Exhaust heating rear end?
 

I'm getting ready to have my Aerochamber installed and don't want to run any tail pipe out of the muffler, not even a turn down. I was told by a muffler shop owner that on long trips the gasses if blowing straight on the rear end(which they will be) will cause it to heat up and could "melt" it or something of that effect. You guys think there is any truth to this or will it be alright? Thanks in advance,

Cody

If the exhaust is blowing directly on the axle then yes it could heat it up a little on a long trip on a hot summer day. It won't "melt" it though. It could cause the housing to swell and effect the bearing tollerences and cause the bearings to fail premature or wear the gears in a pattern they were not meant to ride in. You would have to heat up the axle housing a lot in order to do any harm. The outlet of the muffler would probably have to be around 6" or less from the axle housing. The chances of you having any problems are pretty slim. Just put some kind of turn down on there to deflect it. What is the big deal about not having a turn down?

Thanks for the help, it's a lot farther than 6" so I guess I'll give it a try and hope for the best. I'd have a turn down but I want to make a little more noise and I know for a fact just running an open muffler makes a huge difference in sound. My friend did this and he loves the difference but he doesn't make any long trips, thats the only reason I was hesitant about going ahead and doing it.

I Had Stock Exhaust On My Truck With The Pipe Cut Off Right After The Muffler. The Pipe Aimed Strai At The Axle. I Drove It Like That For About A Year, Even On Long Trips. I Never Had Any Problems With My Rear End. The Axle Was A Little Black Due To Exhaust Blowing On It But Thats It.

Mine is like that right now, I got tired of the tailpipe showing so I just cut it off. My axle is a little black as well, but I haven't made any really long trips yet.

I had a SI-DO Flow on my 99 that I just cut the pipes off after the muffler (put a roll pan on) and ran it like that for 2 years and no problems.