Tubi or not Tubi, that is the question...

I bought a MM muffler set for my previous 550. WAY too loud, makes the Tubi sound quiet in comparison. It was literally a relief at the end of a journey, to turn the car off.

 

Thanks to Stephen for the idea of wiring the stock exhaust valves open and installing a crossover pipe\
And Darth pointed out this chat link, that has movies of 550's with other aftermarket exhausts from Cargraphics and Kreissing (notably different than the Tubi; very interesting). I wonder if anyone knows of any mpg movies with Capristo exhaust sounds?

Looking at Stephen's advice, if I'm going to wire exhaust valves open and alter the back pressure of the system, it's surely going to affect overall horsepower and torque. Has anyone noticed a servere drop off of performance doing this?

Based on what I've heard so far in the various mpg movies, the Tubi is brittle and unpleasant to my ears when the engine raps; And with a loud rumble at lower RPMs that I heard in Denver when I sat in someone's 550 who had Tubi.

The Cargraphics sound bassy at low RPM but not brittle as the engine revs up; And the Kreissing movies are very interesting to me. As the movie starts from the front of the car, there's no bass at all (indicating no coupling of exhaust harmonics to the body) and then, as it flies by, there's a definate "performance" sound, but for some reason, it's not overwhelming. The curiosity for me is that at the end of the clips, as the titanium 550 is far away...THEN you can hear the low end.
All very interesting! Thanks to everyone for their input!

I only want the pipes on my 550 to tell me more about the operating condition of the engine as I'm pushing it (and improving the overall performance). I don't need to impress anyone. After all, I've got a Ferrari 550! And in quiet and wide open Wyoming, driving a 200mph GT car to Jackson Hole on a sunny day with no traffic for 400 miles-- there's nobody to impress--except me!
John

 

If anyone in SoCal is thinking about getting a tubi, then I am more than happy to take you for a run in my 355. We will have to do all the talking before or after the drive, as the damn thing is so boomy and annoying, we won't here a word of what each other is saying.

Now, having said this, if you want a nice sounding TRACK car, tubi is the way to go. For me however, I track my car... umm, not at all! So the damn thing just pi$$es me off. If anyone has a 355 Mille Miglia they want to swap, then let me know. I am even in the market for a stock system!!!

There are also rumours about tubi's running hotter than stock, resulting in cat cooking. My car is fine (so far) but it might be worth looking out for.

Now, having said this, there are a few things to consider.

First - a tubi is a VERY EXPENSIVE item. Doesn't matter how you look at it, if you could pump these things out, you'd be an Enzo collector too.

Second, the workmanship is good, but not great.

Third, there are other options out there, but WHY are they not as popular?

Finally, unless you break the law and ditch your cats, then any claim of extra HP and torque is bogus at best for any aftermarket system. You are simply exchanging $ for noise. Go for it!

Sorry to be so negative about tubi, but really there is no performance gain, and the $ are insulting. If you MUST do it, maybe go to your local Midas centre, tell them what you want, and offer to DOUBLE their quote of $800, and watch them create a masterpiece for you. It can't be worse.

Just remember, if it was a Chevy or Ford, you could get a front to rear system, headers back, custom made for less than $500. In SS.

Dave

 

I have a tubi on my 512TR w no cats. it is LOUD but I love it

On the race 512TR it has No mufflers at all, I need earplugs for that if I'm going to be driving all day

 

Yes, Wolfgang in the Euro section. But I'm sure he'll tune in here sooner or later. Its very loud, and he loves it

 

How difficult would it be to engineer a system that adjusts to different performance/noise levels, by a control within the cockpit?

I've had aftermarket exhausts on several of the cars, tubi included, and the trade-off to me is not worth it- but that's a subjective thing, including how much noise you can tolerate. I suppose, on a car with high performance specs, like the F-40 or Enzo, it might be a different story, but on the production cars, other than making the car sound "badder" i don't see the point. And, it truly makes the car even more of a cop magnet than it already is....

 

I think this is one of the best posts I've read in a long while. In a world that screams tubi tubi tubi (or someother sports exhaust manufacturer) the moment they find out you have a stock ferrari, its nice to see a more refreshing point. Purely coincidence that I also just happen to agree with you

Great post
Cheers
Simon

 

I have one on my 360 spider and can hear the radio fine. You just have to turn it up louder but why even listen to the radio. If you want to listen to your girl and the radio, drive a Lexus. It doesn't sound like the Tubi is for you.

 

All well and good, but I like to use my car as often as possible. Unfortunately that means I spend considerable time going nowhere in a jam. ie the 405. The car is actually quieter at 90 mph than at idle. To me, that is not right. But then that's just me

What would be nice is a system that sounds stock down low, but when the little doover valve opens, sounds like the tubi does now. I am not sure if other F cars have this setup, but it would not be difficult to engineer this into an exhaust system. Best of both worlds...

Dave

 

This is like asking what kind of music do you like? Personally, I prefer and use Tubi and willing to pay the price

 

A 360 Spider has a radio?? Hmmm, I'll have to check mine when I get home tonight... ;-}

 

I'm one of a very lonely minority in saying that I chose to have my Tubi replaced with an Ansa OEM model....

I did so because of the loud and frankly OBNOXIOUS noise..... My car sounded like it had a constant state of low-toned flatulence and pretty much woke the dead - even at low revs/idle.

A couple of Ferrari guys said my 328 Euro was the loudest Ferrari they had ever heard.... It was no lie, trust me!

Boston Sportscars replaced my Tubi with an OEM and I must say I am a VERY happy guy now.... My car now sounds like a Ferrari instead of a 4-wheeled Harley...

To each his own......

 

There are many caveats to performance exhaust.

Unfortunately many think that noiser equates to increased power and speed=rubbish.

OEM exhausts primarily are there to silence the noise.

The purpose of a performance exhaust is to allow an engine to "breathe" better. This means that the exhaust gasses will flow out faster.

The key is to "tune" the overall system resonance so that the various exhaust frequencies are simultaneous rather than inconsistent. When properly done, there is less noise, less vibration, less backpressure, and definitely greater engine performance.

Whether there is an actual HP gain is another issue, and anyone who makes an outright claim is sales puffing. The HP gain would come from the harmony as a result of proper tuning which should yield faster and possibly higher reving.

Rear engine cars are most difficult to tune since there is no extended tubing to use for the tuning.

Also, the $'s spent on a system should not equate to performance.

Above all, a performance system should not be raucious. It should be sweet
and it should make you want to drive the car more. If you listen to a Cobra all day, it's disgusting. Ferrari's are sweet.

I have for over 30 years designed very advanced free flow exhaust systems, and there is more to come especially for Ferrari's!

Stay "tuned". Pun intended.

 

WYO550,

I feel exactly the same way about Tubi as you do, however I also think it sounds hollow and a bit rattly. The perfect exhaust for you is one that is full bodied, very loud with a traditional Ferrari note without the hollowness/rattle. The one that fits your criteria is www.stainless-exhaust.com I had one fitted to my dads' 512TR and it sounds completely mental. If I was to give you a rough idea of how it sounds I would say that it sounds a bit like the Tubi for the Lambo Murcielago (same loudness level also) but minus the hollow metallic reverberation, and that's with the cats still on the 512TR! Only cost me £900. I want to post a sound bite on this forum but every digital camera I've used sounds distorted when recording. You'll also gain the extra 12 BHP and torque etc.