sloperlad Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 Not having anyone to compare the 38 special to, when driving should the experience be reasonably quiet, with a bit of road and engine noise , mine is very loud , the muffler has no holes but is quiet old , exhaust pipes are good, I can only assume baffles may have given up. I would appreciate the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 Little to no engine noise from my '38 Century going down the road; even when pulling hills. There is some tire noise and a couple of rattles over potholes or expansion joints. My muffler is not 'correct', but it appears to be the same type as original (i.e., cylindrical, ~6 inches in diameter). According to the shop manual, the original muffler is supposed to be a straight-through type. Mine has slightly offset input/output and is welded onto the pipes, so I can't confirm what it looks like internally. When the engine is warm and idling it is virtually silent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 My '41 is also very quiet. It has a nice sound at idle, but at speed it's almost silent. In fact, I added a second resonator-type muffler to make it even quieter. There's some intake woosh when accelerating but you should not hear exhaust when you're just cruising with light throttle. A new muffler might be a pleasing investment. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCHinson Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 (edited) If your car is loud, you need a muffler or some other exhaust component replaced. When I first got my 1937 Century, when I rolled up to a stop sign, I kept finding myself reving the engine up just to hear it to make sure it was still running. I was used to Model A Fords that made much more noise when running. It took a while to get used to how quiet it was (and still is). Edited September 16, 2022 by MCHinson (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolly_John Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 In addition to the ideas from the other guys, I'd suggest you check your exhaust manifold and related components for possible cracks or leaks. John 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloperlad Posted September 16, 2022 Author Share Posted September 16, 2022 Exhaust manifold is not cracked and no leaks, doing a process of elimination, valve clearance check, engine has had a rebuild, carby rebuild, Exhaust pipes ok , going by previous comments I will change the muffler, yet another tune, tyres ,bias, are new, at the moment thecold girl sounds like it has wind pain. It is good to know these vehicles are to proceed quietly down the road and thankyou for the supplied information Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 Here's a video of me accelerating fairly aggressively in my '41. Most of the noise is gear noise, tire noise, and ambient noise through the windows. Exhaust should be very quiet. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 7 hours ago, MCHinson said: When I first got my 1937 Century, when I rolled up to a stop sign, I kept finding myself reving the engine up just to hear it to make sure it was still running. I had the same experience with my '41 Super. It took me a while to get used to the fact that you literally could not hear the engine idling at a red light. I kept thinking it had stalled. I agree with others that sloperlad probably needs a new muffler. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rock10 Posted September 16, 2022 Share Posted September 16, 2022 I guess quiet is relative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 My 38 Special has quite a bark. That’s because I uses +P+ ammo. Just saying, 👍 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yachtflame Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 Ed, somehow I knew you were gonna jump in on this one! Glad to see you back on the forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloperlad Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 After watching Matt Harwoods video clip mine is way louder. Now I know how loud they should drive. Thankyou. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 Your exhaust manifold and gaskets are in good shape? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloperlad Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 1 hour ago, EmTee said: Your exhaust manifold and gaskets are in good shape? Yes , I think you are right in the muffler diagnosis , the one I have looks home made ,back in the 70s. Might have been a stove pipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 Hmmm... It looks like the right type of muffler. How long is it? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 (edited) The length and baffles inside the muffler make a big difference. I switched out a standard Walker muffler on my 54 with the correct muffler (size, etc). The correct muffler is twice the size the Walker muffler it replaced. The tone was completely different at idle and at speed. Much quieter. I believe my exhaust system is from Waldron's. Your muffler should be quite long. Most were at the time. Edited September 17, 2022 by avgwarhawk (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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