Yeh, i know a b-pipe doesnt do too much for our car, but are their any major differences flow-wise between aluminum and steel when it comes to exhaust components, regarding b-pipes in particular? Is it just that the steel is better looking and better against rust? I havent ever heard any complaint about aluminum y-pipes not making as much power as SS y-pipes, but then again ive never looked into it until now... edit: okay so i just found that i was wrong about the rust part, its actually the other way around..aluminum does not rust, ss may rust....

 

just get w/e is cheaper. all same caca, as long as its mandrel bent

 

Performance wise it's the same. The difference is the $$, looks, and wont rust as easily.

 

spend $10 and get some high temp paint and paint your alimunized exhaust and keep it protected. NC does see some snow now and then ( from what I remember )

 

i got stainless cause it doesn't rust and i live in canada...if u get alluminum it's all good too, it'll just rust differently(not orange)

 

No, Aluminized DOES rust, SS will not rust.

 

I just painted my aluminzed exhaust. Should defiantely slow down the rusting process.

a good $10 investment.

 

I wonder why nobody talked about weight. I prefer aluminum because it is much lighter than steel.

 

SS can rust, depending on the type. But it's almost always just cosmetic rust.

Dave

 

If you are going to paint it, make sure it's high temperature paint.

 

There is no weight savings with aluminized steel.

It is just cold rolled sheet steel with a very thin (~0.001") coating of aluminum alloy applied to both sides.

 

2 cans of Autozone high temp paint, can do two good coats, on a y+b+muffler.

 

Depending on your driving habits, painting can be a just a waste of time and money. Frequent short trips don't heat up the entire exhaust enough to vaporize the water that is produced by the combustion process. The pipes rust from the inside out due to the standing water present.

I used to live only about 4 miles from work and I would have to replace the cheap aluminized steel b-pipe in my supra due to rust-through every year. I moved about 25 miles further away and the same cheap pipe lasted about four years before I junked the car.

 

Thats right they can rust from the inward out. For those who live in climates that have bad weather conditions. For those who plan on keeping their cars for a while, it would be smarter to spend a bit more and get SS exhaust.

If I still lived in ontario, I would get SS pipes all around.

 

alimumun is lighter but more prone to rust
Stainless tell is heavier.. not really storng nand will rust.. but is cheaper

 

So painting is the only way to really slow rusting on the alumized?

 

stainless steel can rust. but it will rust very, very slowly compared to aluminum. There is no performance difference aslong as there both mandrel bent. Most of the time the only part that rusts are the flanges because sometimes they arent stainless steel.

 

if you can't do anything to save aluminum. you're $10 can go to a decent exhaust.

 

Absolutely EVERYTHING you just said was wrong. Where did you get your facts? You obviously dont know what your talking about and the exact opposite of what you said had already been mentioned more than once in this thread.

 

It is the thread title that is confusing a lot of people.

It should have read "Aluminized Steel vs Stainless Steel"

You will not find an aluminum or aluminum alloy exhaust for a maxima.

The strengths of all the reasonably priced aluminum alloys decrease rapidly with increasing temperature so they are not suitable materials for exhausts.

Subjected to the same environmental conditions, a stainless steel exhaust will always outlast an aluminized steel one. It is the same reason that a stainless steel heat exchanger in a furnace will always carry a longer warranty than an aluminized steel one.