I've noticed it's hard to find a lot about V6 tundra 4.0 exhaust sounds on the net. I can find some Tacoma 4.0 clips and I've heard them in real life, but they sound different stock than a Tundra with the same engine IMO.
My goal is to get a low rumble at idle, a deep slow growl on excelleration, and a nice Pavarotti scream at WOT
(wide open throttle...took me a while to catch on to that one
)
After reading for a good bit and talking to folks at work I've come up with a game plan for my exhaust zen! I am going to a post from time to time in this thread to update how things are going so others will learn from what I experience in the world of V6 sound. This post is long, but I really was wanting to find information like this in one place but had to read a lot of post to come to my answers. So here goes.
First the decision:
Cat back or not:
Bottom line, I think Cat backs are great! But I don't have the bucks for one and I'm OK with gaining sound and some performance. So for me I'm just doing a straight chop and swap on the muffler and adding a tip. Also, the jury is out on back pressure on a V6. From what I've read, I don't want to drop low end torque and I'm in the camp that believes that these engines can use a little back pressure.
I said a little, you open flow guys don't start hurling insults
Mufflers:
Flowmasters:
I really like the way Flowmasters sound on an American V8, but after reading posts on Tundrasolutions I realized that many times on Japanese trucks they can sound "ricey".
(for the uninitiated, "ricey" is the sound that those "to-fast-furious" wanttobe cars sound like. They have a big peace of crap on the back of the exhaust and it sounds like a bee farting in a tin can) I got to hear a Flowmaster 40 on a 4.0 Tacoma and it sounds like a BAJA Racer. Some people like that sound...I don't. Also there are way too many posts about the high level of interior resonance with some of the Flowmasters. You could probably go with a Flowmaster 50 SUV or Delta and avoid the resonance but those mufflers are not straight through designs and are actually not rated as well for performance. So as it's been stated on TS Flowmasters are more of a musical instrument rather than a performance exhaust. I'm not anti-Flowmaster and if I had a Z-71 4X4 I'd have dual flows and circle the Sonic most Friday nights.
(picture Wooderson on Dazed and Confused) I just decided that for a V6 Tundra it was not the best application.
Other Stuff:
Borla, Banks, Dynomax, Bassani, Gibson etc. All great products for sure but not enough info out there on my truck for me to make a decision. Also, price became a factor.
Magnaflow:
There is an overwhelming number of folks on this site who say something like this, "the sound on my Magnaflow is perfect...just what I wanted". I started looking at the polished stainless 14586 until I realized that you could get satin stainless for less.
I don't need to use my muffler as a shaving mirror. So I started looking at the 12586 which is the same 22" muffler in the satin stainless. But as I read TS and some other forums I found that replacing the stock 22" muffler with a 22" performance muffler was not going to get me as much sound as I wanted. So I locked in on the 18" Magnaflow 12256. This post was very helpful:
Magnaflow 12586 or 12256 My mom called right after I made this decision and asked what I wanted for Christmas, so I sent her a site with the 12256 Magnaflow and got it shipped for $60.
My mom can't believe she is getting her grown son a muffler. From what I have read, the 18" Magnaflow will give me the sound I'm looking for with less interior resonance than other brands or sizes.
MagnaFlow Performance Exhaust
Polished Stainless Tip:
I didn't do a lot of research on this one. I just decided to stay close to stock and add a 12" tip out the side, keeping as much of the stock pipe as possible. I went outside with a tape measure and noted that a 12" tip would fit well leaving enough pipe to cut before the bend without sticking out like the 18" would possibly burning a small child's or anti-exhaust wife's leg. I went on
www.Magnaflow.com looked at what I think would look good, would drain a little moisture and reach far enough back under the bed so that it would not look like a clamp on. I settled on the Magnaflow 35204.
MagnaFlow Performance Exhaust
It's got a 15 degree slant, rolled end, polished stainless, 12" long, 2.5" in with 3" out. I mainly got it for looks and because I found it on the net for $26 shipped, but I'm in hopes that it will help with the sound a little. I should get a little deeper tone, but if I don't, no big deal. It will still look nice. I thought about dumping the pipe behind the axle, but decided that may be too loud and I like a little bling next to my chrome bumper.
Bottom line:
I'm keeping everything stock except an 18" Magnaflow 12256 satin stainless muffler and a 12" Magnaflow 35204 polished SS tip. I got the parts for $86 free shipping. I'll have a local shop install and let you know how things go.