Small Block Chevy 350 into Dakar / Range Rover

Making the Exhaust

Exhaust systems for engine swaps can be a complete pain in the @rse. I purchased some short stubby headers, which were very similar to a set on Andys chevy conversion, but they didn't fit.

So I then turned to the chevy blazer headers i got free with the engine with a view to cutting them up to make them fit. To my amazement, when i slid them in the engine bay they fitted perfectly. The offside header fouled my gear reduction starter, but its adjustable, so i just turned it round a bit (well, i actually drilled and tapped it!) and then the headers fitted.

My old Rover sounded loverly on a Single straight through exhaust, and i wanted to duplicate the same on the chevy. So i got underneath with loads of bits of pipe to make the Y pipe that would join the two headers into one 3" outlet.

This took me nearly all day to make!. This shows the blazer headers and my fabricated Y pipe.

The Y pipe connects to the chery bomb. I'm actually on my third cherry bomb: I drove all the way to stonleigh to collect a 3" cherry bomb and then when home. The next day when it came to fitting said 3" cherry bomb, i discovered that 3" is the measurement of the body of the bomb, not the actual inlet/outlet! doh!, so that one was sent back to be exchanged for a 5" one that has a 3" pipe size. The nice chap on the phone at custom chrome said "A single cherry bomb on 5.7 chevy? - that will sound quite throaty sir!" I said "good" - send it out.

So my second one turned up and i fitted it. However a few weeks later when i got it started, turns out Mr Cherry Bomb was right, it was bloody LOUD!

So i ordered another one, but with some slight internal baffling - still effectivley straight thru though. It sounds gorgous!.

The next step was to make the bit that leads from the cherry bomb out to the back. This needs a hoop in it to go over the rear-axle, it was suggested by the pipe benders to make a template from copper pipe, so i did and gave it to them.

After a week or so, they called me to say they couldn't bend the pipe becuase of its size (3"), it just kept crushing it. They had managed a few curves, but nothing more. I said i would take whatever they had, and i would bodge it up myself. Whilst i was picking up pipe, they showed me a complete rear section for some american truck (pick up to you and me), it had a nice over axle hoop, and it was in 3" pipe. They sold it to me for 45!. This was the second bit of luck, just one cut got me the loop and that just needed finishing of with a tight bend. I made this by hand by segmenting the pipe, and then patching over the holes.

This photo shows me fabricating the rear section of the pipe:

This is the rear outlet. Small children have been lost up it!, ive also set-off car alarms with it!

This is the complete article:

C