Exhaust pipe for FMIC?

[phunny]

Through all my reading I still haven't seen a definate YES or NO to using exhaust piping for intercooler piping. Any of you just have some bends made at your muffler shop? And dont muffler shops have wrinkles in the pipe after its bent?

Thanks alot

 

[bluetlr2001]

You can use exhaust pipe to do your intercooler pipes. Alot of people do that. But as far as the wrinkles thats only in mandrel bent pipes. When they bend them with there bending machine it just presses the pipe to form it to the bends. Unless there using a mandrel bending machine. Which most exhaust shops dont use one of them. Just a regualr bending machine, cant remember what its called.

 

[spoonman]

I made my pipes out of 2 1/2 steel pipe from the exhaust shop, cost a lot less than the polished kits.

 

[xveganxcowboyx]

There is no real "exhaust" pipe. There is steel (stainless, mild, aluminized) and aluminum. Most people use aluminum for weight savings, but there is no reason you can't use steel. I do.

Beyond that, there is crush bent and mandrel bent. Due to the sharp turns usually needed to do a decent intercooler setup mandrel is far superior. The other option is to buy straight pipes and use silicone couplers for your turns.

 

[90laserRSfwd]

the def. answer for you is YES... and there are options like the others above have stated

 

[desolateboosted]

piping is piping it will work regardless. The piping that comes in FMIC kits usually different gauge & are lighter and so have thinner walls.

 

[Mr Peepers]

piping is piping it will work regardless. The piping that comes in FMIC kits usually different gauge & are lighter and so have thinner walls.

Exactly. You can use steel, aluminum, gold etc and as long as it has smooth bends, will hold up to the heat/pressure, and a relatively smooth inner surface it will work just as well. The only real difference will be weight.
Now, for something like a PVC setup, it will give off gases when it heats up, affecting the air charge/fuel chemistry. You can't try cheaping out *too* much

 

[tlikethedrink]

not only would it work... umm yea. itll work .

trouble im goin thru right now is finding couplers to hold everything together. i got clamps and the core. i just need some old Rad. hoses so i can get it all bent and put on. im thinking some Semi trucks have to use 2.5 ID hoses. i can seem to find any around tho.

im tryn to keep a super budget on this one. picked up the core for 40, clamps for like 5, im hoping couplers will be cheap... if nothing else ill search ebay or see what i need and try those SPECTURE ones from AutoZone.

quick question for you... you planning on using a portion of your stock pipe to utilize the stock BOV setup? or plan on welding a flange for an aftermarket?

question for anyone else to answer: theres alum' pipe at HomeDepot, ive never really looked into size or price. but seeing how this is a performance mod- im keeping performance in mind, which = weight factor(which is miniscule i know... but nonetheless)anyways i was wondering if it would be ok to use?
i mean given that they actually have it and its to the benifit of my tight pockets to use... would it be ok to bend or would it pinch/crease/or even like tear on a tight bend?

 

[rampridersrider]

Napa sells universal radiator hose (I guess thats what it is) that is a few different sizes. I only know of them having 2.5 and 3 inch cause thats all I've ever bought from them. Its super thick kevlar wound and will NOT expand. They sell it by the foot and it doesn't cost to terribly much. Holds boost well. I've been using it for a few years now.

 

[gixrman]

I would advise against steel pipe. I had it from Dejon and it rusted badly within a year of use. Maybe if you live in a low humidity climate.

 

[tlikethedrink]

well i plan to paint whatever i use anyways. black to keep it all clean. that should def help out with rust. also plan on wrapping the engine bay portion of the UICP-

i stopped by a small muffler shop today. i was talking to this old guy about doin my pipes. he was telling me he would do it, but told me he would rather buy pieces of mandrel bends as press bent pipes can loose about a 1/8 of an inch around the radius of the bends. he said this creates "hot spots"
anyone hear about this?

 

[Mr Peepers]

"Hot spots" sounds more like exhaust jargon to me, with the exhaust passing on more heat to the smaller diameter bits of the pipe(and/or the turbulence from the ribbed bends causing more heat transfer from the air to the pipe, similar to turbulators in radiators or intercooler designs), and any intruding material from the press bends.

I would recommend mandrel bends for ANY intake tract/exhaust piping to maintain a consistent diameter and the least turbulence possible. It also looks a lot better, I think seeing press bent IC piping would make me cringe a little WTF

 

[tlikethedrink]

im looking for cost effective and functional. looks dont bother me much- black painted pipe will look all the same. im more worried about leaks and SIGNIFICANT amounts of pressure drop (like 3-4 psi after its all on there). i really wouldnt like that at all, but i could live with about 1-2 psi.

sure mandrel will flow better... how much exactly isnt know. it may be more than one might think, or less. tho i do think the whole IC system as a whole will out perform the stock tho...

 

[turboglenn]

YES...as stated already, tubing is tubing, just in different grades. I order Mandrel U bends from JC Whitney and soe straight pipe, that way i can cut and weld up any angle i need and the mandrel bend is the one that does not wrinkle, wrinkling pipe is press bent.

Weld it up, spray paint, crhome or powder coat it (Whatever works for you) and you'll be set. If nothing else and you have to spray paint it, just spray the insides with WD-40 to keep moisture from rusting it from the inside out.

Powder coat or chrome will pretty much prevent that, or you can build it from SS or aluminum, if you got the money for the pipe and the different gasses and wires needed to weld those metals (most people only have a mig set up for mild steel at home)

Anyway, i'm babbling.. build your pipes, drive car = have fun

 

[spooln4fun]

could always try using conduit , its then, can usually get long straight pieces. When i checked theyu only had a 90 elbow no 180

 

[talonalex92]

try those SPECTURE ones from AutoZone.

NO. NO. Please dont, they suck. So bad its not funny, they arent made for boost. I grenaded about 10 of these when I was trying to budget to hardcore. Its not fun, trust me.

 

[97GSTAUTO]

Napa sells universal radiator hose (I guess thats what it is) that is a few different sizes. I only know of them having 2.5 and 3 inch cause thats all I've ever bought from them. Its super thick kevlar wound and will NOT expand. They sell it by the foot and it doesn't cost to terribly much. Holds boost well. I've been using it for a few years now.

They have 2.0 and 2.25 also.

 

[Project2G]

I made my pipes out of 2 1/2 steel pipe from the exhaust shop, cost a lot less than the polished kits.

+1 and I picked up the cuplers from Intercooler Pipe Fabrication - Silicone Intake Systems Auto Parts

 

[97GSTAUTO]

Thats where I bought my reducer couplers and some 2.25. I had to buy the 2.25 radiator hose from napa because of a tight fit and I wanted to keep my cruise control. But dont look down at the radiator hose though. Its some tough stuff. If i would have known about the hose earlier I wouldnt have ordered the couplers. Because the hose is more hardy than the couplers from them.