Removing muffler

[marine dad]

been away for awhile so sorry if this has come up often. can anyone direct me to a link about replacing the muffler with a turnout exhaust tip behind the cat ? bike is an 03 "r" with 11,000 miles
thx

[MIXR]

Not sure you need the links. The can is held on with one bolt back at the pillion peg, and one clamp at the exit from the cat. Remove the bolt, clamp, can and little heat shield. Clean them up and pack them away. Find a suitable inch and three-quarter pipe in stainless or chrome. One with a slight turn-down to direct the exhaust gas away from the left case. Use a good band clamp to secure the new exhaust tip. The new tip may need a couple of compression slots cut into it to allow the clamp to actually clamp down on the metal.





Ran mine for 130,000 kms like that. The cat provides the back-pressure the engine needs. Have done the same to my R1150GSA.

[Dr. Strangelove]

A nice stainless band can be found at the Harley dealer and it's not that much.

[macx]

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=22454&p=197237&hili ... ip#p197237

That link talks about lowering the exhaust, but contains info on a good source for a tip that works
and a couple diff options about bands

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=21206&p=193196&hili ... ip#p193196

I think that's one of the original posts

[marine dad]

thanks for the info guys, i also need info on replacing the catalytic converter with a y-pipe and running the stock muffler. Pros ? cons ?
thx again

[MIXR]

Remove the cat if it makes you feel good inside. You save some weight. You spend some $. You have more noise. You have very little real change in performence. The bike will 'pop' and 'fluff' a bit more. Far easier to remove the can and get some useful improvement with a bigger left case. But ....................... Whatever floats your boat. Have fun.

[riceburner]

thanks for the info guys, i also need info on replacing the catalytic converter with a y-pipe and running the stock muffler. Pros ? cons ?
thx again

Don't. I have done that in the past, and while the bike didn't seem to mind it - the air in the can gets VERY, VERY hot - hot enough to melt the plastic of the panniers, in UK weather conditions.

[Xdot]

What is this war against catalytic converters? They have very, very little effect on performance. Air pumps and lean burn tuning played a far larger role in killing performance than the lowly catalytic converter. And they're not a problem anymore either. Don't let bad engineering in the 70's turn you against the wrong thing.

[sweatmark]

What is this war against catalytic converters?

Weight and heat.

[MIXR]

Sweatmark has it nailed. The heat is great on my winter rides. The weight is not enough for real-life performance gains, so it's probably the last thing I'd bother removing. And the only reason to can the can is to fit a bigger left case, otherwise I wouldn't bother with that either.

[kantuckid]

I was reading Cyclerob's muffler surgery stuff yesterday-any other comments on "is the sound improved enough" to warrant the grunt to gut the muffler? IMO, the tail pipe fix is tacky but that's just my opinion not a criticisim. I am just too much of a tightwad too go for a $500+ muffler!

[30west]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

[MIXR]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

Purely for the bigger left case. I don't mind the extra sound, but it isn't really that much louder. A bit more popping on deceleration as the can isn't there to muffle the usual noises, but nothing dramatic. Weight saving is good, but irrelevant. Looks are good, but hidden by the case anyway. Performance gains are unlikely and not relevant in real-world riding, so don't do it for that. Any gain will be negligible.

[riceburner]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

Purely for the bigger left case. I don't mind the extra sound, but it isn't really that much louder. A bit more popping on deceleration as the can isn't there to muffle the usual noises, but nothing dramatic. Weight saving is good, but irrelevant. Looks are good, but hidden by the case anyway. Performance gains are unlikely and not relevant in real-world riding, so don't do it for that. Any gain will be negligible.

The biggest gain I found was that the rear wheel is MUCH easier to remove for tyre changes.

[Dr. Strangelove]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

I know it seems absurd, but my mileage improved a few percent.

Mine's been off for over 50k miles.

I had mitey muffler turn a piece of aluminum alloy tail pipe for my extension. It is kind of a light gunmetal gray color, very similar to the wheel color and luster. I refresh it's "look" with steel wool. It kind of disappears.

[30west]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

I know it seems absurd, but my mileage improved a few percent.

Mine's been off for over 50k miles.

I had mitey muffler turn a piece of aluminum alloy tail pipe for my extension. It is kind of a light gunmetal gray color, very similar to the wheel color and luster. I refresh it's "look" with steel wool. It kind of disappears.

Does the sound change at all? Did you modify the fuel injection mapping?

[riceburner]

For those who have done this mod, did you get any performance gain or was it just sound and space for a larger case that you were after?

I know it seems absurd, but my mileage improved a few percent.

Mine's been off for over 50k miles.

I had mitey muffler turn a piece of aluminum alloy tail pipe for my extension. It is kind of a light gunmetal gray color, very similar to the wheel color and luster. I refresh it's "look" with steel wool. It kind of disappears.

Does the sound change at all? Did you modify the fuel injection mapping?

It's a little louder (but not aggressively so).

The Motronic (as far as I'm aware), adapts itself - I certainly haven't changed anything like that. Just keep it balanced.

[Dr. Strangelove]

+1 to what riceburner says.

I did nothing to modify the fuel/air mix.

The sound is a little louder, but still a "normal" volume. She sounds throatier. Take off the muffler and listen. That will be a close approximation, keeping in mind the extension will modify it some, though will NOT make it louder.
If you have a couple of lengths of tubing you can put over the end so can hear the effect of length on the tone of the exhaust.

If you go w the aluminum alloy route, you can get them to cut the bevel and then you can whittle down the length.

Just a matter of taste, but I think I prefer the color of the aluminum tip because it blends in with the color of the wheel, nothing else is chrome down there, and its very easily cleaned. Doing it over again I would have them cut a length of stainless steel tubing to match the aged patina of all the other parts of the exhaust. I didn't at first because SS would have been much more expensive. But it is a personal thing.



See it? It blends in w the rest of the stuff down there.

[NoRRmad]

Careful about using aluminum; the catalytic convertor can get red-hot while stopped -- and that's above the melting point of aluminum.

[Dr. Strangelove]

it's an alloy and it is used on cars, not straight aluminum, their standard exhaust system tubing.