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2012 Focus Sedan dual exhaust

156K views 305 replies 90 participants last post by  Shade-010 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello, I am new here and my wife picked up a new Focus about two weeks ago and although its her car I can't but mod it since I also drive it. I noticed all of the european ford focus's have a dual exhaust set up. After some research I found they are basically using a transverse muffler. I used a Borla muffler and some 3.5" stainless tips. A local muffler shop did the install. I removed the middle muffler and dropped in a K&N cone filter. Here are some pictures. The car sounds so sweet and there is no audio drone at any speed.

Parts List: Borla # 40477 2.5" 2.5" 19"X 5.5" X 10.25" Transverse Mount Split Exit $$ 265.00

Tips Ebay $$ 29.00 each
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/_W0Q...emZ280348769045QQsspagenameZSTRKQ3aMEWNXQ3aIT

Local Body Shop cut out rear bumper $44.00 labor. The rest is up to the welder to get all lined up. $65.00 Install Total price $432.00





Without 1st muffler:
Video-Audio
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With 1st muffler:[URL=http://s1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa385/FocusTrooper/?action=view&current=DSCF0321.mp4][/URL]
 
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#102 ·
Just picked up the car this evening. This will be the second thing I do to it after the tint is done on Friday )) Need to find a competent muffler shop. Couple of questions to Sleighman:

1. Did you use stainless piping?
2. Did the shop provide the piping or did you bring it in?
3. Was any pipe bending required?
4. Can you take a photo of the entire exhaust from below front to back and back to front?
5. If I understood correctly, you completely eliminated the center muffler (#1), left the resonator (#2) alone and the borla went in instead of rear (#3).

Thanks! Awesome job!
 
#103 ·
piranha971
1. Bent tubes. Not stainless. (The shop did not have any stainless so I just went with regular pipe. Its easier to paint the regular stuff.
2. Shop had pipping.
3. Bending only the very short left and right side for pipes that connect the tips. ( For a custom install the bender can work around the pipe to get it perfect)
4. No pictures are needed. Just look under at muffler three. The shop will weld up the exhaust the same way the factory one is.
5 I put the #1 muffler in the pictures listed by naegerter back on. I would just do the rear.
6. Before I went to the shop I roughed up the satin finish on the Borla muffler, de greased it then used Krylon engine block gray primer. Then I painted several coats of Flat Black Krylon engine paint and let dry over night. The pipe connecting the muffler to the tips they painted after the install. After the weld up job and the exhaust is tested for leaks paint the pipes black while they hot. Us a piece of cardboard to protect from over spray.

The shop painted mine for me.

Use google for your area and then go and talk to someone there. Try to talk to the guy that actually welds the stuff up.

To hang 1 muffler, Two pipes, 2 tips and 2 hangers should not cost a lot. Three shops down here all said about an hour labor.
 
#104 ·
Great. Thanks for the detailed info. Sounds very straight forward. I will do unpainted ss piping, though and polish the weld discoloration off. There is minimal piping so the difference in price will be small. It may be a bit too shiny, though.
My only hesitation is the universal muffler. I don't expect any hp gain out of this 2.0, but sure do not want to loose any either. The borla is meant to be the only muffler in the system, but if I also keep the #1........ additional back pressure. A tuned system MAY realize some gain...... I know none of us can really answer that question. Its a crap shoot.
 
#105 ·
This past weekend I drove it for over 700 miles without muffler#1. I put it back on and have since drove it for about 80 miles and I drove it hard. I also added a K&N cone filter.

There is for sure no loss of power.

My butt dyno says the engine likes the mod. If you really think about it, by just changing the rear one you are only adding 1 section of 2 ft pipe with a better flowing muffler. Keeping the front #1 muffler or don't keep it either way it works the system is just quiter with it.

Also you don't have to paint the muffler I did to help hide it.

I have modified every car I have ever owned. I would not have posted here if I was not 100% satisfied with the Borla Transverse muffler. The car looks so much better now. It was very week looking from the rear before this mod. I would leave the #1 muffler on at first. You can always have it removed later.
 
#106 ·
I am in the same boat. I have never left a car stock....mr2, supra, wrx, 350z...all had their share of modifications. ) Part of the reason I bought the Focus while really wanting a wrx, is that I knew I wouldn't do much to the Focus and with a new baby we can't afford to do much right now ))
I believe Borla exists with 2.5" stubs? You transitioned to 2.25 piping and tips, though. Any reason not to stay 2.5" all the way through to the tip inlet? May make the install simpler. You may be just trying to match a tip that you liked.
 
#112 ·
@sleighman

I just got the Borla Muffler in!

Quick question: Do you happen to know what tool the body shop used to cut your bumper? I'm finding it pretty difficult to find body shops willing to cut my bumper. I'm thinking I might have to do it myself, or simply not cut the bumper at all and just have the two pipes exit below the bumper :(

 
#114 ·
@sleighman

I just got the Borla Muffler in!

Quick question: Do you happen to know what tool the body shop used to cut your bumper? I'm finding it pretty difficult to find body shops willing to cut my bumper. I'm thinking I might have to do it myself, or simply not cut the bumper at all and just have the two pipes exit below the bumper :(

They use a hand held band saw. I had never seen one before. It was about the size of a dremel tool.

So are you going to just change out the rear at first?
 
#116 ·
Got around to taking a look under the car....The pipe is 2" to the rear muffler, then 2.375" out. I feel a little silly putting dual 2.5" exit pipes on the car ))) One can probably do a single outlet Borla setup similar to this for less then 1/2 the price.... Borla turbo muffler will be about half the price, only one bumper cutout, one exhaust tip and one set of exit pipe welds is required....talking to myself here )
 
#118 ·
piranha971 , and BooBerry

Both of you are correct in the tube sizing. I and others want the duals.

A lot of dual sets up on other factory cars with small motors use a transverse muffler.

I am absolutely sure you could just run a different muffler or just cut the present tip off and weld on a better one.
 
#120 ·
I love the look of the dual exhaust set up. It looks very clean, but my issue is noise. I would love to find a smaller stock sounding muffler for smog purpose when it needs to be done and dont want it to sound like a riced out honda.
 
#121 ·
keep the resonator on....... if you get a quality job done like his, I would almost say it was stock. and that it "came as an extra package" his second video sounds like a stock lexus or something, y'know the ones that sound good?
 
#122 ·
Last question; is this really a Turbo XL series? Their website says these are meant for v8's; I'm amazed it sounds this good it if is. I'll probably order a single outlet muffler in whatever series this one is; I'm a student and don't have $400 extra dollars to throw around. $200 though is do-able in time.
 
#123 ·
Yup. Its turbo XL. My guess is that its doing very little muffling with that measly flow through it. Most of it is done by the #1 muffler. Thus, the drastic difference in sound with and without #1 muffler. Running a 2.0L exhaust through it probably produces no back pressure whatsoever.
I am sitting here staring at the XL muffler that just arrived today. Rough welds and finish. I expected better for that kind of money. I sure don't want a mirror finish, but cleaned up welds would be nice. I'll try to make it out to a shop soon to see what kind of money we are talking about here to do an all ss exhaust and will decide if the dual setup is worth it. Otherwise, will return the muffler and get a single exit Turbo instead.
 
#126 ·
Got my muffler installed! Sounds great. I still need to get tips installed (the muffler shop ran out of the tips I wanted so they're going to give me a call once they do come in).
Body shops just aren't willing to cut into my bumper... I'll have to do it myself when I get the free time and then redo the tips. But for now I'm perfectly content with how it sounds and looks.

I also uploaded a quick video of it on YouTube. More to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKpUyXce_Wo
 
#129 ·
Sorry I had not replied yet. I was on a road trip.

There is no audio hum with the 1st muffler on or off. The rear exhaust is noticeably louder without muffler #1 on. Like I said if this was mine and not the wifes car I would leave off #1.

It will be a few days our nice digital camera is out of service I will be buying another one next week.
 
#133 ·
BooBerry: I'd be worried about exhaust collecting back there in the now huge void where that rear muffler was. I was also considering doing this and was thinking of a belly pan for that rear section. Thoughts=?
 
#135 ·
Just got my 2.5" mufflers in Im replacing everything from the Cat back with one 5" round 20" long inline muffler and a borla traverse mount like yours. Ill get a video of it reving and of it cruising by and full throttle.

Hopefully a full true 2.5" exhaust makes a notable difference like they do on the early models.
 
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