GotaNeed4Speed6

well i just bought a new muffler for my 1997 integra gs, and i just have the muffler. And i was looking at it i noticed that my OEM muffler has a bent tube conecting the muffler to another tube. I belive that the bent tube is called a mandrel bent tube, correct me if i am wrong. And i was wondering if the best idea to put on the new muffler is to cut the mandrel bent tube, or get a new mandrel bent all together.. PLEASE HELP!

Thank you

TheOtherDave™

If all you're doing is replacing the rear muffler, I'd just buy a coupling from your local auto parts store and use it to join the old tubing to the new muffler.

Trying to find a replacement tube won't be easy, and unless the original tubing is severely rusted, there's no real advantage to replacing the stock tubing.

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There is one correction to make: "Mandrel-bent" tubing refers to the method by which tubing is bent, not the shape of the tubing in general.

Mandrel-bending requires the use of hardened steel forms called mandrels, which maintain a constant internal diameter throughout the bend. It's a slower, more costly method of bending tubing; most OEM car manufacturers do not use this method for fabricating their exhaust systms.

Instead, most OEMs use crush-bent tubing. The tubing is heated and set in a clamping rig that quickly produces segmented curves by rapidly bending the tubing without the use of mandrel forms. These bends are visible from the outdside by a series of ridges that are a by-product of uneven wall thickness. Internally, the diameter of the pipe is not constant; the tighter the bend, the narrower the internal diameter. Gas flow suffers as a result of the decrease in diameter.

SP00NFed

what you have purchased is a universal muffler....

the easiest thing might be to bring it to a muffler shop and have them weld it on...welcome to han!

dubcac

Yeah...take it to a muffler shop and have them weld it, if all you got was a muffler.

TheOtherDave™

We don't know that for sure... there's still hope that he's just replacing an OEM muffler with a equivalent 3rd party muffler.

PimestiLL

this is not true i happen to work at a muffler shop i'd say to go with 2 1/4 catback welded in custom bent with a Tubemaster custom pipe bender.... i've always had great results i do ruffly 10 integra's a week...

Provocateur

You took that out of context...

The same size piping will not help at all, but what you are talking about is a 1/4" difference from stock piping, so of course it will make a little difference.

GotaNeed4Speed6

well i have a universal muffler

but what you guys are saying is just take it to a shop to have them weld it...how much should that set me back?... and would any auto body shop do that for me?

thank you

shirley

he wasnt refering to changing stock pipe for performance purposes, he was merely stating that in this guys case only replacing the stock muffler with equivelent stock muffler there was no reason to touch the stock piping if it was still in good shape.

TheOtherDave™

You took what I said out of context.

Yes, a 2.25" ID exhaust will increase exhaust flow, but the original poster has expressed no interest in a cat-back exhaust.

Re-read his initial post. From what I can see, it would appear that he is only replacing the rear muffler with what I assume is an identical part..