308 muffler splitting vertically?

I just got back from a short 1/2 drive & thought my 77 308GTB sounded a bit funny, when I looked at the muffler it appears the left half is separating from the right half. Any ideas? comments? can I actually open up the muffler & yank the themal reactor parts?
Bill
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Whoa! What happen there? I thought it was one piece.

 

Time to yank it and put a lightweight, modern exhaust in there....!!

Greg

 

I split the factory exhaust on my 77 there when I hit a parking lot bump, at 7 years old. My Ansas used to burn thru at that joint every 2 years or so (of course, that included a good deal of track time). I foolishly had one of them welded (brazed?) back together underneath, without taking it off the car. The top portion was still open at the seam, and the hot gas set the fiberglass above it smoldering at a track meet.

 

The early GTBs didn't have a heat shield for the muffler. Even my ANSA Sport muffler managed to burn a small hole through the fiberglass panel above it. Fortunately, it's a double walled panel with insulation material between the two walls. I installed the heat reflective/insulating material used in the F40 engine compartment to serve as a shield.

I agree with Greg. It's time to replace the muffler with a lighter modern exhaust.
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Nice system

 

Thanks, Chris. It's an ANSA FE 1940 installed in 1982. The OEM thermal reactor muffler resides in my garage gathering spiderwebs.
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Barry, at least your'e using it as a "paper weight"