust, they might pay you top dollar for yours. But it can be very difficult to sell a car with a straight pipe exhaust since the average person doesn’t need it. They’re not going to pay you a small fortune for a car that is noisier than they would like and that could land them in legal trouble at some point in time. It could force you to accept less money for your car when you go to sell it one day.
If you have your heart set on installing a straight pipe exhaust in your car, you may want to think about the disadvantages of doing it first. It could force you to have a change of heart with regards to your car’s exhaust system.
Can You Sell a Car With a Straight Pipe Exhaust?
As we just touched on, it’s not always easy to sell a car that has a straight pipe exhaust system installed in it. It can actually be impossible for some people to do it, depending on where they live and what the local used car market is like. There is almost no way you’re going to be able to unload a car with a straight pipe exhaust if there isn’t a market for racing cars in your area.
In that case, you’ll have to either think about removing your straight pipe exhaust and putting a standard exhaust system back on your car. Or you’ll need to find another way to try and sell your car and get a fair offer for it. You might not have the option of simply selling it to a buyer in a private sale.
What Should You Do If You Struggle to Sell a Car With a Straight Pipe Exhaust?
If you find yourself in a position where you’re having a hard time selling a car with a straight pipe exhaust system, there is one great option that you should consider. There are plenty of companies that will pay you cash for a car with a straight pipe exhaust, no questions asked. You won’t have to worry about putting a standard exhaust system back onto your car or finding a racing car enthusiast willing to pay top dollar when you take this approach.
Cash Cars Buyer is one of the most reputable companies when it comes to buying cars for cash. And we would be more than happy to take your car with a straight pipe exhaust off your hands. While other companies might balk at buying this type of car, we have no problem doing it and promise we’ll make you an excellent offer for it. Get in touch with us today to see how much your car could be worth.