Exhaust tones

Longer life, less pressure, and better appearance would do us all good, but for exhaust systems, they are mandatory-and on a tight budget.

Like candidates for political office, automotive exhaust systems face a limited amount of time in service before they are up for replacement. In the recent past, those term limits were more strict. Mufflers and pipes could expect to go within a new president's four-year term.

But citizens, tired of replacing mufflers so soon, began voting with their wallets, buying cars that offered longer-lasting exhausts. That, combined with government requirements for emissions systems to last 15 years or 150,000 mi to receive Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle certification, has pushed carmakers and exhaust component suppliers to steadily improve the quality of the materials and the designs of their mufflers and pipes.