New exhaust yes or no.

For what's it's worth. I had a 1996 full size but it had the 4.3 V6 in it. Normal everyday driving it drove perfect. Would even spin the tires great (teenage days). But it wouldn't tow ANYTHING. Even a small pontoon boat I had. Dealership fought it for a week. CAT test would good. They finally removed and saw it was clogged. New CAT and it made a HUGE difference.
Just my 2 cents.

Love the sound, hate the drone. I want my TV as quiet as possible. Newer trucks come equipped with free flowing exhaust. No noticeable performance gains to be had with loud exhausts. If I were going to replace my exhaust with something that has a little more volume, it would be a Dynomax three chamber SuperTurbo muff or cat back kit if needed. Nice authoritative exhaust note with little drone. Personally, I think the nearly quiet factory exhaust sounds great. No desire to change it.

Okay, so now the question is, what is the best replacement exhaust, cat back, for this truck? I priced out stock, 1500.00, parts alone.

The biggest restriction in a gas engine's air system (both in and out) is the throttle plate. The gains you see posted with aftermarket exhaust, K&N filters, etc, really only happen when the throttle is wide open. So unless you spend a lot of time at wide open throttle and need more performance there save your money.

It would be worthwile though to use a vacuum gauge to check for signs of a restricted exhaust system. You can get a gauge that screws into the upstream O2 sensor port to test for excess back pressure as well. Much cheaper to test for a restriction than to change the cat because it might be fouled.

ls1, I realize engines are air pumps...the air pump in my race car propels it to 7.80s in the 1/4 mile


my only point was, there is a lot of new tech in the LS series engines that is not in the old school BBC of which the 8.1 fits.

If you want performance, get an engine/trans tune fro ma reputable company. I have never read anything bad about Black Bear for example. If you want a different sound, a "performance" loosely named exhaust it what you want. They tend to not provide much additional torque below 3000rpm, where you probably spend most of your towing time. And what makes a pleasant sound at <25% throttle unloaded, becomes annoying at 25-75% when towing an RV. Save your $500.

sc3283 wrote:
lsmike...all great info BUT the 8.1 is OLD SCHOOL design
so what works on the LS1` very possibly wont work on an 8.1

OP..what are you towing that the 8.1 needs more power? All pickups and berbs I've been in with 8.1, tow big trailers great

39' Jayco eagle. #13,000

sc3283 wrote:
lsmike...all great info BUT the 8.1 is OLD SCHOOL design
so what works on the LS1` very possibly wont work on an 8.1

OP..what are you towing that the 8.1 needs more power? All pickups and berbs I've been in with 8.1, tow big trailers great

Works on that truck too. Headers, full exhaust and tune will net hp gains, but it will be pricey. An engine is an air pump. More air in and out, more power.
Have a look at this site, if yo don't think the 8.1 responds to the same mods as other gas motors have a look at what is going on here.

Performance trucks.net


Tune Tune Tune, GM has them real reserved from the factory.

8.1 tune

Discussion on types of tuners

I'm no mechanic and currently am running a diesel so I'm by no way an authority on the subject..... but, thinking back to my gasser days, isn't there a chance the CAT is all plugged up killing the power? So, while a new cat-back system may not be necessary, replacing the cat (and 02 sensor?) may help a lot.

Years ago I was running a Toyota 4runner (totally underpowered) and saw some very noticeable performance gains by replacing the exhaust system. It's not so much about upgrading but just starting over with a fresh, un-clogged cat.

lsmike...all great info BUT the 8.1 is OLD SCHOOL design
so what works on the LS1` very possibly wont work on an 8.1

OP..what are you towing that the 8.1 needs more power? All pickups and berbs I've been in with 8.1, tow big trailers great