When you step on that gas pedal and rev your engine, are you treated to a strong throaty roar or merely a tamer purr? If the sounds coming out of your exhaust system too anemic for your liking, you may want to consider straight piping.
Many sports car owners have modified their vehicle with some form of straight pipe exhaust, but this mod not just limited to muscle cars. Truck owners too can have fun modifying their exhaust sounds and tweaking performance. A straight pipe mod wholly changes how your car or truck feels at a surprisingly low upfront price.
Table of Contents
- But how much does straight piping a vehicle cost?
- What is Straight Piping?
- Types of Straight Pipe Kits
- Universal Straight Pipe Exhaust Kit
- Pre-Formed Straight Pipe Exhaust Kit Cost
- Where to Buy a Straight Pipe Exhaust Kit
- General Online Marketplaces
- Online Car Accessory Marketplaces
- Physical Auto parts Store
- How Much Does It Cost to Get Straight Pipes Installed?
- Factors that Affect the Price of Professional Straight Pipe Installation
- Find Straight Pipe Cost Near You
- Cost to Install Straight Pipes Yourself
- Tools Needed for a DIY Straight Pipe Install
- Other (Unexpected) Straight Pipe Exhaust Costs
- Loud Exhaust Ticket Cost
- Penalty for Removing Catalytic Converter
- Cost of Reverting Back to Your Stock Exhaust
- Straight Pipe Exhaust Benefits
- Cons of Straight Piping
- Alternatives to Straight Piping
- Glasspack Exhaust
- Cat-Back Exhaust
- Muffler Delete
But how much does straight piping a vehicle cost?
We called twenty-five automotive shops around the country to gather price quotes on various vehicles. Here’s what we found:
The cost of straight piping varies depending on the method and type of straight pipe system you choose, your vehicle, and your method of installation.
On average, the cost to straight pipe a car or truck is between $100 to over $1,500. More expensive options exceeding $2,500 are available in custom kits.
Since installing a straight pipe alters the flow of your engine exhaust, it is not a job to be taken lightly. Whether installing a straight pipe yourself or leaving it to the professionals, it’s best to research the subject first.
Keep reading to learn more about what straight piping does as well as straight pipe kit choices, installation options, factors that impact pricing, and even alternatives to straight piping
What is Straight Piping?
Straight piping is a type of performance modification typically done on sports cars or trucks with dual exhaust systems. Classic cars with V8 engines are prime candidates for straight piping.
A standard stock exhaust system includes a muffler to dampen engine sound and a catalytic converter to filter gases and lower emissions. A side effect of the converter is a decreased exhaust gas air flow rate, and a corresponding decrease in the air intake rate for the engine. The lower intake rate can mean reduced horsepower and vehicle responsiveness.
A full straight pipe system eliminates both the muffler and converter, instead installing a simple piece of pipe to carry exhaust gases from the engine to the tailpipe. This leads to a louder engine sound and modest performance gains.
Some variations of the straight pipe leave the converter but install a larger exhaust pipe downstream and change out or remove the muffler.
SEMA Action Network map highlighting the relevant state laws pertaining to your situation.
Unfortunately, while some states have set an objective measurement of what is considered too loud, other states will leave it up to the discretion of the police officer. In these states, the officer is the ultimate judge of whether your exhaust is considered excessively loud and thus deserving of a ticket.
Penalty for Removing Catalytic Converter
Catalytic converters debuted in 1968 and are now mandatory in most areas for all on-road vehicles built after ‘68. A catalytic converter is responsible for converting the harmful byproducts from engine combustion into safer compounds before the exhaust exits your tailpipe.
Full straight piping of a car or truck including the removal of the catalytic converter causes an increase in emissions. While most states treat the penalty for excessive noise relatively softly, penalties tied to the removal of your catalytic converter are often much greater.
Fines for a missing catalytic converter can go up to $10,000 per case.
Since it’s visually impossible to tell if a car has its catalytic converter or not without getting under the vehicle, fines for missing converters are typically levied in states like California and New York that mandate periodic emissions testing.
Cost of Reverting Back to Your Stock Exhaust
Eventually, there will be a time when you are ready to part ways with your car. Unfortunately, it will always be much harder to sell a car that has been significantly modified. Your possible pool of buyers will be limited to just those with the same taste.
If you want to cast a wider net, you will have to revert your exhaust back to its stock version.
Keeping your original exhaust system and components is helpful. If you don’t keep your original exhaust, repurchasing the equipment could become costly.
Thankfully the system won’t have to be new, so you can save some money on a used set, but you will still end up paying anywhere from a few hundred dollars to over a thousand dollars for materials in addition to the labor costs.
If you have your original stock equipment, swapping your straight pipe exhaust back out should cost between $100 and $300 if you have a shop do it, or just your time if you do the job yourself.
Straight Pipe Exhaust Benefits
Most car enthusiasts associate the more powerful sounding roar of the engine as the only real benefit of a straight pipe exhaust. However, there are other reasons you may want to straight pipe.
The main benefits of a straight pipe exhaust are:
- Louder exhaust noise
- Better exhaust tone
- Increased horsepower
- Reduced vehicle weight
- Increased fuel economy
- More fuel options (if catalytic converter is removed)
Of course, the primary reasons many owners decide to straight pipe are louder exhaust noise and better exhaust tone. A straight piped muscle car or truck sounds more aggressive and more powerful than the same vehicle running a stock exhaust system with muffler (note that this pro can also be a con for some people).
In addition, a straight piped exhaust is more free flowing with less back pressure on the engine. This allows the engine to run a little more openly and can easily add 10-20 more horsepower. It’s far from the most drastic mod, but it does provide a little boost, especially if combined with other modifications like performance chips.
Along with the increase in power, shedding the additional weight of mufflers and catalytic converters makes your car lighter. So not only does a straight pipe exhaust increase power, but it can also bring down the overall weight of your car. This should bring you a slight but perhaps noticeable difference in your straight-line acceleration.
In addition, a straight pipe exhaust could see an increase in fuel economy. With a lighter car and less back pressure, the engine can work a little more efficiently. Once again, it won’t be a dramatic increase, but it’s nice to know that along with the boost in performance and sound, your fuel economy won’t even take a hit.
Speaking of fuel, if you do a full straight pipe mod that includes catalytic converter removal, although your vehicle won’t be road legal in most areas, you do get the benefit of being able to run high-performance fuels rather than needing the unleaded option.
Cons of Straight Piping
As excited as you are about jumping into straight piping your rig, take a moment to consider the possible drawbacks of straight piping too.
The main downsides of straight piping are:
- Louder exhaust noise
- Potential for excessive noise tickets
- Increased ambient noise inside vehicle
- Penalties for removing catalytic converter
- Increased emissions
- Could trigger vehicle fault code
As we mentioned earlier, the louder exhaust noise can be either a pro or con. To your neighbors who hear you leaving for work at 6 am, the noise is definitely a con. Those neighbors may just decide to call law enforcement and complain, potentially sticking you with an excessive noise violation ticket.
Remember as well that with straight pipes, the noise inside your vehicle also increases and can exceed 100 decibels. Extended exposure to that level of noise while driving can cause hearing loss.
Removing the catalytic converter means increased emissions as well as a potential ticket for failing to pass smog testing, depending on where you live and drive the vehicle.
Pro Tip: When doing any kind of straight pipe mod, pay attention to the location of inline sensors. If you install straight pipe forward of the final sensor you could trigger a vehicle fault code.Alternatives to Straight Piping
Straight piping might be the most well-known type of exhaust system mod, but it is certainly not the only option. If you like the idea of a full straight pipe system but need to leave the catalytic converter on or don’t want quite so loud an exhaust sound, there are other alternatives.
Pro Tip: Consider installing a glass pack, otherwise known as a through muffler. You could also choose a cat-back exhaust system or a muffler delete.Glasspack Exhaust
A glasspack or through muffler mod involves swapping out your stock muffler for one that is padded with fiberglass. Like a straight pipe, glasspacks also enhance exhaust sound and give a slight 20 horsepower boost due to reduced engine backpressure.
Many car mod enthusiasts find the sound of a glasspack to be more “mature” and “pleasant” compared with straight pipes. Check out this glassback vs straight pipe comparison video to hear the difference for yourself.
An added advantage is that glasspack installation is easy. All you need to do is remove the stock muffler and swap in the glasspack. The catalytic converter is left intact, and you do technically have a muffler, so your vehicle is still road legal in most states. You may still run into excessive noise violation issues however, since a glasspack is louder than a stock muffler.
Cat-Back Exhaust
A cat-back exhaust system is so named because it leaves everything stock from the catalytic converter forward. This system upgrades your vehicle to a more efficient larger diameter mid- pipe, muffler, and tailpipe.
The cat-back exhaust gives similar weight reduction, fuel economy, horsepower, and exhaust tone gains to straight piping, however since the new components of a cat-back system are all installed after the converter, a vehicle with this mod will still pass emissions testing and can legally be driven on-road.
Muffler Delete
A final alternative to straight piping is a muffler delete. As it sounds, a muffler delete involves removing the muffler. The catalytic converter is still in place, so you won’t fail any emissions tests with a muffler delete, but you may run into noise violations. You will get a minor 5 horsepower gain from this mod.
The exhaust noise from a muffler delete is louder than a glasspack and not quite as loud as a full straight pipe. Check out this muffler delete vs straight pipes comparison video to hear the difference for yourself.
Straight Piping Key Takeaways
Once you’ve done all the research and know what you’re getting into, straight piping your vehicle can be a fun and exciting mod. Straight piping and similar alternatives give you modest performance gains while making a huge difference in the sound of your exhaust system.
When it comes to price, a DIY universal straight pipe install can be completed for as little as $100 (assuming you already have all the tools), while an expertly installed elaborate custom straight pipe system can cost over $2,500.