First off, I have wondered this for a while, and tonight at dinner I heard that familar V8 growl that only the mustang seems to have. You see V8 trucks all the time and they don't sound anything like the V8 mustang. Yes, you hear the roar of the engine and know that it is definately louder than the V6, but only the mustangs seem to have a low throaty growl. So what makes it? Is it the specific engine type, the engine tuning, or the exhaust? If some don't know what it is that I'm talking about just think about that low sound that you know is followed by the appearance of a mean GT. So, do you think or know if the 05 is tuned or whatever to sound the same, if not meaner? I have heard from various personal reviews on this site that the exhaust/sound seems tamer than past models. Will someone explain the V8 growl mystery? Thanks.

 

It's actually a combination of things. The sound of the engine is dependent on the number of cylinders, the size of the chambers, the type of intake, the firing order, the headers or exhaust manifolds, the exhaust pipe tubing, and finally the muffler chambers themselves. Of course, that list is not conclusive and doesn't even really tell you all the factors that create that mellow growl of the small block V8 Ford. Ford actually has an acoustic studio where they actually work on tuning the sound of their engines. For muscle cars, like the Mustang, the tune is set for an authoritative, sporty, and exciting mellow tone that enthusiasts have grown to love. Mustangs also have an exhaust tune designed to be quiet enough to live with under normal conditions, but awesome to listsen to when you open her up. The SUVs get a more subdued and hushed tone, but it sounds powerfully in control, yet not overbearingly (annoying .. read as soccer moms ). Ford cars like the Taurus, Focus, etc .. tend to be tuned to emit as little noise as possible. Yet, under acceleration load they are tuned to sound in command, rather than anemically wimpy like a Honda 4 cylinder, for example.

 

Thanks for the explanation.

 

The several times I've heard outside the car, it seemed less loud at idle than my '03 Mach 1. However, when you rev the engine, it sounds similar in tone and loudness level. From within the car, I sensed it was quieter than the Mach, but some of that could have come from the better body fit and finish and sound deadening of the '05. I also wonder if the muffler placement (closer to the rear on the '05) has something to do with the quieter noise. On the current car, the mufflers are closer to the driver.

 

Its funny my Lincoln when the everything behind the cats was gone. It sounded like a mustang sitting there at idle.........but when I opened her up it sounded like 747 jet engine. The bass of the exhaust hit hard enough to cuz some irritation to the ears and fast enough to shake the car constantly.

Also we attached the pipes back and it sounds like its being suffocated when sititng at idle........but when I open her up it sounds like the whine of a supercharger.....albeit a large supercharger.

 

The several times I've heard outside the car, it seemed less loud at idle than my '03 Mach 1. However, when you rev the engine, it sounds similar in tone and loudness level. From within the car, I sensed it was quieter than the Mach, but some of that could have come from the better body fit and finish and sound deadening of the '05. I also wonder if the muffler placement (closer to the rear on the '05) has something to do with the quieter noise. On the current car, the mufflers are closer to the driver. [/b][/quote]
Yea the mufflers in the back keeps sound out of the interior.

Im getting the fake BOV speaker PPSSSSSSSSSST

 

What makes a car sound great are the pipes. Then engine is just the wind that blows through what we all hope is a finely tuned instrument.

 

Also, part of the reason why the V8 trucks you see sound so different is that they, for the most part, have a single exhaust. Same with F-bodies. Even the ones with dual exhaust outlets usually have a Y-pipe in the front, a single cat, and single flow tube to the rear cat-back.

A big part of why Mustangs sound like they do is the true dual exhaust and the factory H-pipe.