Exhaust Systems

The exhaust system on your vehicle is an important part of the combustion process in your engine. The intake side mixes fresh air with usually petrol or diesel, feeds it into the combustion chamber in the cylinder head, where it is detonated (controlled explosion) and the exhaust system takes that residue gas flow and expels it out the back of the vehicle. Combustion produces noise and exhaust gas which is extremely hot and through a length of exhaust pipe and components, ducts it out the rear of the vehicle.

To start its journey the exhaust gas first passes through the exhaust manifold or if you have a performance exhaust, an exhaust header or extractor system. Performance exhaust systems are less restrictive and create a better exhaust flow to remove exhaust gas more quickly. This creates better engine performance resulting in an increase of engine power.

The next part in the exhaust system we find as we travel down the exhaust pipe is the catalytic converter (cat). This takes toxic gases from diesel and petrol engines and makes them less harmful for the environment. It turns carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide and reduces nitrogen oxides. The catalytic converter is one of the most expensive parts of an exhaust system.

Another unit you find on diesel exhaust system is a diesel particulate filter (DPF).This exhaust component is similar to a catalytic converter as it is needed to reduce exhaust emissions. It filters out particulate matter soot from the exhaust.

As the exhaust gases go further down the exhaust pipe the next few items in the chain are a resonator and an exhaust muffler. Most engine noise comes from the exhaust system and noise level is greatly reduced by these exhaust components. The engine exhaust creates exhaust pulses which send sound waves down the exhaust pipe and these two items reduce the sound levels to a level that doesn't hurt your ears. They also play a big part in producing an exhaust systems exhaust note.

The exhaust gases now flow down the exhaust pipes, go past the rear wheels and exit via exhaust tips. By now the exhaust heat has dissipated a lot compared to the heat in the exhaust manifold.

Adding a performance exhausts to most vehicles upgrades the power output, generating more horsepower which gives a performance increase that can be dyno tested. Often performance exhaust systems will run two pipes or what is commonly called a dual exhaust system to get performance gains from the engine. It gives a great exhaust note and is usually finished off with some chrome exhaust tips.

A lot of aftermarket exhaust products these days are made from stainless steel as it lasts longer than a standard mild steel exhaust system. Even stock exhausts are using stainless steel products for durability and reliability as stainless steel is harder than mild steel.

Whether you are looking for a stock exhaust system or a performance exhaust system Repco have all your exhaust system needs. From exhaust manifolds, catalytic converters, stainless steel car exhaust systems, cat back exhaust systems to a chambered muffler we have something to suit your model car. Use the rego search function on the Repco website, or talk to one of our staff at your local Repco store today to view our whole range of car Exhaust Systems.