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Exhaust Systems

An exhaust system reduces pollutant gases generated by combustion in the engine from being emitted. The remaining exhaust gases are then discharged at a suitable place on the vehicle (the exhaust).

On most stock production cars, the manufacturers try to make the exhaust system as quiet as possible. They do this to try and please most people. But if you’re the kind of person who likes a car to be loud, an aftermarket exhaust system is the way to go.

An exhaust system is made up of mostly 3 parts

Catalytic converter

A catalytic converter is an exhaust gas cleaning devise used to reduce the toxicity of the emissions from an internal combustion engine. For spark ignition engines, the most widely used catalytic converter is the three way converter. It is mounted as close to the engine as possible so the engine can reach its optimum temperature and therefore being more efficient in normal day to day driving conditions. Exhaust emissions play a big part in the passing of a mot test in Great Britain. That’s why it is important to keep it in good condition, and if you are going to upgrade to a performance exhaust system, you should check that the emissions it produces are not over the legal limit.

Silencers

A silencer (or muffler in American English) is a devise for reducing the amount of noise made in internal combustion engines. More than one silencer can be used depending on the size of the vehicle and engine. This is most common on v engines where the cylinder banks are run separately and brought together at the end of the vehicle in a large silencer.

Exhaust pipes

Exhaust pipes collect gases from the cylinder heads into one or more pipes known as manifolds. Manifolds on stock production cars are often produced to use the least metal possible therefore lowering the production costs. These restrictions often result in inefficient venting of gases from the engine.