unless your driving a serious car where every hp counts you'll never know the difference.  spend the money else where.

Tmac wrote:

So here goes. Ive got a mild 289, T5, 9-inch rear.  I have mid-length patriot headers.  I am going to run Flowmaster 40's.  I am wanting to run 2.5 piping with tips through the GT valance. Question: crush bent pipe or Mandrel bent pipe? I know the difference and that Mandrel will always trump crush bent pipe when it comes to restritive flow.  But is it really worth the money? Or could I save some money and spend that savings somewhere else? This car is just a driver, not a racer and will never be used as a racer.  All suggestions and comments are always welcome!!!! Thanks yall!!

I had a friend with exact same setup as you.  His car sounded just like open headers at the rear, even at idle.  That said, I would want some crush in those pipes to quiet things down a bit, unless it is just a track car where you want the full flow.