Flex Joins Needed

[JustCallMeOrlando]

Hey guys,

I'm purchasing stuff for my exhaust currently, are flex joins needed? My factory exhaust has none, and my last car had none, but people do seem to use them? Why exactly are they used, and how important are they?

Cheers,
Nathan

[Draven]

I've noticed modern factory cars are using them more.

afaik they're used to prevent cracking in the exhaust... so when your engine twists under hard throttle, or your exhaust bounces a bit when going over a bump, it doesn't stress the whole system, simply bends a little at the flex joins.

I went for them, because it was fairly cheap insurance compared to the overall cost of my system

[Jin~Jah]

If I was having my exhaust done again, I'd get one between the dump pipe and the cat, to allow for engine/turbo/dump movement without flexing the exhaust like a swaybar.

the amount of movement under load has gradually undone some of the exhaust-related bolts a few times in my 7mgte. I've just installed urethane mounts in place of the rubber, so maybe that'll stop happening now that the engine doesn't move so much, therefor the dump doesn't, and the rest of the exhaust can sit still too!


Edit: Urethane ENGINE mounts

[JustCallMeOrlando]

Where did you get them from Draven? Damn needing two of them

[Draven]

I got 2 as well - 1 on the dump, 1 on the wastegate return.

I got them from Linden (well, technically I just got the whole exhaust from him)

You know you want my exhaust - 3.5", will flow over 600bhp, nice and quiet

[JustCallMeOrlando]

Exhaust really isn't what I'm looking for though I've got twin 3" cats after the extractors, dropping down to 2.5" with a merge/X-pipe then back out around past the diff then back into a 3.5" muffler.