exhaust ideas for the 4.3

SSpeedin · December 4, 2006

i have an 88 cheyenne with the 4.3 v6, and i wanted it to sound a little louder and meaner. I cut the exhaust right before the cat, and just threw a Thrush glasspack in there, and ran a small pipe a few feet after it, and had a bend in it, so it came out right before the back tire. Probably the biggest mistake i've ever made. its sounds HORRIBLE. i dont know if its just because its not a good brand for glasspacks, or if its just the fact that all i have in there is a glasspack, but im begging you guys to give me ideas on how to make this thing sound a little bit meaner.. i dont want to spend too much on it though, its pretty much just a beater truck for the winter, so i dont have to take my camaro on the salty roads.

ratcliffm · December 4, 2006

Hey there,

I've got a 4.3L V6 as well, and also thought that louder meaner axhaust would be awsome to, so in August I installed dual exhaust with Flowmarster 40 series muffler(the loudest they offer)....BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER!!!...a month later I took it off and installed factory again. You CANNOT make a V6 sound good, (I ask around everywhere and tryed everything) it will allways buzz and sound like a 'lil Honda Civic. I know, it sucks, but quiet is better than sounding like a wannabe V8. The only way around it is to get a V8.

SSpeedin · December 5, 2006

yeah, i've got the same problem with my camaro too.. its a 95 3.8 v6, and i thought i could put exhaust on that too and make it sound good. the only way to make it sound good is to get borla or corsa exhaust, which wont make it sound like a v8, but will sound alright... except its like $700+ bucks... im thinkin i should just find a couple 350's and swap 'em in my vehicles.. LOL

ratchet · December 5, 2006

I used to have a 91 s10 blazer 4x4 with the 4.3. I put a single flowmaster super 40 series muffler on it and then ran a 2.5" pipe along the same route and the factory exhuast. It sounded very good. The super 40 series is a lot quieter that the regular 40 series. I constantly had people asking me how hard it was to swap a v8 into that blazer because it sounded just like it had one. Glass packs are a huge no no on anything but a v8.

Clavin78 · December 8, 2006

Hey there,
I've got a 4.3L V6 as well, and also thought that louder meaner axhaust would be awsome to, so in August I installed dual exhaust with Flowmarster 40 series muffler(the loudest they offer)....BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER!!!...a month later I took it off and installed factory again. You CANNOT make a V6 sound good, (I ask around everywhere and tryed everything) it will allways buzz and sound like a 'lil Honda Civic. I know, it sucks, but quiet is better than sounding like a wannabe V8. The only way around it is to get a V8.

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Really?...because I have an 03 4.3L with true dual flowmaster 40 original series cat back system and it sounds mean, everyone thinks its a v8...what I did was go to a custom exhaust place and they let me try on different mufflers to my choice

CHVYPWR · December 8, 2006

Go with a turbo muffler. Summit has their own line and they sound pretty good for the price. I've got the single outlet cat back on my 5.7 '98. The whole system was $189, + $14 shipping. A turbo style muffler wont be as hash and raspy as a glass pack, and if you go with a 3" outlet, it'll help deepen the tone as well.