4cyl ranger muffler question?
 

what would a cherry bomb sound like

they dont sound to bad, some ppl like them, some dont, it all depends how large the inlet/outlet is and how far you mount it on the pipe, if its under the cab it resonates bad, but if you have if right before the rear, it sounds fine

no they sound like crap on everything a loud cracking and popping sound. get a gibson or any other MUFFLER not a glasspack or straight flow "muffler"

if you have them set up the right way, glasspacks sound good, and they dont cost a hundred dollars like a gibson exhaust

to each there own, I have never been a fan or the popping noise

I put a cherry bomb on my 91 2.3 and it sounds very nice.

In theory, I would think there would be better options for a 4 banger than a Cherry Bomb.

A glass pack muffler will not supress enough noise from the engine. On a highly tuned sports car with turbos (which dramatically quiten the exhaust note), a straight through exhaust can sound decent without busting your eardrums. The 2.3 in the ranger is certainly not highly tuned. If think that louder is better, then a glasspack is just behind a straight pipe. I know how it sounds because I tried it on my 96 ranger. I kept all the factory piping and went with a stock size inlet/outlet glasspack. Even exiting out the stock location, it sounded awful. Kind of like an non v-tec honda with a glasspack. The whole point of an exhaust system is to reduce noise without too much compromise in power. The proper way to choose an exhaust system is to match the tubing diameter to the engine flow needs. Too large of a diameter piping will allow the exhaust gases to cool before exiting the exhaust system, thus producing more backpressure than a properly sized system. Any bends will reduce flow potential, with sharper bends doing more harm to power than gradual bends. A crimped bend is inferior to a mandrel bend for flow. Ideally, in a relatively stock motor (no cam/head uprade or power adders...ie, nitrous/turbo/blower/methanol) you will see some improvement in power by going up very slightly in tubing diameter. This is where most of the power gains are to be had. The factory muffler on the 2.3 Rangers is very restrictive, but I think you would eventually grow tired of the noise of a glasspack (especially once the glass matting begins to deteriorate). The biggest difference in aceleration with a new muffler will possibly be because of weight savings. The factory muffler is HEAVY. I would suggest a "turbo" style muffler, which is the chambered type. It will have negligible flow characteristics when compared to a glass pack style muffler on a vehicle with as little horspower as a 2.3 ranger, and sound much more civilized. There is a reason that no street car has left the factory with glasspacks for many decades. The sound level and sound quality is simply offensive. If this is for an off-road only setup, then I would say you're all right with a glasspack. Just don't expect it to sound like a ferrarri, just because it's as loud as one. A chambered style muffler can be had at autozone or advanced autoparts for under $40. I swapped my glasspack for a thrush chambered muffler, and have noticed no difference in power, but the sound levels and sound quality are much more refined. I have recently gone up .25" in tubing diameter and did notice a little more top end power. I really think that the head design is the main limitation on the 2.3, and that beyond a high flow intake, intake silencer removal, and exhaust upgrades, there are no real cheap hp adders. If your truck is factory equipped with a manifold, try to get a factory header for it. It will make more power per dollar than anything besides maybe nitrous. Straight pipes sound awesome on race cars. The ranger is definitely not a race car. Your girlfirend will thank you for not making her ride in a truck that is so obnoxiously loud that she is embarassed to be seen in it.

That said, with the catylitic converter on my D-tec 2.3, I run a Warlock muffler, and it is quiet and refined. But when I take the bypass plug out, dumping it right after the cat, then it sounds like a Honda, just one octave lower. I have heard the D-tec 2.3 with a glass pack split into duals, and it sounded nice, but the older Lima (pre 2000) 2.3 sounds like ASS with a glass pack.

i had a 24inch glasspack on my 02 2.3l split into duals. Also i seemed to set off every car alarm i drove past it was even louder than when i had 3" straight pipe from the header so dont go with a glasspack but if you like really really loud exhaust go with a glasspack