me and some friends are going to be custom making a downpipe for a boosted civic, im wondering what kind of piping would be best to use, i want something thats cheap, ive found some 3" st steel for 20 Per foot but that seems kind of expensive.

anyone have any suggestions or links?

thanks

 

You get get good SS 3" on ebay for under $10 per foot. Otherwise a muffler shop should be able to get you 3" mild or aluminumized for much less - assuming you want to do pie cuts. Ebay is a good source for cheap mandrel bends, and in most cases you just need one 180* elbow and some tubing for a complete DP.

As long as you coat the outside with high-temp ceramic paint (and prep the surface very well!), you won't see much rust at all. The soot will coat the inside and prevent it from rusting from the inside out.

 

ok, so mild steel is fine? looking at some other downpipes for civics, it looks like all i would need is 3 90 degree bends and straight tube to make the downpipe.

but is a flex section a must?

i plan on making a full turbo-back 3" system with no flanges after the downpipe, just running straight pipes from the turbo to the back of the car,

so

6 ft of 3" mild steel pipes
3x 90 degree 3" mild steel bends
and an 02 bung and a 5 bolt flange
and exhaust hangers of course

you think that will work?

thanks

 

Any stainless you use will be good. I'd personally recommend all stainless, purely for longevity.

 

http://www.jegs.com

aluminized steel, or stainless. they have them both.

 

Honestly I'd go with ebay mandrel bends and piping. I've never had a supplier of which their quality or service displeased me, but then again they are usually serious when they get a real mandrel machine (not cheap). I also recommend using an SS flexpipe, and the ones I've got off ebay have held up fine for the $35ish I usually pay. It will lead to longer weld life, less knocking around, and less stress on the manifold/turbo.

A stainless DP will radiate a little less heat, but as long as you coat the dp (DIY ceramic like 'Black Satin'), mild steel won't be an issue for heat or rust. I would highly suggest you use at least 2 flanges, one before the axle and one before the shifter. It makes it 100x easier in case you have to take it off for some reason.

FYI you can usually make an entire civic exhaust using the stock route with 5' of tubing, three 180* u-bends, and a muffler & resonator.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HiProfile &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> Otherwise a muffler shop should be able to get you 3" mild or aluminumized for much less.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I've checked with at least 50 different shops over the years, big, small, chains, truck shops, industrial shops, etc etc. I've never in my life been able to find anything bigger than 2.5" in stock at a muffler shop. If you want 3" locally and there isn't an exhaust specialist your best bet is a steel supplier, and if you want stainless chances are they'll have to order it for you.
Just trying to save you some time.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Niles &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I've checked with at least 50 different shops over the years, big, small, chains, truck shops, industrial shops, etc etc. I've never in my life been able to find anything bigger than 2.5" in stock at a muffler shop. If you want 3" locally and there isn't an exhaust specialist your best bet is a steel supplier, and if you want stainless chances are they'll have to order it for you.
Just trying to save you some time. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Find a semi-truck shop. The SMALLEST they stock is usually 3". Thats my source for 3" muffler clamps, the 360° seal kinds, not the u-bolts.

 

There are peterbilt and mack shops very close to me. Neither had either SS or mild 3" piping. They sometimes have a few short pieces, random crush bends, and the clamps you're talking about, but outside of a steel supplier, it's insanely difficult to find a supplier of anything bigger than 2.5". YMMV depending on what the shop does. Just trying to share my experience and help the OP out.

 

we have at least 20 sticks of 3" in stock at all times, 90s, 45s u's....we do a lot of custom exhaust though....warminster, pa

 

If you are looking to get some bends, make sure to check us out

 

thinking about it now, i think id be better off getting an egay downpipe, and i ordered a kteller 3" test pipe. so im pretty much set, but thanks anyways for the help.

 

hey nova any shop information?

UltimaSE

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TunerShark &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thinking about it now, i think id be better off getting an egay downpipe, and i ordered a kteller 3" test pipe. so im pretty much set, but thanks anyways for the help.</TD></TR></TABLE>

An eBay downpipe to fit a custom manifold? Good luck with that.