Hooker Exhaust Review
05-01-2007, 02:58 PM
#1
Hooker Exhaust Review So I decided to ditch the Loud Mouth and TSP catted Y because I was tired of all the leaks and terrible clearance. The hooker catback appealed to me because it was Cheap, very well flowing, and from what I had heard on the internet it was suppost to be one of the quieter exhausts. Plus, there were a lot of loyal Hooker fans here. So, LS1 speed sent my catback out to me in a matter of days.
Here is what I found:
Construction: This is one quality piece. Its all mandrel bent, and it has as few turns in it as possible, which is a plus in my book because it makes it simple and maximizes clearance. The welding looks awesome, and there werent any burs anywhere. It is a mixture of aluminizded parts and a powdercoated or painted stainless muffler.
Fit: This system went together with ease, hooked up to my pacesetter Y pipe without any problems, and found its way to its final resting place in the car with minimal effort. I especially liked how the inlet of the muffler had a flange on it with a gasket. This is a very sturdy way to hold the muffler in place.
Sound: Holy crap, after going from a LM and Catted Y this car almost sounds stock at idle. I looked at my dad after I started it up and said "are you kidding me?" I honestly still cant get over how quiet it is. But, for me this is good. The cam should wake up the noise level a little but still keep me in the range where a cop could stand right behind the car and not even think about writing me a ticket. Now, on the gas is a different story. It really wakes up, and it has a very smooth tone to it. There rasp is so minimal that I would say its non-existant. On the interstate you can hold a conversation with ease, but yet it still tells you that you've got a V8. I havent heard many LS1 exhausts in real life, but I bet that this one has a very unique sound to it, different than say a borla or Magnaflow.
Tips: Here is my only beef with this system. It uses hideous quad tips that stick out past the bumper about 1.5" No way. I just left them off. The 2.5" pipes actually disapear under the bumper unless you're directly behind the car. To me the setup says that I dont care how my exhaust looks, I dont need a Z71 tips chroming up my black car nor do I need a flashy set of quad tips. Now, if my car were a TA, then I would feel different, but on my smooth bumper Camaro the tips werent gonna happen. One might think that having the exhaust burried 4 inches behind the bumper might make it drone bad, but honestly it doesnt drone at all. What I've got here is an exhaust that I dont even think about. Its just there, I dont have to worry about it falling off or sounding too loud at the wrong time or being restrictive.
Flow: Looking through the Aerochamber muffler you would swear that it would be loud as hell. But in all actuality its got plenty of places for gas to escape. The flow path is unobstructed, unlike a spintech or flowmaster. The exhaust only makes minimal turns and its out, all while passing by (not around) sound dampening materials and chambers. The PaceSetter ORY and Hooker cat back flows better than my TSP catted Y and LoudMouth cat back. I swear. My car felt faster the second I took it out. Go figure. I guess that would be the difference between a catted Y and an ORY.
All things considered I think that this is an awesome exhaust. For the money you cant beat it. If you want to find it at the most reasonable price I recommed going to LS1Speed. They're sponsors here and they had the best price. I think I paid around $330 for it. I honestly dont think that you'll find a quieter/better flowing/loud on the gas cat back for any cheaper...other than some used system. If its still just way too quiet for you then there's always a cutout for you!
Here is what I found:
Construction: This is one quality piece. Its all mandrel bent, and it has as few turns in it as possible, which is a plus in my book because it makes it simple and maximizes clearance. The welding looks awesome, and there werent any burs anywhere. It is a mixture of aluminizded parts and a powdercoated or painted stainless muffler.
Fit: This system went together with ease, hooked up to my pacesetter Y pipe without any problems, and found its way to its final resting place in the car with minimal effort. I especially liked how the inlet of the muffler had a flange on it with a gasket. This is a very sturdy way to hold the muffler in place.
Sound: Holy crap, after going from a LM and Catted Y this car almost sounds stock at idle. I looked at my dad after I started it up and said "are you kidding me?" I honestly still cant get over how quiet it is. But, for me this is good. The cam should wake up the noise level a little but still keep me in the range where a cop could stand right behind the car and not even think about writing me a ticket. Now, on the gas is a different story. It really wakes up, and it has a very smooth tone to it. There rasp is so minimal that I would say its non-existant. On the interstate you can hold a conversation with ease, but yet it still tells you that you've got a V8. I havent heard many LS1 exhausts in real life, but I bet that this one has a very unique sound to it, different than say a borla or Magnaflow.
Tips: Here is my only beef with this system. It uses hideous quad tips that stick out past the bumper about 1.5" No way. I just left them off. The 2.5" pipes actually disapear under the bumper unless you're directly behind the car. To me the setup says that I dont care how my exhaust looks, I dont need a Z71 tips chroming up my black car nor do I need a flashy set of quad tips. Now, if my car were a TA, then I would feel different, but on my smooth bumper Camaro the tips werent gonna happen. One might think that having the exhaust burried 4 inches behind the bumper might make it drone bad, but honestly it doesnt drone at all. What I've got here is an exhaust that I dont even think about. Its just there, I dont have to worry about it falling off or sounding too loud at the wrong time or being restrictive.
Flow: Looking through the Aerochamber muffler you would swear that it would be loud as hell. But in all actuality its got plenty of places for gas to escape. The flow path is unobstructed, unlike a spintech or flowmaster. The exhaust only makes minimal turns and its out, all while passing by (not around) sound dampening materials and chambers. The PaceSetter ORY and Hooker cat back flows better than my TSP catted Y and LoudMouth cat back. I swear. My car felt faster the second I took it out. Go figure. I guess that would be the difference between a catted Y and an ORY.
Originally Posted by Jeremiah
Another vote for Hooker, my 570 Rwhp SS gained 1 Rwhp and Lost 4 Rwtq with the 3" cut out wide open over the closed Hooker cat back. It also sounded great with zero rasp.
All things considered I think that this is an awesome exhaust. For the money you cant beat it. If you want to find it at the most reasonable price I recommed going to LS1Speed. They're sponsors here and they had the best price. I think I paid around $330 for it. I honestly dont think that you'll find a quieter/better flowing/loud on the gas cat back for any cheaper...other than some used system. If its still just way too quiet for you then there's always a cutout for you!
05-01-2007, 04:19 PM
#2
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+1 on this. I have a T/A and love the look of the tips but they do stick out a bit too far for my taste. I have gotten many compliments on my exhaust. The only other exhaust I would consider would be magnaflow because it is stainless.
05-01-2007, 06:13 PM
#3
Here are some pics of it. Notice I didnt put the tips on... Im not really sure how I feel about them...or lack of them. But either way its still an exhaust and it sounds good IMO. This might sound crazy, but i almost think that if I had tips on it then I wouldnt even hear it in the car, lol.
05-01-2007, 06:25 PM
#4
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It's not a big deal to have the pipes cut a little so the tips don't stick out past the bumper. The shop that welded it up for me did this and mine tuck up quite nicely. I love the tips they offer.
05-01-2007, 07:45 PM
#7
Im still not sure about the tip thing. I would almost like to trim the tail pipes on it just to hide them a little more, and screw the tips. If they were angled, or oval, or something other than plain dual with a flat pipe all chromed out then I might consider it. I wonder if I could even sell them...
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05-02-2007, 01:40 PM
#14
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Yeah the Hooker catback is one of the best deals when it comes to fbody exhausts. $300 for a great sound, zero rasp and a long life. Almost too good to pass up if you ask me.
05-02-2007, 03:35 PM
#15
I wish someone would have turned me onto this setup a LONG time ago... before I dropped an extra $300 for a catted Y and $370ish for my Loud Mouth. Think how much money I would have saved.... 
This is my Ideal setup now. I've got awesome ground clearance with my $120 PaceSetter Y pipe, and the interior noise is minimal. Plus the sound is awesome! My room mate said that the sound improvement was huge. A neighbor thought I had put stock exhaust back on it (the LM was really loud!).
If you still want it louder, the get a cutout. But honestly, I dont think I am going to even touch my exhaust anymore. Its a check in the box part of my project....until I need duals to go with my 6.0
But for right now I enjoy hearing it, where as the Loudmouth always rattled and leaked everywhere.
When my hotcam goes in I will post a video of that and also give my comments. I might get to get to that this weekend.
Here's a link to my pacesetter Y review:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/generation-iii-external-engine/706654-review-pacesetter-y-pipe.html
This is my Ideal setup now. I've got awesome ground clearance with my $120 PaceSetter Y pipe, and the interior noise is minimal. Plus the sound is awesome! My room mate said that the sound improvement was huge. A neighbor thought I had put stock exhaust back on it (the LM was really loud!). If you still want it louder, the get a cutout. But honestly, I dont think I am going to even touch my exhaust anymore. Its a check in the box part of my project....until I need duals to go with my 6.0
But for right now I enjoy hearing it, where as the Loudmouth always rattled and leaked everywhere. When my hotcam goes in I will post a video of that and also give my comments. I might get to get to that this weekend.
Here's a link to my pacesetter Y review:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/generation-iii-external-engine/706654-review-pacesetter-y-pipe.html
05-03-2007, 10:39 AM
#20
I love my Hooker catback. Its nice and quiet when it needs to be and really sounds good when you running WOT. I have to agree with everyone else about the tips that came with it. I found a set of Z28 rectangular tips for $99 bucks (yes both of them) at fasttoys when I was purchasing a FTRA. They look good and are made from 304 stainless steel so they ought to last.