Noise level of Manx Sidewinder Exhaust?

[73SpeedBuggy]

I currently have a pair of megaphones on my buggy that are entirely way to loud for my tastes. I want something quieter, but still balzy sounding. I love the look of the sidewinder but worry that it might still be to loud. Could anyone compare the volume level to a pair of megaphones without any baffles?

[5150bossman]

Depends on the size of the motor. With my 1776, it can be loud, but not too loud. Nice throaty sound without being over the top. Can run all day without it being a bother. A bigger motor however, the volume definitely goes up.

[1MINT86]

I installed a Sidewinder exaust on the 1915 in my recently completed Tow'd and I also was concerned that it might be to loud, but after 130 miles at Lone Pine I found it to be just about right.

[MojaveMel]

I put a new Sidewinder on a 1776 about a month ago. I had the sidewinder in a box in the back of the garage for about a year before installation. The muffler is larger than on my old Sidewinder (which I thought would make it a little quieter), and it doesn't have a muffler flange. No heat riser mounts either. Muffler is welded direct. I expected it to sound like my other Sidewinder which has a nice deep throaty sound. Instead it was way louder and more high pitched. So loud I saw a possible ticket coming. I made a 1/4 inch baffle that inserted in the end of the tail pipe. Looks a little funny but that quieted it a little. I also had a problem with the fit. I talked to Winnie about that at Lone Pine and she said different size engines make a good fit for all impossible. I still think mine was a manufacturing imperfection; the tube coming off #4 was off so far it was hitting the fan belt. It took a few hours but I eventually got it tweaked enough to make it fit ok without damaging the tubing. I really like my first sidewinder. I don't dislike this most recent one, but was somewhat disappointed with the change in sound and that I had to spend a lot of extra time making the installation. I can't easily change the muffler to the old style because it is welded direct. Rumor has it that they are making a change back to the old style. You might ask before you buy. Perhaps the change has already been done. On the other hand about a year ago I put a new Tri-Mil on a friends buggy and it had way more install imperfections than the sidewinder. Tooling marks, imperfect bends, and poor looking chrome.

[Montana-Manx]

[QUOTE="73SpeedBuggy"]I currently have a pair of megaphones on my buggy that are entirely way to loud for my tastes. I want something quieter, but still balzy sounding. I love the look of the sidewinder but worry that it might still be to loud. Could anyone compare the volume level to a pair of megaphones without any baffles?[/QUOTE] I had the sidewinder with 1600 and replaced it with the dual cannons. The sidewinder was much quieter. But the canons have a nice deep sound and not to loud for my taste. The cannons have to be removed to adjust the valves thats the down side. The sidewinders have to removed to work on the rear of the eng. From what I have read the sidewinder will increase your power compared to the megaahones or cannons.

[manxdavid]

I got my Sidewinder about a year ago and am very pleased with the sound, finish and fit. Only gripe really was damage to the tailpipe caused by poor packaging and / or rough handling by the US post office. Mine has the welded muffler which I like, and they'd started putting the heater riser/hot-spots back on them.

[Lee]

I ran the Manx Sidewinder on my 1600 right from the start, about 5 years ago. Mine was the older version with the detachable glass pack. I thought it sounded good, as it wasn't too bad at moderate throttle positions, and it had a very good sound at wide open throttle. My opinion changed when I put a hard top on the buggy. My ears would be ringing after just a couple miles. The hard surface of the FG hard top seemed to act as a speaker cone, reflecting and amplifing the sound. Something would have to change before I could take long (2-3 hour) freeway trips, followed by spending the weekend exploring the desert in the buggy. I did two things that helped a lot. I made a headliner for the top, which consisted of carpet padding under the headliner material. I also had my friend Rob TIG weld a SuperTrapp onto the end of the glass pack. This reduced the noise level considerably, and I took several desert trips over the next two years. I like to carry on a conversation while cruising along the dirt roads, and we were able to do that as long as I kept the RPMs down. Rev it too much, and we were back to having to yell in order to hear each other. Then I rode in my friend Matt's buggy. After that I rode in my friend Jeff's buggy. They both have the EMPI Quiet Pack exhaust systems. I decided I wanted to try one on my buggy. After all, it's cheap (~$100), so if I didn't like it I wouldn't be out much. What a difference! An actual muffler has a much more mellow tone than a glass pack. It still sounds good when the engine is revved, but it isn't anywhere near as loud as the Sidewinder, even with the SuperTrapp installed. I also noticed that I have A LOT more low end power with the EMPI Quiet Pack than I ever had with the Sidewinder. I played with carb jetting and the disks on the SuperTrapp for years before, and never got the response the EMPI exhaust gave me right out of the box. I can now climb hills in the local mountains in second gear that I previously had to downshift for. I know this sounds very strange, considering the price difference between the two systems and the questionable quality of so many EMPI products. It is my experience so far. Here's a photo: I got the exhaust ceramic coated after I finished my mods. Modifications included cutting notches into the ends of the outer tubes of all the slip joints (RTV and stainless steel T-Bolt hose clamps are used there), routing the heat riser pipe correctly, and cutting the end of the tailpipe so it doesn't stick out and create a tripping hazard. So far, I am very happy with the setup.

[73SpeedBuggy]

Thanks for the posts guys. I still don't know what to do. I don't really like the look of the quiet pack, love the look of the sidewinder, but don't want to have to shout over the exhaust. Can anyone link to any suggested exhaust systems? I also don' twant to have to remove the exhaust to adjust the valves (though I would put up with this for the right system).

[newmanx59]

I just put my Camco Fab muffled Sidewinder on a completely stock 1600 dual port and I can't believe how quiet it is.

[73SpeedBuggy]

[QUOTE="newmanx59"]I just put my Camco Fab muffled Sidewinder on a completely stock 1600 dual port and I can't believe how quiet it is.[/QUOTE] Is this a custom exhaust or something I can purchase? Any pics?

[newmanx59]

[QUOTE="73SpeedBuggy"]Is this a custom exhaust or something I can purchase? Any pics?[/QUOTE] I guess it would be called custom...All I did was adapt a Camco-Fab muffler to the original Sidewinder header.

[73SpeedBuggy]

That's a pretty nice look. Can I still find a sidewinder header that doesn't have the muffler welded on? [QUOTE=newmanx59]I guess it would be called custom...All I did was adapt a Camco-Fab muffler to the original Sidewinder header. [/QUOTE]

[newmanx59]

If you can't buy it with the flange you can buy an uncoated header, weld in the flange and then have the header coated.

[Gary1719]

This is interesting. i too am wondering about quiet systems. go to this web site vdubn.com check out the yellow manx you can see what he did with his exhaust. kind of interesting.

[Gene-C]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]I tried several systems and the best I found was a Tri-Mil Bobcat Quiet Pack with an additional 4" spark arrestor, spaced out with about 3 washers between each disc, give good low end torque, both sold by Moore Parts in anaheim, Ca. they have an ad in the Hot VW's. Pricy though, muffler system for about $250 and spark arrestor for $34, which I welded to the exhaust pipe. Bugpack also sells a dual muffler system, similiar to Tri-Mil. It works for me.[/FONT]