What can Pypes do for you?

[Tom Hand]

"I would love to know more about how this system was designed and built. How did someone in MO get involved with a PA outfit??"

Hi Marlin,
I will be glad to tell you.

We have tested mufflers and exhaust systems for many years trying to find the ultimate one to use on Dad's 455 Lemans wagon. We wanted quiet as heck with as good of air flow and fit as we could get. Once we figured out what to do to his A-body GM, we decided to try it on Firebirds/Camaros which happen to correspond to Novas and later GTO/Omegas/Apollos??? too. We wanted the ultimate ground clearance and the best air flow and sound control you could get from a single muffler package. As all the guys and gals know, the old chambered exhaust for Chevrolets used a dual muffler, transverse setup as did HO Enterprises back when they were selling Pontiac aftermarket parts in the late 70’s and 80’s.

No one made high flowing quiet transverse setup recently (note I said “high flowing and quiet”). Having lots of pals with these cars, we figured it was time to try our hand at it. So, Chris at PYPES loaned us the front set of pipes for the Firebirds, we borrowed a set of SD Pontiac Firebird over-the-axle pipes, bought a set of Walker Dynomax mandrel bent, Firebird-Camaro tailpipes and a Walker UltraFlo 20" muffler, 2.5" in and out (for pickups; it had dual inlet, dual outlets) that happened to have darn near the right center-to-center pipe spacing. We had mandrel bent versions of the over-the-axle pipes created in 2.5" and then sectioned one side to reverse the rotation into and out of the muffler creating basically two, straight-through pipe systems in one package. We also had to modify the tailpipes to enable them to do the same thing. Once this was done, we used stock hangers where we could, made sure it fit and sounded and quieted well, tested the muffler for air flow and then let PYPES take over. They installed the system on one of their test cars, tweaked it as needed, and had the pipes mandrel bent from aluminized or 409 st. st. tubing and then offered it. The first versions were sold with no or different mufflers but the later ones (current ones) use a clone to the Dynomax UltraFlo. They work very well. Theirs uses some variation of hangers but one can make the system fit with stock hangers on one side and by using a slight variation of stock on the other.

It turned out to sound good, be relatively quiet (as best it can for the muffler volume available) and it way out flowed the crossflow chambered muffler used for so long by F-body cars that need ground clearance. We knew it would work well on drag cars that need to run this sort of system and fortunately, you and COPA Pete confirmed what we had hoped for from Day one, this configuration does work well.

As you know the tailpipes were set up for Firebirds so for NOVAs and earlier f-bodies, modifications are required but I have heard the shorter tailpipes are in work and will offered soon. Magnaflow sells another, more universal system but not sure it is priced any better and ours fits and looks more stock since we started with stock-style parts and shapes.

I have some images, drop me a line at [email protected] and I’ll email them to you.

Thanks for giving the system a heck of work out. I am hopeful others needing similar benefits will also find out how well this sort of exhaust system works for performance, fit, sound control, and ground clearance.


Tom