IN THE SEARCH FOR added profit centers for your business, don't forget to look underneath your customers' vehicles. Installing aftermarket cat-back exhaust systems - the section from the catalytic converter to the exhaust tip - can be an undiscovered gold mine of potential sales.
The systems are fairly easy to install utilizing factory hangers (a vehicle lift makes it even easier), and because they attach at the catalytic converter, there are no concerns about emissions problems. And they really do provide tangible gains in power.
Here's why. The curves in a factory exhaust system are press bent, the most practical and cheapest technique for mass producing exhaust piping. Unfortunately, pipes that have been press bent are unavoidably kinked and pinched wherever the exhaust configuration requires a bend in the system to fit properly. Such kinks restrict the flow of exhaust gases.
On the other hand, most aftermarket cat-back systems are
|
|
mandrel bent, a technique by which the diameter of the pipe is maintained throughout the system and there are no kinks or pinches, even in the most severe bends. Tests show that the unrestricted flow of exhaust gases makes for better engine performance.
Specific cat-back applications are available for many of today's popular vehicles, and most provide a deeper, richer exhaust tone that car enthusiasts love. The price is usually right, too.
To see just what's involved in a typical cat-back install, we visited MagnaFlow/CarSound in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., a manufacturer of aftermarket exhaust systems, where the installation team was hooking up a prototype Wide Open cat-back for the new Lincoln LS. (The installation vehicle is owned by Brian Gowing, founder and president of the Lincoln LS Owners Club).
When perfected, the new MagnaFlow system will also fit the 2002 Ford Thunderbird and some Jaguar models. The accompanying photos show the highlights of the installation.
|
