I have a 1986 Chevy Caprice 8Cyl. 5L. Gas, Carb: VINH That has a exhaust system with a Catalytic Converters and a muffler.(Only one pipe) I want my car to run better and go a little faster. What should I buy? And can I upgrade anything else to make it faster? P.S. I just put a new holley carburetor in and the motor is only 3yr. old.
Changing your exhaust system will give you better performance. A dual exhaust system will increase h.p. by letting the exhaust out faster. And I've heard that it uses less gas I don't know bout that part since I've got a lead foot anyways. The less restrictions that are in the system the better as far as the catylic system you'd have to check your laws most places require them to pass annual inspections. I've put Borla mufflers on mine they've got the most open space thru them. The fewer baffles in them the better. Bigger diameter pipes are good also. You could upgrade the air intake to increase some to, the more air you can get to the engine the more power you have. Such as ram air systems or have you tried finding a KN air filter. Your plugs wires have an impact on performance as well. Hope it helps.
Not really. A free flowing exhaust will only add performance gains if the other areas of the engine are modified as well such as the air intake and the fuel system. A free flowing exhaust will only help flow more air if the engine is breathing more air through the intake. After the exhaust and intake are improved, then the restriction becomes the cylinder heads along with the intake manifold. You are better off spending the money on engine upgrades such as a performance camshaft, roller rocker arms(possibly even upgraded rocker arm ratio from 1.5 to 1.6), and intake manifold and carb. Headers are another area to add some performance gain. but just adding a performance exhaust won't help you much at all.
put on a set of exhaust headers with a dual 2.5 exhaust system and flowmaster super 44 mufflers, also get a KN air filter for your carb, that should give you a good taste of more speed.
