456 Sound

I just got my first Ferrari, a beautiful 456GT, patiently waiting for spring in its garage up here in cold Scandinavia. My own waiting time is spent reading up on everything I can find about the car. Now I’ve arrived at the topic of exhaust. And it seems to me that there is agreement here and elsewhere that the sound of the 456 is no good, and that its exhaust has to be modified.

I guess I’m a purist by nature. I want to use the factory 17” rims, I want the original stereo - I’m even reluctant about swapping the mats. And I believe the 456 was designed by Ferrari to be rather quiet, for long road trips and a somewhat more subtle and elegant demeanour in contrast to its more sporty siblings.

Granted; I’ve really barely driven the car before I had to tuck it away when the snow came. And the seller sat next to me so I didn’t dare to properly let the car stretch its legs.

So my question is: Are there other 456 owners out there sharing my view that this car is meant for a somewhat different Ferrari experience, and that’s kind of the point?

Or am I simply missing out on all the V12 fun?

 

Torstein- If you are happy with the sound....

Easy change invisible to anyone unless on a lift is to swap out the center resonator for straight pipes, but it will get louder and produce more hp and torque. Ferrari went to straight center pipes on all V12s from the late 575M (summer 2003) on.

 

It depends on your perspective. No doubt lots of fun to be had from a loud exhaust that tells everyone around you that you are the proud owner of a Ferrari but that’s not for me personally and I love the fact that my 456M doesn’t get attention. If you want some V12 fun then drive through a tunnel in second with the windows down.

 

As Terry (tazandjan) mentions, a first step exhaust mod would be replacing the center resonator with straight pipes while retaining the factory rear boxes. I did this to my 03 456 M GT. The effect was, as mentioned, a mild noticeable increase in performance, and a mild increase in loudness, particularly a low burble at idle. This mod does not make the car "loud". My wife was happy with the mod, thought it sounded it bit more muscular and she is not in favor or loud cars. But she liked the tonal change. No annoying drone, perfectly civilized on road trips, and yet, no mistake it is a V-12 Ferrari.

 

Hi Torstein and congrats on your new car!

I am Norwegian and I had a 456 for three years! I can write to you in Norwegian, but I continue in English as it might benefit the other members here...

Over these three years, I spent much time and money to improve the enjoyment of the car. After three or four combinations with and without catalyzers, with original center and straight pipes and also last the X-pipe I got from Stebro in Canada, and also with original mufflers and FUCHS sport mufflers.... I spent at least 10.000 euro experiencing with all this! What a waste. And when I thiught it would be "just perfect", the result sometimes was terrible. First thing that was terrible was two separate straight pipes instead of the original center muffler! It sounded like two old Mercedes inline-6 engines from the 60-ies and the power and throttle response was just a big dissappointment. To make a very long story alot shorter, I will here tell you what was in my opinion the best.

1) Original catalyzers
2) Stebro X-pipe (other X-pipes should also be fine.
3) No rear mufflers at all. Just a Y-shaped rear tail pipe with chrome "tips".

It was very fun to drive. Superb throttle response, low end rpm. torque and a very good Ferrari sports car sound both when going faster, but also when I let the engine brake and the revs went down. It was a littlebit loud on idle for some occations for example when going in an underground garage at a shopping center and kids and their moms walking etc... So rear sport mufflers might be a good idea. The original rear mufflers are very well made, but they take alot of the sound away!

i somd the car in 2011 to a good guy who took well care of it and had it a few years. After that, it was bought by some shady guy and the car disappeared with an insurance fraud case... I have never seen or heard anything of it after that. Sad! I attach a few pics from when I had it

Good luck with your car. Post some pictures please!

If you need more info, just give me a call. +47 97776672.

Erik


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I have Fabio’s “Y shaped tail pipe/muffler deletes with the OEM center. Pretty perfect.

I previously had Fabio’s dual H pipe and OE mufflers (not loud or different enough for me)
Then I had his muffler deletes coupled with his dual H it was very loud and choppy - like a helicopter. Very choppy.

Going back to the OEM center with his deletes made it perfect.
The 456M OE center is pretty straight through BTW.



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Thanks for all the responses! This informal poll makes me believe my initial hypothesis might be right; quite a few 456 owners do indeed modify the exhaust! I think if I were to do it, I'd want to go down the VERY subtle route. Seems then swapping the center resonator for straight pipes (Or X pipes?) and changing nothing else might be the way to go. A mild increase in performance is obviously a welcome bonus!

@Laserguru What kind of straight pipes did you get for your 456?

@F456M So cool to hear from other 456 owners in Norway! We should grab a coffee some day - it'd be awesome to hear more about your time with the car! Love the black paint on it!

 

When I changed my center muffler on my 550 to a Stebro 550 X-pipe, the car became more quiet!!! I was shocked. That fine whiiiineing growl around 2700-3700 rpm dissappeared completely. I was so dissappointed after waiting three mo ths for that part to come, which was actually to copy the cood set up of the 456. The difference was that I had the original rear mufflers on the 550 at that time. Just get those heavy mufflers out of the car. If you want a really wuiet car, buy something else like a Mercedes

 

Torstein, I got the absolute last set of Bradan straight pipes. They had made a batch about 7-8 yrs ago and had one last set in the warehouse. The good news is that any decent muffler shop should be able to make these for you. Stainless steel, actually straight with no bends, flared at one end to fit over the other pipes.

 

Fiammenghi still lists an H pipe for center resonator replacement, pretty reasonable price too

https://www.fiammenghiitalia.com/prodotto/elemento-centrale-a-doppia-h/

Capristo has straight pipes as well

https://capristoexhaust.com/product/ferrari-456gt-pre-muffler-spare-tubes/

 

I have a Tubi on mine, and with it - still nowhere the high-pitched shriek of my other 3 Ferrari V8s. I've learned to appreciate this, well - because that's what the car was intended to be. A comfortable freeway cruiser that gobbles up hundreds of miles in style and comfort.

Boy does it do that exceedingly well.

I did take it to the track (Sonoma) to stretch its legs. I was chasing an FF, barely could keep up. It was not the best track experience I've had, but I still had a lot of fun.

 

Fabio's 6-1 headers will open up the sound, but they are a bit louder than OEM. You get the high-pitched Ferrari scream above 4000 rpm, but for a (reasonable) price. Probably pick up 40 or 50 hp, too.

 

I have Tubi resonators on the rear. It is “a bit” louder than the stock setup.
They do provide an added growl without being tedious on longer drives.
I didn’t like them at first and was going to go back to stock, but I’ve gotten used to them.

But I’d also be very content with the stock resonators.

I think it depends on what you want on longer drives, a smooth quiet GT cruiser, or more of a sports car sound.