I bit the bullet and ordered an 18" Magnaflow for my 5.4 '99, and now I'm wondering if I've made the right decision.

I've scoured the board and seen recommendations from you all and also called Magnaflow themselves. I want the to have better tone, and take advantage of any small power/mileage gains I might get, but I don't want it much louder than stock. I use the truck mainly to tow our travel trailer camping, and don't want it to be too loud for my wife. (I have a 5.0 Mustang for that!)

Magnaflow said I'd probably want the 22", but I'm concerned it would be a bit too quiet. People on here have said the 18" is stock-sounding at cruise and light acceleration, but a little louder under WOT. Some have even said the 14" sounds no louder than stock!

I suppose I really won't know unless I put the darn thing on and hear it for myself, but wanted to get some last-minute opinions.

I can probably call tomorrow and cancel/change the order if I decide to.

One more thing: How much louder will the muffler get over time? Might the 22" start out too quiet and end up just right? (Or the 18" get too loud?)

Thanks.

Andy

 

I have the 18" magnaflow and tow a camper lots too. It is definately louder than stock. It does get much quieter once you are done accelerating but if you are pushing a headwind, it is loud. You can find speeds where it gets quieter and is tolerable. All I would say is try it. You might like it. If not, they are pretty easy to sell and then get the longer one.

 

I agree with ohmyf150, if you do not like you can sell under "Classifieds" or even ebay. I would of gone with the 22". The smaller the muffler the louder the muffler.

But then again, you can just change your order. I was gonna ask if you checked with any of your local muffler shops to see if they have that part number you want (ordered).

 

I just had a 18" installed SI/SO into my stock tail pipes. It is quiet at idle with very little difference than stock. On accelaration it gives a nice mellow tone unlike a Flowmaster which has a hollow can sound. Sound is in the ear of the beholder. I think you will like it. Once you get it let me know how like it. I hope this helps cause I thought long and hard before I ordered.

 

an 18" will not be too loud.

 

Well, this morning I went ahead and changed my order to the 22" (12586) instead of the 18" (12256). I hope it's not too quiet. I was concerned, though, about the 18" being too loud while towing. Since I'm under load a large portion of the time while hooked up, it would probably be like other people's accelleration experience most of the time I'm driving. Guess I'll find out!

Thanks for the input!

Andy

 

Andy, as soon as you get it on, please let me know how you like it. I really want to know if you'll be happy with it.

 

Hoping to get it installed soon, and will post results here.

Andy

 

cool, will be waiting

 

http://media.putfile.com/Magnaflow-16614 thats the muffler the 16614 comes with, heres a clip of my truck before the headers

 

Ohio, I switched from the 18-inch to the 24-inch b/c it was too loud imo while towing and b/c I moved the muffler forward. The bigger muffler worked out perfect as it is a good 20% or so quiter but still plenty more than stock. As far as getting louder after use I never noticed any change with either of the Magnaflow's I've had.

 

Well, I had the 22" put on today. Started the truck, got out, and at idle, it seemed even quieter than stock! Under normal driving, it doesn't seem much louder, if at all, but under acceleration, it is just a bit louder with deeper tone. I noticed, too, that it seems to get just a bit louder overall (except at idle) once everything warms up.

LISTEN HERE
Stock tailpipe exit, Dell PC about 1 foot back and 2 feet to the side.

On the one hand, I'm a little disappointed at the nearly-silent idle (You can hear the crickets over the exhaust). However, it does have a better tone under acceleration/rev, and I think it feels a bit better. (Of course, it feels better after an oil change, right?) Hard to say if the 18" would have been too loud..... or maybe the 24" would have been "just right?" (I think I remember seeing that the 24 is a bit louder than the 22, although this defies convention.)

All in all, I guess I got what I said I wanted... a little louder than stock... but right now I wish there was a bit more there. Time will tell, though. Get the trailer behind it, and I may not mind.

Andy

 

The 22-inch is 5x11 I think which muffles a little more vs the 24-inch at 5x8. You'll probably love it while towing.

 

Went to Maggie's site and saw that after I posted. Thanks.

I hope I do. I'd hate to have dumped $100 into this and not. If it's still too quiet, maybe the 24" is the compromise. Of course after my glowing review here, the 22 could be hard to sell!

Andy

 

I reviewed the 24" here...