I wanted to ditch the useless muffler and rear resonator, since they do literally nothing on this truck but look bulky and weigh more than they should. The tail section is just a carryover from the Hemi/Pentastar trucks and doesn't do anything for the Ecodiesel, all the sound is trapped by the DPF/SCR systems.
I knew going into it that it wouldn't change the sound based on multiple reviews on here.
Had my local muffler guy quote me approx. $150 to replace the full tail section with a piece of 3" steel pipe (instead of just splicing in 2 straight sections). A tip would bring it somewhere less than $200 if I wanted it.
At the time (Summer 2016), MBRP was offering a rebate on their exhausts. $25 off the aluminized steel "installer" series kits (such as S6169AL) or $50 off the 409 stainless "XP" series (such as S6169409).
With a sale price and coupon code I had online, the mail-in rebate made it cheaper to but the steel one myself, and about the same net price to get stainless as it would have cost me locally.
The stainless has a lifetime warranty, versus the 3-year on the steel.
Plus, our whole exhaust system is stainless from the turbo up to the tailsection, it wouldn't make sense to put regular steel on it after that.
I purchased the 409SS kit after I contacted MBRP ahead of time, and was told that the included tip didn't have to be installed. They stated the pipe was long enough to go without and the tip was purely cosmetic.
Good, because I didn't want to use the included tip (p/n T5112), it was way too flashy for my taste, with a big obnoxious company logo stamped into it. It looks quite ridiculous.
Turns out, they were wrong. The pipe was way too short to be used without the tip.
The final bend in the pipe was an odd angle, making the end of the pipe tilt upwards. It allowed water to collect near the final bend of the pipe instead of flowing out.
Because the tip had to be installed, this upward bend makes the tip (which gets really hot) really close to the plastic trim on the bed.
To top it off, the included tip would not fit no matter what I did. If I put it on with a few inches of pipe inside it, it wouldn't clamp down far enough at all, even with the bolt fully tightened down and distorting the metal.
It was able to wiggle around and actually rotate by hand. The pipe was bent using a traditional press, not a mandrel, so the inside radius had that telltale kink in it which made the pipe less than 3.5" and the tip not fit.
Putting the tip near the very end of the pipe (where it was a full 3.5") made it tighten down more, but it was still loose, and now it stuck out and looked ridiculous.
I sent this explanation to MBRP...they said the upward bend was normal (WTF?) and the short pipe was normal (even though I was told otherwise previously).
The included tip was a 3.5"x4" 12" long single-wall tip (T5112). I mentioned to them that they also sold a 3.5"x4" 10" long dual-wall tip (T5110) and perhaps it would work better since I could put it on the end of the pipe and it would stick out 2" less. They offered to send me a T5110 as a warranty concern (didn't need to return the original).
Its dual-wall design only allows it to be slid on a certain amount, I put it on and it tightened down perfectly secure, like it should have, and doesn't stick out.
The logo on the shorter tip is much less obnoxious too.
Quite frankly, their kit should have included this tip from the get-go. Sure made it look better!!
You can see above, the few days of driving turned the stainless steel a nice golden color. A few days after that, I pulled our 21' pontoon to to the lake (11 miles of 7% grade in 100F ambient) and it's been a deep purple ever since.
End results?
With the rebate cash-back and shopping wisely online, I spent less than $200 for a good stainless steel pipe.
The kit was very easy to install. I got home after 11pm one night from watching a local baseball game, had a few beers, and decided I could get it done. I think all my tools were cleaned and put away, and I was showered and sawing logs by 1am.
Because I have the 140" wheelbase, and the kit is designed for 149" wheelbase trucks, I only had to cut one piece of pipe. All I had was a reciprocating saw. I felt sorry for my neighbors that night.
I remember weighing the stock system and this one the night I installed it. The weight difference was about 35-40lbs.
And NO, it didn't make the truck louder at all, but "different" is the best way to describe it. Can tell when it's warmed up and going through a regen when you come to a stop. Some tonal difference throughout. I didn't expect it to be louder so I wasn't disappointed.
