A bit of a trivia question - where are the 'muffler shops/do mufflers last longe


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Old 04-06-18, 06:31 AM
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A bit of a trivia question - where are the 'muffler shops/do mufflers last longe

A friend has a standby generator - Generac - that was installed after Hurricane sandy here in NJ. They were out of power for a few days recently and at some point the muffler opened up making loud noise.

I was thinking how these standby generators start up every month automatically for a test run.. and maybe don't run long enough to get muffler hot enough / water condenses and rusts out the muffler (what I heard as a kid (I'm 60 now) about short trips in a car are hard on the muffler - muffler doesn't get hot, water in exhaust gets into muffler and causes rust.

Talking to our friends - rust wasn't the issue (it failed at the top with no rust there) - got me thinking... also as a kid, I'd see muffler shops withe racks of squiggly exhaust pipes / mufflers and I replaced a muffler or 2 myself back then.

Do mufflers last longer these days? Do people get rid of cars sooner? Smaller cars = smaller engines = less air going through muffler and less wear and they last longer? Or the catalytic converter (not on cars 40 years ago?) get hot quick and vaporizes the moisture = longer muffler life?

Or am I oblivious here in suburban NJ and mufflers are still a common replacement part?
 
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Old 04-06-18, 06:36 AM
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I think modern day exhaust systems last longer than they used to ..... but I am in the south were road salt isn't used extensively.
 
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Old 04-06-18, 07:03 AM
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Not a pro on mufflers but I had a Pathfinder for 140,000 miles same muffler. From word of mouth my mechanic told me they used stainless steel.
On a similar mote I was at one of the very large lifetime muffler shops getting a special flex unit installed, only place that had it. Another customer there was in for a major replacement, under warranty he expected, and was waiting inside with me. He was someone i knew. They came and got him and I watched through the glass as they walked him around his vehicle. When done he stomped back through the waiting room mumbling some obscenities about BS warranty costing more than the original installation, and out he went.

What he ran into was their cheap mufflers which they would replace for free, but you had to pay for many other items.

Point being, they do make poor and good mufflers, just have to find the good ones.

Bud
 
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Old 04-06-18, 08:26 AM
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Today all exhaust systems are made with stainless steel so they last the life of the car.

The last time I had any exhaust work was on a 79 honda civic back in 83.

Most of the muffler shops now do everything, I'm sure muffler replacements are a fraction of the work it used to be!
 
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Old 04-06-18, 09:56 AM
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If I'm not mistaken every car my wife has had in the last 20 yrs had a stainless exhaust but my 2010 jeep does not
 
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Old 04-06-18, 10:05 AM
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Thanks guys. I was going to suggest stainless? as an explaination. Not sure why I didn't. I think I thought stainless would be too expensive. I guess not. At least that adds to longevity / cut costs over the long term.

Me, I hate all the tech / things that add to the initial cost (power windows, locks, tailgate close/open, side mirrors that tuck in when parked, TPMS, integrated / computerized climate control, radio, etc.) and invariably, if any of that acts up over the years - and being more complicated, likely will, that ADDS to costs in the long term too.

And at least on my wife's lexus, just trying to tune the radio or adjust the climate control, lots more steps and not intuitive. at least my 2c

THANKS AGAIN!

Thanks!
 
 

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