Fox exhaust for your Panther
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The easy solution for the exhaust system seemed to be to install a Summit Racing Mustang H-pipe and flow tubes, as they bolt up to the Mustang headers with no modifications, plus I already had them. All I needed was a pair of plugs for the O2 sensor holes. Though some parts guys would holler and scream if they'd seen me doing it ("That shouldn't fit anything but a Mustang"), I cut the hangers off the pipe and bolted it on - and it fit surprisingly well. However, loudness ensued because I didn't have any tailpipes. I couldn't take the noise with turndowns exiting the Flowmaster mufflers I'd bought for the other car, so I took a gamble and ordered a set of Summit Racing 2.5" Mustang tailpipes. Would you believe it, they also fit pretty well, except for the bend after the axle where they plunged down to within about 4" of the pavement. My initial solution was to cut them off and stick on the spouts I'd been using for turndowns, but soon toned things down a tad more by substituting a pair of cheap 45-degree bends, thus approximating the exit location of the original tailpipe from the '87 wagon (Walker PN 44660).
Next I decided the resonance of the Flowmasters was still too much, so I got a set of economy replacement mufflers that cut things down even more without costing an arm and a leg. After all, Flowmasters sound great (if a bit loud) at 3,000-5,000 RPM, but with a 2.26:1 rear gear and a mostly-stock automatic with a stock converter, how much time do you spend in that RPM range? I found my engine was spending most of its time around 2,000-2,500 RPM, which seems to be just where a lot of performance exhausts resonate the worst. So on went a set of $20 economy mufflers from the local PartsAmerica store. They had the stock Crown Vic case size (7.25x9.75x19" long), and sound just like the Walker SoundFX model. I wasn't able to find a 2.5" in/out on the spot, so I settled for a 2.25" outlet, and reversed the mufflers and added adapters.
The next change is happening right now. The Colony Park is running and driving, and needs tailpipes, and with me getting tired of even the reduced resonance with the economy mufflers on the Squire, I figured if I could approximate a stock exhaust on the Squire, I could move the performance pipes to the Colony Park, which needs them more anyway, and perhaps have the best setup all around. Just today I installed hangers on a muffler and stock tailpipe on the passenger side, and the driver side tailpipe should be here by tomorrow. The best part of the factory-spec pipes is the tiny 2" diamter, which is bad for mega power but fine for this particular application - especially with larger pipes farther upstream - and the fact that the wagon dual pipes exit way at the back of the car, away from the rust holes that have been helping let in the exhaust noise thus far. I think the NAPA guy thought I was nuts when he realized that none of my part numbers are actually for the model years I'm working on, but the pre-'90 pipes mysteriously cost a good deal more than the '90-'91 part number, so you can guess what I went with. A factory Crown Vic H-pipe costs more than the aftermarket one I'm using, and would require a bunch of additional fabrication and general headache to use with shorty headers and no cats, so I'm keeping the Summit H-pipe, even though smaller tubes would be better for the mild motor at low revs. The exact mufflers I went with are Walker SoundFX/NAPA Soundmasters for an '89 Caprice - 2.25" in, 2" out, same case size as the Crown Vic. I'll include some pics of the new "stock" system soon.
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Update: After driving for a couple days with mismatched tailpipes, I picked up the second tailpipe, #46808. NAPA had this one shipped from Indy since it wasn't in their normal courier system, and would you believe UPS dinged them about $25 for it? But I have it when I need it, which is now. I've had some headaches with this install, as the old driver's side tailpipe REFUSED to come out of the muffler, despite the fact that I tried very hard not to over-tighten the clamp when I installed it originally. And it's awkward rolling around with an exhaust pipe under a rusty car in an apartment parking lot where most everyone else drives ritzy new stuff - but oh well. No one locally seemed to have heard of the nifty EZ-Pull pipe separator you can get from Summit Racing, so I chose a place where a repair would be convenient and cut the poor thing. Disappointing, but much less frustrating than the time I spent yesterday trying to pull it apart by hand. Oh, and I damaged the fuel tank yesterday whilst wrestling with the silly pipe, so that's going to need patching once I locate the leak. Bother and all, but the car's getting really nice and quiet. And best of all, it's performing considerably better at the low revs where it actually operates.
