[Rocky Rotella]

We’ve been running Flowmaster mufflers on our Trans Ams for several years because they retained the stock look (max ground clearance) and gave the cars a relatively good sound, but it wasn’t a true representation of what an original cross-flow muffler sounded like.

I grew increasingly intolerant of the “Flowmaster sound” over the past several months and I finally made the decision to replace the 42585 transverse-mount muffler on my 76 T/A with Pypes-type cross-flow tubing and a custom-made muffler by Tom Hand and Joe Tonietto at Waldron Exhaust. The muffler they made is essentially a clone of the unit included with the Pypes system, but because Tom had the material to create one laying around from another project, the price was “right.” I was very pleased with the result!

My dad’s ’72 T/A also uses a Flowmaster muffler, but his is the 42582, which maintains the stock cross-flow routing. He wanted a true cross-flow muffler so he could retain the car’s original sound, but those we’ve tried in the past were generally too quiet and too restrictive. We contacted Joe at Waldron Exhaust and explained to him that we wanted a “stock cross-flow muffler sound, but on steroids.”

Utilizing an original stock ’72 Firebird muffler as a template, Joe conferred with Tom Hand to enhance the stock design and create a real 70-74 Firebird cross-flow muffler that flows better than stock and at least as well as the 42582 Flowmaster muffler, and probably better. The stainless-steel unit arrived Weds and we had the chance to take a few pictures of it first. We just got back from the exhaust shop after having it installed and took several videos we posted on You Tube.

Idle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hbJ9niNB_Q

Idle w/rev http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvrf7VU9Xuk

Take-off http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Olc2WLb5Uwk

Drive-by http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MPZuAwWBNI

Accelerate http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3p4AuNzkI24

Full Throttle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PA1hqlXZI0

I think this muffler may be the best modern representation of what a stock ’72 Trans Am should sound like! I know we couldn’t be happier. It’s exact dimensions of the original muffler and fits as you’d expect, and the sound is enough to take you back to when these cars were new. The best part is, this muffler accentuates the true Firebird sound that we know and love, but probably forgot about! Enjoy!

[Zirconia]

Nice. I hear the crackle missing from other systems.

[SD73]

Those sound fantastic! Wow! Great filming too!

I've had an idea for muffler design for some time now, Rocky. Is Joe someone I could talk to about having something like that made up? Are the prices reasonable?

[keith k]

Rocky, I agree -- sounds just right, and very good.

Can he build more? I'd buy two...

It's set up for 2-1/2" pipes then?

[wwilder9]

Sounds great. Love the videos.

[eaglesan13]

Rocky,

I am interested in one of these if they are being produced. How about the rest of your exhaust, are you running 2.5 inch pipes, stock exhaust manifolds, ex-pipe? How is the cabin noise level?

Sounds real nice!!

Chris

[jmt455]

The muffler you are hearing is 2.25" X 2.25".
We can provide the original diameters (2.25" X 2.00"), (2.50" X 2.25" for SD).
We can also build 2.5" X 2.5", 3" X 2.5" and 3" X 3" versions.
The 3" units will be slightly more expensive because we have to plasma cut the holes in the end caps and internal plates (instead of the normal punching operation).

Pricing (diameters up to 2.5") is $139 for aluminized steel and $219 for T409 stainless.
You can call us to order: (800) 503-9428 or (269) 467-7185
We haven't added this muffler to our online catalog yet; it will be available online by Monday, Nov 2.
We'll be happy to make as many as you need!
Joe T

[Rocky Rotella]

Thanks for the comments guys. We’re very pleased with the result. We explained to Joe the sound we were after and he nailed it! I’m sure my Dad will reply with his thoughts, but I know we agree that this muffler gives this Firebird the sound it should have—a well-tuned, authoritative cross-flow sound that’s slightly louder than the stock muffler. The sound inside the car is essentially as quiet as a stock muffler. There’s very little resonance at any speed.

Our Trans Am uses RARE 2.5-inch RA-style manifolds with 2.5-inch mandrel bent lead pipes. There is no crossover of any type. The 2.5-inch pipe necks down to 2.25 immediately after the initial bend into the over-axle-pipe and its 2.25 that enters the muffler. The tail pipes are 2.25-inch tail pipes with NOS chrome extensions. 2.5-inch inlet pipes may flow a percent or two more, but it’s pretty tough to get smooth bends in that area, and 2.25-inch is likely plenty large for this particular application.

[Wareagle]

Sounds Tough - great -nice vids.

[J GLASGO]

Rocky,Sounds Good!Looks good too!

[4dblnkldude]

Man, Rocky you're obsessed with sound! I can't honestly say that I've ever heard a 2nd gen with a stock crossflow, then again probably have just never thought about it. It sounds to me like a stock on steroids representation. I take it the engine is stock? I myself am getting tired of the flowmaster sound, I put super 44's on last winter and don't like them. I still will like a performance muffler but one just not as loud. Anyway it sounds great and looks sweet too. I love those colors.

[68bird400HO]

Originally Posted by Rocky Rotella

....The muffler they made is essentially a clone of the unit included with the Pypes system, but because Tom had the material to create one laying around from another project, the price was “right.” I was very pleased with the result!

By clone, do you mean visually, or internally too?? How does the sound of the PYPES muffler compare to your new one.

[Rocky Rotella]

Originally Posted by 4dblnkldude

Man, Rocky you're obsessed with sound!

You know, I really am! To me there’s nothing more unappealing than a great looking car that doesn’t sound as it should and one that’s too boisterous for its appearance is a turnoff in my book. That’s not to say that the Flowmaster didn’t sound good on our cars, but I’ve grown a distinct appreciation for the stock muscle car sound.

In today’s world, the factory exhaust systems on modern performance cars are so efficient that installing an aftermarket system usually doesn’t grossly affect performance. And the designers know how to tune a muffler so it sounds great at idle, yet isn’t too loud, but really growls when standing on it.

Aftermarket exhaust systems are typically louder everywhere and the small case mufflers included in them usually muffle a minimal amount, which can translate noise into the passenger compartment. They may sound great at idle or WOT, but the constant buzz while running at part-throttle when out cruising or taking it out for a long ride simply gets old.

We took a series of videos of the Trans Am with the Flowmaster 42582 muffler in place and followed it with a series of videos using the new Waldron cross-flow. As I mentioned in a previous post, the Waldron muffler is very quiet inside while the Flowmaster is quite noisy. You can compare for yourself.

Flowmaster cross-flow inside up to 45 mph http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj8K211s6uQ

Waldron cross-flow inside up to 60 mph http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goV_EVuMBjo

Flowmaster cross-flow cruising 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxHAtSCRA20

Flowmaster cross-flow cruising 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4tObSngaXQ

Waldron cross-flow cruising http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vreK3vpAic4

[Rocky Rotella]

And for those who wonder what the 455 H.O. sounds like inside under heavy throttle with the Waldron cross-flow in place, here you go!

Acceleration 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rq-3H-wAf0E

Acceleration 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xfzl3CxyWE

Second-gear pull http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yn0AZERTDco

[Rocky Rotella]

Originally Posted by 68bird400HO

By clone, do you mean visually, or internally too?? How does the sound of the PYPES muffler compare to your new one.

The answer to this question can be somewhat misleading since the exhaust system ahead of the muffler on my Trans Am is so unique.

For the most part, the muffler Tom Hand created for me very much the same as the design he created for the Pypes system. So if the two mufflers were simply swapped on the same car, then yes, they should sound the same. If you're interested in learning more about it, I've started two separate posts about it with You Tube links for the video clips.

http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...d.php?t=608300

http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...d.php?t=612036

[Larry Navarro]

Rocky......It's interesting that your Dads exhaust system does not utilize a x- or h- crossover.
I am convinced that the whole crossflow sound is affected by a crossover setup, compared to using it on twin muffler system.
I have the Pypes setup on the '73 and it sounds VERY close to your Dads '72 but I feel that if I got rid of the "X", it would be "right on".
The X tends to mask the throaty and classic firebird tone.

[Jim Rotella]

I'm glad to see we're getting a lot of positive responses to the new muffler we're running on my Trans Am. Like Rocky, I've always enjoyed the sound of a nice high performance V8 engine. Growing up in the muscle car era of the 60's and 70's, I've always thought that a great exhaust note was one of the key ingredients to the total performance car package. I was always impressed with the sound of the early 2nd generation Formulas and Trans Ams. I had owned a '73 Formula 400 and I never forgot that throaty rumble.

When I acquired my Trans Am in 1987, the first thing I did was install a stock replacement crossflow muffler and a stock 2 1/4" exhaust routing. I was hoping to duplicate the original sound of an F bodied 455HO. It didn't sound close to what I was looking for. That set-up was much too quiet and very restrictive, so I replaced the crossflow with two turbo mufflers. They were very loud and they really didn't have that traditional Formula/Trans Am sound that I was familiar with.

When Flowmaster started to advertise their new stock replacement transverse dual inlet/dual outlet muffler, I thought it would be a great muffler to use with the stock F boby exhaust routing. At the time, I was very happy with the Flowmaster sound, especially at idle and full throttle. Over the years, I became very tired of the cabin noise and the constant dronning at cruising speed, but I figured I'd just have to live with it. But when Tom Hand and Joe Toniello got together and fixed Rocky up with his muffler, I knew there was hope. Rocky and I met Joe at the co-convention in Dayton this year and we started talking mufflers. Eventually, we came up with the "stock muffler on steriods request" and Joe said he could put one together for us. Needless to say, I'm very happy with it. To me, it represents that original 455 HO and SD 455 sound, yet it is fairly quiet at crusing speed.

This muffler combined with new 2 1/2" RARE SD-type manifolds and 2 1/2" mandrill bent head pipes seems pretty efficient. It doesn't feel to me like there is any drawback on performance, so I am very happy with the results.

[Transamric]

Not trying to crash the party here, but has anyone tried the stock replacement muffler Classic sells? They use a Walker number, 21696, although I'm sure it's not made by Walker.
Over this last year, my '70 TA's muffler has gotten very holey & sounds ratty. The rest of the system is factory original, & this #21696 is the only direct fit part I could find. But looking in the ends of it, might be pretty restrictive & closer to dead quiet, which isn't what I want.
So hard to know if we're getting an accurate representation of the true sound of the Rotellas' TA. Consider the little mic in the handheld camera, through the net, & out our usually tiny computer speakers. The only way to know for sure would be to hear it in person. But I (we) do appreciate all the work & effort, Rocky. It's certainly better than nothing at all!.

[2blue71TAs]

Hi Rocky,

I had the Pipes system installed on both my 4-spd and auto, and just could not stand the "crackle" sound.
I'm now running walker duals, but the drone at cruising speeed is a bummer.

Is the muffler you and Tom developed for sell?


I'd like to start with one, and see how it goes.

Thanks,
RC

[Rocky Rotella]

RC, Joe at Waldron Exhaust can set you up with one. Give him a call!