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Side exhaust system for BJ8
- Thread starter skipmurf
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Randy Forbes
Yoda
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Get some half-decent period pictures, and go talk to your local muffler shop guys. Half of them are hot-rodders or racers anyway, so they'd probably be glad to see a little diversity.
Probably should get the tips you want to (trip over...) ahead of time.
When I got my Healey in 1978, it was fitted with that exact muffler setup. A few tips, learned by (poor judgement leading to bad) experience:
Don't have friends stand next to the door talking to you when you start the engine, or you'll dump condensate on their sneakers. Another Healey owner around the block from me in San Francisco used to get me with that one all the time!
Make sure the belt of your Cardigan Sweater is ALL THE WAY inside the car before closing the door; I melted the end of mine on a trip home from San Rafael one night. Fortunately, the secretary at Austin-Healey West, where I was employed enjoyed knitting, and completely unraveled it and re-knitted it without the burned part.
And lastly, you won't impress any pretty young girls when you disembark, tripping over the tips sticking out from under the body.
Probably should get the tips you want to (trip over...) ahead of time.
When I got my Healey in 1978, it was fitted with that exact muffler setup. A few tips, learned by (poor judgement leading to bad) experience:
Don't have friends stand next to the door talking to you when you start the engine, or you'll dump condensate on their sneakers. Another Healey owner around the block from me in San Francisco used to get me with that one all the time!
Make sure the belt of your Cardigan Sweater is ALL THE WAY inside the car before closing the door; I melted the end of mine on a trip home from San Rafael one night. Fortunately, the secretary at Austin-Healey West, where I was employed enjoyed knitting, and completely unraveled it and re-knitted it without the burned part.
And lastly, you won't impress any pretty young girls when you disembark, tripping over the tips sticking out from under the body.
RAC68
Darth Vader
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Hi All,
In the mid 1970s I also installed a Stebro side exhaust on my 64 BJ8 Phase 1 after tearing the original muffler setup off when passing over a railroad crossing one night (Phase 1 BJ8s have the original 100/6 low suspension). To protect the Stebro from a similar road hazard, I welded skid straps down the bottom of the mufflers that raised on an upward angle in front. These straps allowed the muffler to slide up and over most familiar road hazards without catching and extended the life of the system until NJ State Motor Vehicle Inspection failed side exhaust exits on cars. Although I really thought the Stebro side exit was "COOL" looking and the sound great, I often wonder ed if my lower level of hearing in my left ear was from their use.
Enjoy the Holidays,
Ray(64BJ8P1)
In the mid 1970s I also installed a Stebro side exhaust on my 64 BJ8 Phase 1 after tearing the original muffler setup off when passing over a railroad crossing one night (Phase 1 BJ8s have the original 100/6 low suspension). To protect the Stebro from a similar road hazard, I welded skid straps down the bottom of the mufflers that raised on an upward angle in front. These straps allowed the muffler to slide up and over most familiar road hazards without catching and extended the life of the system until NJ State Motor Vehicle Inspection failed side exhaust exits on cars. Although I really thought the Stebro side exit was "COOL" looking and the sound great, I often wonder ed if my lower level of hearing in my left ear was from their use.
Enjoy the Holidays,
Ray(64BJ8P1)
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CLEAH
Jedi Warrior
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Skip, Denis Welch offers them: https://www.bighealey.co.uk/healey-exhaust/3000
Keoke
Great Pumpkin
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YEP lotsa folks ,but just skip it and avoid the consequences.-----:grief:
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This is what the hot rodders would do. Get a couple of bullet style Thrush mufflers: https://www.thrushexhaust.com/mufflers/thrush-glasspack-muffler Take them to your local custom exhaust guy (they may actually sell them) and have them welded in where you want them. They can then bend up tubing to make them exit on the side. These are glasspacks and they will be loud. The longer in length the glasspack you buy, the quieter it will be. If they are too loud, you can search for some resonator chrome exhaust tips to quiet them down.
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I just used a stock replacement muffler from Moss and had a local shop make a couple of 60deg bends in some exhaust pipe. When I got them home, I trimmed them to fit, made a hanger out of some bar stock and threaded rod to attach to the exhaust hanger on the rear outrigger, painted it all black except for the tips, which are silver.
To add to Randy's list, your Club friends will appreciate it if you are the last car on the left when parked in a line.
To add to Randy's list, your Club friends will appreciate it if you are the last car on the left when parked in a line.
Bob Claffie
Jedi Knight
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Back in the day a friend used a stock muffler and made a couple extensions for out the side out of some cheap (at the time) copper tubing and put the works together with a low power plumbers torch (actually soldered together). Total cost under $10.00
Bob_Spidell
Yoda
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Variation on a theme (maybe a little cheaper):
https://www.autoaccessoriesgarage.com/Exhaust/Heartthrob-Glasspack-Muffler
I got a set for my BJ8 and stitched them into an Ansa system. They bark loud, and people sometimes think I have a V8 (the heresy!). Nothing special about glasspacks; they're tubes within tubes packed with fiberglass or steel wool, both of which get burned-out or blown out eventually.
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You hit the nail on the head!
Protect your hearing, side exhausts are not good for it. After hearing aids no longer work comes Cochlear Implant(s).
bob hughes
Luke Skywalker
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I have a stock exhaust on my BJ7 and I find that just putting the soft top up increases the DBs inside the car for some reason. I would love a side exhaust just for the ground clearance factor but the increase in noise would send me around the bend especially with the soft top up.
Bob
Bob
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The side exhaust I had on the 100 for several years, during which I made a couple of long trips, pretty much finished off what little hearing I had left over from too many hours sitting in a diesel boat's ER. I now wear a set of good hearing aids and generally take them out when driving the Healey. I always use ear protection when racing--it actually helps me focus.
Thanks. This looks like the right solution. Actually made for the car and described as a silencer. Everyone warns about the Hearing loss, mine's already lost. I don't remember the noise being an issue when I was younger, but that may be because I was younger. Looking forward to meeting you when the weather gets nice here in Cleveland in about 6 months!
Randy Forbes
Yoda
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That's a good tip too, so you know what I meant by the sneakers and standing next to it. The worst part was the condensate stain wouldn't wash out of my socks!
My wife's an AuD (now retired, sort of...) and she forbade me to go deaf!
Most of my working career was in an industrial environment, and it's just second nature to put in ear-plugs (I have fitted/molded ones and also use the foam ones on occasion too), I wear them in the shop whenever I'm being especially noisy.
Of course like most males >60, I have some HF-loss, but that's life!
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I wear hearing protection in/on my left ear when driving.