I went to a local shop to discuss exhaust options. They recommended an 18" Magnaflow and increasing the tail pipe to 2.25. They quoted $220. The shop said that this may give a slight increase in horsepower but may also result in a loss of torque. I don't think it is worth giving up off road/climbing performance in the hope of gaining a few ponies and maybe a .5 mpg increase. For those of you that have increased tail pipe size, have you noticed any loss of torque?
Thanks.

i thought the exhaust was already 2.25"...??

Had mine done in 2.5 inch with a Gibson muffler,
Noticed an increase in torque down low without any improvement on top end untill I put an Airaid intake on . The intake opened the top end up, the exhaust helped the bottom end torque, at least on mine.

2¼" exhaust won't hurt anything. When guys talk about 'losing' torque, what they mostly mean is that it's not in the same spot as you might normally notice it.

I don't see 2¼" mandrel bent tubing actually moving your torque to another rpm spot.

2½" mandrel bent tubing should have moved it up slightly (maybe 300-500rpm above stock), with 3" mandrel bent tubing moving it way up, probably over 1500-2000rpm over stock.

4 cylinder engines are really subjective to tubing diameters, with 6 bangers (V6 vs.I6) being slightly less picky.

If you can get 2¼" exhaust, insure it's mandrel bent, all the way. If not, then get 2½" tubing, as it'll probably be necked down further than the 2¼" in the bends.

As far as the muffler goes, that can be a give or take as well. Backpressure really helps or hinders the placement of torque.

Don't go with anything that is really flow through (cherry bombs, glass packs, etc.) or you'll just move the torque out of the useably area as well. Insure that the muffler has the same diameter inlet and outlet as the tubing that your using (can be bigger, but only about a ¼" bigger is acceptable) due to being part of the flow characteristics of the exhaust. It's not just for sound.

I may have been taken by the shop... Went in Saturday and I was just going to have them cut out the muffler and install a Flowmaster 40 series. The shop said that I would like the sound of the Flowmaster at first but after awhile the sound inside would drive me nuts so they again suggested the Magnaflow 18". I went with the Magnaflow but they said that the tailpipe was 2" so they would have to go with a new pipe at 2.25"

Cranky, I also thought the tailpipe was already 2.25" but it measured at 2"?

Cyclemut, thanks for the informative response (I just read it a little late). I don't know if the Magnaflow is "really flow through" but the exhaust flow feels much less restricted from stock. I do like the sound though, it is a subtle growl. I can't really tell if torque was affected. I did have a little difficulty climbing some steep hills that I previously never had a problem with but it may be do to the very dry conditions allowing for easy wheel spin.

I did ask the shop about mandrel bending and they said the mandrel machine is very large and expensive and few shops if any have it. So I do have 2.25" pipe not mandrel bent, but the shop ran it out at a slight angle just past the spare with the only bend at the end to the side.

Would changing out the exhaust have any impact on engine braking? In 4low going down steeps, it feels like I have to get on the brakes more than before.

I did save my stock parts just in case I end up deciding that I shouldn't of tried fixing something that isn't broken.
Thanks again.

It won't really affect the engine braking, as it's the same with the throttle closed. Backpressure doesn't really do anything when the throttle is off, and the engine is revving due to breaking.

Not to harsh on the shop, but I only know of a couple of shops that don't have a mandrel bender.

A person can buy one for about $3k cheap, or get a nicer one for more.

so basically, if get them to use a small piece of pipe to make up for the length of the stock muffler and leave the rest of the pipe intact i should be all set?

i was leaning toward the magnaflow as well.

It really depends on the size and shape of the flowthrough chamber of the new muffler. I theory, yes, but you should be using the same size piping in and out anyway.