Getting That real grunty sound, without a new exhaust?

indy · Post by **indy** » Thu May 21, 2009 11:27 am

Hey all just wondering if anyone has any DIY tips to get that real sorta grunty deep sound on an L series, without getting a new tip or exhaust or anything.

On my first L series i seemed to go over speed humps in parking lots too quick, and eventually the tip of my exhaust broke off from hitting the ground and it had a nice real deep grunty noise, and when i accelerated and changed gears made a nice sound. after that my mate had the idea to drill holls in the exhaust to give it a WRX sound............. well lets just say that just made it sound like POS.
I was wondering if anyone has any tips on how to get that deep grunty sound back on my new l series, prefferably without sawing off the tip? can in take anything out to give it that grunt back?
i saw a stock standard L at the servo today, and it sounded mean, but just looked stock, exhaust tip was standard?

Subafury · Post by **Subafury** » Thu May 21, 2009 12:20 pm

cut the rear muffler off. that'l make it nice n loud

AndrewT · Post by **AndrewT** » Thu May 21, 2009 1:19 pm

I'd say get one of those cheap-o canon mufflers and get that welded on. They seem to do the trick pretty well.
Your mate's idea = fail - lol

I remember back in high school one guy did something similar to his Datsun 120Y, except it also involved putting a handful of gravel into the muffler.

indy · Post by **indy** » Thu May 21, 2009 1:51 pm

I should get a Big golden circle pineapple can or baked beans can and just stick it on the end haha, that should look good

Not keen on getting a muffler, i want her to just look average/dirt but have that nice deep tone to it, maybe a hacksaw could be the solution? lol but would i fail rego/get defected if the tip was cut off?

AndrewT · Post by **AndrewT** » Thu May 21, 2009 2:55 pm

yeah you do need a tip protruding just past the rear of the car otherwise the gases don't exit the car properly, you can get gas buildup in the boot area.
Should be able to get a nice open muffler installed in the car fairly subtly so you can't really tell at a glance. There are also plenty of standard looking Oval shaped mufflers that give a good sound but look stock.

Post by **Alex** » Thu May 21, 2009 3:28 pm

2inch cat back system with a high flow/strait thru muffler will get you power and fuel economy increases. it will also make a nice noise(well the best a carby l-series can anyway)

dont attempt to cut off bits of your exhaust..its just stupid and youll likely get a yellow sticker as it sounds gay and cops know what to listen for :P

alex

rubisubi · Post by **rubisubi** » Thu May 21, 2009 3:30 pm

Try ripping out the teeny weeny motor and installing a 351 clevland! i think you'll be pleasantly surprised

Phizinza · Post by **Phizinza** » Fri May 22, 2009 6:01 pm

$70 2inch "turbo muffler" with a 2" piece of pipe as the tip welded to the stock exhaust will get you a nice quite throaty sound. Can't think of any other way you'll get it cheaper unless you like loud and like cops looking at you.

d_generate · Post by **d_generate** » Fri May 22, 2009 6:19 pm

I you can weld or pop rivet take the rear muffler off & cut a big hole in the top of it, rip the baffles out & put the top back on...........el cheapo louder system.

openflame06 · Post by **openflame06** » Sun May 24, 2009 9:28 pm

Yeah ive heard a of a lot of people ripping the baffles out to get a louder sound. Not sure as to what it does to the performance/emissions of the car though cant imagine its good though lol.

AndrewT · Post by **AndrewT** » Sun May 24, 2009 9:49 pm

Don't expect much of a power increase. Seriously, a restrictive exhaust on an EA82....what is it really restricting? A fully ferocious racing engine? no

I don't rekon a carby EA82 sounds any good even with the hottest exhaust possible on it. People can just hear you slowly reaming an old tired motor up to redline and changing gears. If you have an EA82 keep the stock exhaust so people can't hear it. Better to upgrade your stereo and turn it up loud with some recordings of a WRX while u save for a conversion

GOD · Post by **GOD** » Sun May 24, 2009 10:04 pm

lol. You really don't think much of those engines, do you Andrew?

Another exhaust option: unbolt it at the back of the header pipe. They sound pretty grunty then

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Mon May 25, 2009 11:50 am

GOD wrote:lol. You really don't think much of those engines, do you Andrew?

I'm falling into the same category fast! These engines were a marketing tool for subaru to be able to say "over head cam" which was the in thing for motors in the '80s. Only problem is that subaru took some short cuts in design allowing more oil leaks, a wider engine than necessary and poor head design, more so than the EA81 IMHO.

For the sound you're after, you know how to do it - cut the tip, then the bit that you've got left over, cut a few inches off the back of it, then dummy mount it. In your travels find a tip that faces to the ground to mount on the back of your 'sawn off tip' to help exhaust gasses out from under the car...

My 2c.

Cheers

Bennie

username · Post by **username** » Mon May 25, 2009 4:59 pm

Hollow out your cat.

Phizinza · Post by **Phizinza** » Mon May 25, 2009 5:41 pm

El_Freddo wrote:I'm falling into the same category fast! These engines were a marketing tool for subaru to be able to say "over head cam" which was the in thing for motors in the '80s. Only problem is that subaru took some short cuts in design allowing more oil leaks, a wider engine than necessary and poor head design, more so than the EA81 IMHO.

Things change eh? A few months back there was a thread and I posted my thoughts on EA82 engines. You didn't seem to agree with me. Times change I guess

kona480 · Post by **kona480** » Tue May 26, 2009 8:35 pm

so does the same apply for an ea81?
can you make it sound "rexy" with a good exhaust?

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Tue May 26, 2009 10:22 pm

Phizinza wrote:Things change eh? A few months back there was a thread and I posted my thoughts on EA82 engines. You didn't seem to agree with me. Times change I guess

I'd like to re-read that thread Phiz, you may have the wrong person or wrong outlook of the post. I have not like the EA82 for a good while now. But if it was me that said what you say I've said (ok, got your head around that yet?), it was probabily because I didn't have any other option thus 'defending' (if possible) the old EA82...

Times do change - I wanted a turbo when I first joined this forum. Now I want a well grounded 4wd unit that is practially everything subaru. Wheels are turning.

And I have another gripe about the EA82, all I'll say here is - bloody thermostats/thermostat housings.

Cheers

Bennie

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Tue May 26, 2009 10:23 pm

username wrote:Hollow out your cat.

Oh, and this didn't do much for me - except making the exhaust 'note' more tinny. But that could have just been my headers...

Bennie

Phizinza · Post by **Phizinza** » Tue May 26, 2009 11:41 pm

El_Freddo wrote:or wrong outlook of the post.

Yeah probably, I over read way too much. I need to slow down and chill off the coffee more.

I've never liked the EA82. Always seen it as a pointless step in the evolution of Subaru

Gannon · Post by **Gannon** » Wed May 27, 2009 6:43 am

Phizinza wrote: Always seen it as a pointless step in the evolution of Subaru

It was really only hacked together to make it look like they designed a new engine for the L series (OHC were the selling point at the time, and the different head design allowed for the dual port MPFI and Turbo)

They designed it quick, so the could spend more time designing the EJ22 for the upcoming Legacy/Liberty series