EXHAUSTed....still

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RamthisGirl

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2002
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First I want to thank everyone, this forum has been a tremendous help....thank you!

Let's talk Exhaust....this is what I have so far:
- New Y-Pipe with 3 C.A.R.B. Compliant Cats
- 4 New o2 Sensors
- Flowmaster Super 44 Mufflers, Tailpipes and Tips

What next....
Clamp or Weld it?
Flanges, Gaskets, Donut(s), Flex Pipe(s), Heat Shield and everything between?
Any best practices, words of advice/wisdom and words of encouragement much appreciated.
 

Mbrigh3

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Mine is just clamped down. I did have to re tighten my C clamp near the muffler recently ( It wiggled out after about 3 years of driving).

May do a tac weld if I ever get the chance. Easy to snap off if needed
 

HEMIMANN

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We generally clamp because you're never really sure you'll be happy with your new system until you wring it out. I've never welded a retrofit system for that reason.

But to each, their own, just so long as you go into it eyes wide-open. I'm near another exhaust upgrade here.
 
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RamthisGirl

RamthisGirl

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I would clamp all the piping, they make some real good exhaust clamps now that will seal just as good as anything, but you can quickly remove vs having to cut.
That's my input lol

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Thank you. The ease of removal is a definite plus for clamping.
 
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RamthisGirl

RamthisGirl

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We generally clamp because you're never really sure you'll be happy with your new system until you wring it out. I've never welded a retrofit system for that reason.

But to each, their own, just so long as you go into it eyes wide-open. I'm near another exhaust upgrade here.

This is my first time ever attempting to troubleshoot mechanical issues, purchase the right parts and hope it fixes the problem....so I appreciate your time and input, thank you.
 
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RamthisGirl

RamthisGirl

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Mine is just clamped down. I did have to re tighten my C clamp near the muffler recently ( It wiggled out after about 3 years of driving).

May do a tac weld if I ever get the chance. Easy to snap off if needed

Clamp it is...thank you for the input.
 

ramportin1

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Hemi 5.7
O and I will throw in some advice since you asked. If you have to pass a plug in computer scan (OBDII) for passing emissions like I do in Oregon, dont put long tube headers on lol

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RamthisGirl

RamthisGirl

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O and I will throw in some advice since you asked. If you have to pass a plug in computer scan (OBDII) for passing emissions like I do in Oregon, dont put long tube headers on lol

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Here in Cali...we have to pass OBDll and Visual Inspection.
C.A.R.B. Compliant cost me $1400.00 for a Y-Pipe w/3 Cats vs. $400.00 for the same set up (non- C.A.R.B. Compliant).

Thanks for the info, I'll keep that in mind.
 

slbenz600

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La Verkin
Ram Year
2015
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6.4 L
First I want to thank everyone, this forum has been a tremendous help....thank you!

Let's talk Exhaust....this is what I have so far:
- New Y-Pipe with 3 C.A.R.B. Compliant Cats
- 4 New o2 Sensors
- Flowmaster Super 44 Mufflers, Tailpipes and Tips

What next....
Clamp or Weld it?
Flanges, Gaskets, Donut(s), Flex Pipe(s), Heat Shield and everything between?
Any best practices, words of advice/wisdom and words of encouragement much appreciated.

One mistake most people make is install a Y pipe Why???. Ram is choking the 5.7 and more the 6.4L Hemi's, I went to different exhaust places trying to either install an X pipe where the Y pipe was and dual 3 inch exhaust out the back. My 6.4L has increased fuel mileage by 5 mpg I have checked and rechecked I get more than 5mpg at times but average 5 mpg. depending on your muffler choice is what noise will be in cab along with increased mpg the extra power is amazing. I was considering selling and buying something I could pass a Prius with to leaving them in the dust, with exhaust opened up has increased power towing and raw power, increased mpg, fun to drive and sounds awesome in and out.
Don't continue to drive a vehicle that eats gas, pulls good but when accelerating can't pass anything and sounds like a 4 popper to one that is fun to drive get great fuel mileage, sounds great, when stepping on accelerator it goes and increase pulling.
 

ramportin1

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One mistake most people make is install a Y pipe Why???. Ram is choking the 5.7 and more the 6.4L Hemi's, I went to different exhaust places trying to either install an X pipe where the Y pipe was and dual 3 inch exhaust out the back. My 6.4L has increased fuel mileage by 5 mpg I have checked and rechecked I get more than 5mpg at times but average 5 mpg. depending on your muffler choice is what noise will be in cab along with increased mpg the extra power is amazing. I was considering selling and buying something I could pass a Prius with to leaving them in the dust, with exhaust opened up has increased power towing and raw power, increased mpg, fun to drive and sounds awesome in and out.
Don't continue to drive a vehicle that eats gas, pulls good but when accelerating can't pass anything and sounds like a 4 popper to one that is fun to drive get great fuel mileage, sounds great, when stepping on accelerator it goes and increase pulling.
It sounds like you're thinking all Y pipes are created equal and that is absolutely not the case, and any high end Y pipe made for these will not hinder anything at all instead they will help everything performance wise, unless you are some awesome big hp forced air build but thats a whole different deal.
The factory Y pipes yes you are correct they are terrible because they are crushed Y's with way to small piping but it's to please all the regulations. Pictured is a example of my current Y pipe, made by Kooks with there high flow cats next to the factory Y and cats, you can see there is a huge difference. I have Kooks 1 3/4" long tube headers and I've played with all kinds of setups and tunes for each setup, including running the open header which sounded awesome haha but was a **** on power because way to open. Also pictured is my DEQ pipe setup that I made so I can get through emissions without having to remove the long tubes, no Y just open pipes with factory cats and dumped thats it, also a **** but not as bad as open header. Slap my Kooks Y on and bam power is amazing. As mentioned I've had custome tunes made for all these setups to see if I could get them to run better but just no comparison to having a good Y pipe. These 5.7's have no chance of sucking in more air than they can push out of a quality made Y unless they have some pretty decent sized forced air.
Also I wanted to point out that the muffler alone isnt just what decides loudness and in cab volume as you stated, I could make a very loud exhaust setup with many different mufflers and still have it pretty darn quite in cab, changing location of exhaust exit/exits, tip size and shape, where the muffler is located, resonators, matting, piping size, header/manifolds used etc etc all play into decibel levels, tones and in cab sound levels.
Also OP stated they live in Cali and as most people know they have pretty much the most strict emissions testing of any state so theres a lot they cant do or have to consider.
Just sharing some quality info [emoji847]
Picture 1" my DEQ pipe setup.
#2: KOOKS Y with there HF cats vs factory.
#3: you can really see how bad the crush is on the factory Y in this pic.
#4: just for fun threw in a KOOKS long tube comparison vs factory manifolds lol8564bfe463312679cf3b074cee0c041a.jpgacc27707dda9e0ba315957f181cea313.jpg4f4568f606a307348b55dc19291f8993.jpg92569180de19df03c8618f565a3109b4.jpg

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CorDog009

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I had my muffler shop get rid of the crushed section of the y-pipe and just ran true duals from just before the y and down to an x-pipe.
 

LoneWolf3574

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I had my muffler shop get rid of the crushed section of the y-pipe and just ran true duals from just before the y and down to an x-pipe.
How much did that run you? All I've got going right now is a muffler delete, I left the resonators in place.

slbenz600 - You also have to consider that RamthisGirl has a 5.9L Cummins vs a 5.7L Hemi and is in California; different rules than Utah.
 
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CorDog009

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How much did that run you? All I've got going right now is a muffler delete, I left the resonators in place.

slbenz600 - You also have to consider that RamthisGirl has a 5.9L Cummins vs a 5.7L Hemi and is in California; different rules than Utah.

I want to say it was about $100 with what all I had done. I was running a single 1-chamber Flowmaster and had them cut out that crimped section of the y-pipe and just turn it into 2 pipes, then run those into an X-pipe I brought and run the pipe down to another 1-chamber Flowmaster I brought.

Why would a Cummins need a y-pipe? They have a single downpipe.
 
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ramportin1

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How much did that run you? All I've got going right now is a muffler delete, I left the resonators in place.

slbenz600 - You also have to consider that RamthisGirl has a 5.9L Cummins vs a 5.7L Hemi and is in California; different rules than Utah.
Whoops lol I assumed it was a hemi truck as well [emoji2361]
My apologies haha that changes some things

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LoneWolf3574

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Why would a Cummins need a y-pipe? They have a single downpipe.

You have to ask RamthisGirl that question. I thought they were all just a single pipe into a trashcan muffler and out the back. Then again, I've never owned a diesel truck so my knowledge is very limited.

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CorDog009

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I've owned one and worked on thousands. That's why it kinda got my attention.

Seems as though hers is an 02 5.9 360 engine, not the 5.9 Cummins.
 

LoneWolf3574

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Huh, seems I missed that it was an 02, I got it in my head it was an 04 for some reason. Thanks for the correction CorDog009.
 
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