I am designing custom exhaust for my S & S 96 cu in motor. I heard that the two exhaust pipes must be equal in length for engine performance.

My design ( click on pic below) will have the rear pipe a little shorter than the front if they are separate .

Will I need to use a collector ( shown in pic ) to insure performance?
Will using a collector insure performance ?
I would like to make them two separate pipes, I think they would look better.

Any comments and or suggestions would greatly be accepted.

Thanks In Advance.

 

If you take a look at any Buell exhaust the reason they are a funny shape is because both pipes are equal length. Achieving that isn't pretty! It is how they were able to get so much more power from their engines. Getting two equal length pipes that also look good is a big challenge. There is just one dresser system that does it, by looping the rear pipe above the trans.

So most systems are unequal length, but they do give better performance if they join in a Y pipe. Frankly exhaust design is a bit complicated. I am sure there are some good books out there, possibly websites that will help you get the best out of this.