29 Nov Best Maserati GranTurismo Exhaust?
What ultimately makes for a “good” exhaust system? Is it the loudness of the exhaust? How it performs? What about how good it looks? Maybe its a combination of these that makes for a good system? We feel the custom exhaust we fabricated for this Maserati GranTurismo is a prime example of what makes for a “good” system, maybe even the Best Maserati GranTurismo Exhaust?
When you’re looking for a way to add power, sound, and remove some weight, an exhaust is a great way to add a bit of your personality to your car. A person who cares strictly about functionality may choose to go with a budget exhaust. As with most things in ln life, you do get what you pay for. Much the same way that a Casio watch and a Rolex both tell time, a budget exhaust and high-end exhaust (such as one of our custom setups) both allow the engine to breath better, save weight and give a louder exhaust note. However, it’s the details that make the difference. A system that uses technologically superior materials, expert engineering, and craftsmanship from a skilled fabricator can accomplish things that the budget setup just can’t.
A great example is a term that is often thrown around called “drone”. Drone is a sound resonance that can creep in at a given rpm and throttle position. The drone will resonate with the materials of the vehicle causing an annoying hum or buzz in the vehicle’s cabin. Many purveyors of budget systems may say that drone is a byproduct of the power increase that the free flowing exhaust system delivers. This in not entirely true. While drone may still be present to some degree on a well-designed system, a good fabricator should be able to tell you with confidence that it will be at a negligible level.
As goes in business, you want to be able to buy (or build) for a low price and sell for a high price. This is very true with many of these companies that have their domestically designed systems produced in high volume in countries with low production costs. A system that is built this way will always have trouble competing with a system that is built by people who believe they are craftsmen. While power levels, weight, and volume can be equal between budget and premium systems, things like drone, tone, finish, and fitment can never be matched equally. This can be this difference between a system that hurts the value of your vehicle and one that leaves it intact.
Why buy a custom exhaust system? A custom exhaust allows you a choice. You want loudness but also want a clean, rasp free tone on acceleration? A well-built custom exhaust can do this and more. Imagine having volume under full throttle, but while cruising you have a drone free drive that won’t give you a headache or get you pulled over by the police. Some people like knowing that what they have is built by a craftsman who put time and effort into a unique piece on their car. Have a car that doesn’t have a lot of aftermarket support or has a unique combination of mods? Again, a custom exhaust is for you.
What does a custom exhaust cost? While the very nature of the word custom makes it hard to pin down an exact cost to every system, we can give an idea of what’s typical. For a catalytic convertor back single exit 4 cylinder system, the pricing usually starts in the ballpark of $2k plus. Inline six single exit starts just below $3k. Dual exits on V-bank (ie v6, v8) configuration cylinder is $3-5k depending, and 10 and 12cyl are $5k and up. These are starting ballparks for basic setups that would include a straight through high flow design, muffling that would minimize drone and maximize horsepower, tig welded with 304 stainless and an x-pipe crossover.
If there is one thing that I would want the reader to take away from this article, it is that a good custom exhaust tig welded out of stainless is never cheaper than the lowest price offering out there. If you are looking for a budget friendly exhaust, take you chances finding a well-reviewed mass produced product, or maybe a muffler shop can make something mig welded out of mild steel that will last a few years. If you have to have the best with no compromises, custom will always be the way to go.
Want to read more on our exhaust system philosophy? Check out these posts.
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If you are looking for a stainless steel, custom exhaust, or Best Maserati GranTurismo Exhaust… email [email protected], and swing by our Chicago land location in Naperville for a free consultation!
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