2001 Bullitt with O/R H. How to get rid of exhaust rattling between 2000-2500 rpm?

[sganow]

I have a 2001 Bullitt with a JBA stainless o/r H pipe and the stock Bullitt catback. I had read and heard several places that combo sounds good, but in my opinion it does not sound good. It sounds good under 2000 rpm's and over 3000 rpm's, but especially in the 2000-2500 rpm range it has a very rattly/machine gun type sound sort of like a pickup truck. That's the best I can describe it.

Would changing the catback help? I have been sort of thinking of either the Mac catback or Magnaflow catback. Would either of these sound good with my o/r H pipe and get rid of the blat, blat, blat sound in the 2000-2500 rpm range? Could I just swap out my mufflers with different mufflers without buying a full catback? What recommendations do you guys have? Will I need to add cats (was hoping not)? Looking to improve the sound as soon as possible and really hope to get some opinions and ideas. I have not found many sound clips of those combinations.

[Nino]

The lack of converters on your H-pipe is causing the rattling sound. The converters help to muffle the sound a little and get rid of a lot of the popping/rattling sound you describe.

You could go two ways. First, if you are happy with the overall tone and sound of the exhaust then you can add some high flow cats to your H-pipe. This will kill the rattling sound and bring the volume down a little bit. Plus it will get rid of the raw exhaust fumes I'm sure you've experienced. You may lose a few hp in above 4000 rpm, but you'll probably gain throttle response and low-end torque.

Second, you could change the mufflers by either welding in a new set onto the stock cat-back, or go with a completely new cat-back. This will definitely change the overall sound of the exhaust, depending on which brand you go with. Changing the mufflers/cat-back alone will probably not eliminate the rattling completely. Magnaflow mufflers/cat-back will probably remove most of the rattling since it has a lot sound absorbing material in the mufflers, but the MAC will be even louder and more rattly (sp?) than the sound you have now.

-Nino

[sganow]

I really didn't want the exhaust to be any quieter than it is now, and if anything I would want it slightly louder. And I like the raw exhaust fumes :D , so that doesn't bother me. It almost sounds like I'll need to add high flow cats, and then if I want more volume I'll need to change the mufflers or catback? I must say that I'm a little disappointed. Thank you for your response and advise!

[Nino]

One other option you may consider is adding a pair of resonators to the H-pipe instead of cats. Resonators are small cylindrical mufflers that are straight through so they don't add resistance to the flow. These may clean up some of that rattling without affecting the overall sound of the exhaust too much. The functional word here is "may" as I've never done this before, but from my experience it will likely have this effect.

Here's a good one I would recommend: Supreme Resonator (http://www.ninosport.com/Supreme-SS-2-5-Resonator). You'll probably want to go with the 12" version and not the 18".

-Nino

[Jhrod]

I have Mac on both my mustangs. Much better than flows IMO :cheers:

[sganow]

Seriously considering the Mac catback and then if it's too 'rattly' for me I can add some hi flow cats I guess.