uh oh not this question again.... i'll end it before it gets out of hand... lol! it depends but from the sound of it... just run 2-1/2
In reality ONE 3" pipe will support a mild 302... But, if you just wanna add the weight and expense to your car, it is your choice. It will look mean and sound good, but that's about all it will do until you pump your engine up a whole bunch. Edit: I am assuming you mean dual 3" exhaust. If you mean you want a single 3", personally I think that is a great idea.
Sorry I didn't search because I didn't know this question was asked a lot And yeah I mean dual 3 inch
LOL...you didn't search very hard then. 3" exhaust in your application should not increase performance over 2.5" exhaust.
I know of many LS1 Camaro/TAs that run 400+ RWHP with a SINGLE 3" exhaust. Just gotta make sure that you use 'mandrel' bent pipe. 2.5" mandrel pipe will flow more than 3" pinch bent, for example. Larger pipe also adds more weight than you would think. Gotta always remember the rule of thumb that 100 lbs = 10 rwhp = .10 in the quarter. It adds up. Just some thoughts. Dave
I'm asking because I plan on running a side exhaust set up (exit in front of back tire) so I'm thinking that the 2.5inch exhaust will look too small in comparison with the 3inch. And I know that the 3inch exhaust won't give me better performance so I'm not looking at that aspect of things. The headers I have have a 3inch collector, so I don't want to reduce that to 2.5inches than back up to 3inch for the exit. If some one has any ideas please let me know
I agree with Dave. If you are planning to run duals, you should go with 2 1/2" pipes. The header will need a reducer to bring it back down to the right size. These are readly available anywhere headers are sold. It wont hurt your performance a bit and you can simply run a 3" section at the outlet to get the look you desire. Running 3" exhaust is a big waste unless your engine is built pretty wild. In most cases, you will lose performance by going too big on the exhaust on a mild sml. blk. Hope this helps. Jamie
3" is too big. It'll lose so much bottom end power with that big ol' pipe on there that it won't even idle below 2000 RPM Seriously, if you can fit it in there, put it on. If you're going with side exit, go with 3" minimum. 3.5" preferred or even 4" for the tips. Just smash the end of it down so it's oval shaped.
I like this answer the best and I read all of 'em. At the time of this writing T.L.'s was the last post.
Thanks guys. I'll run a reducer from my collector to make it 2 1/2inch pipe and use a bigger tip to get my desired look I also plan on running cut outs probably so I can just get a cut out to match up with the 3inch collector and get the 2 1/2inch outlet from the cutout.
