I have read many threads about the trouble fitting good flowing exhaust under an H-Body sacrificing ground clearance. I wanted to give it a go and finally get rid of the restrictive budget exhaust that has likely been on the Vega since the late 70's in favor of something a guy can be proud of.
I had some minimum requirements. I wanted headers to replace the restrictive smog era manifolds. I wanted it to be 2.5" all the way back to dual tips. I hate how true duals sound. So, I wanted it to have a crossover. Lastly, I wanted to try a muffler set-up I saw on The "Flying Turd" Vega. So I did. Check out the Video for Vroom Vroom noises!
https://youtu.be/xTtBg8n6mcI
Read below for things that I'm only sharing here on this forum.
The tubing was a mild Steel "Street Rod/Muscle Car Exhaust Kit 2-1/2" From Jegs Part Number : 555-30671. I originally ordered a similar kit from Summit but it was back ordered. I'm sure they are all from the same manufacturer in china so which kit you use ultimately makes little difference.
The flex sections were "TOTALFLOW TF-63150 Stainless Steel Double Braided Exhaust Flex Pipe-2.5" ID x 6" ordered from Amazon. Don't be fooled by the fact that "stainless steel" is in the title. They are for sure mild steel. I didn't want any complications welding so I ordered these specifically because the ends were mild steel. They work, but aren't going to make your show car better or racecar faster.
The V-Bands also came from Amazon in the form of "Kraken Automotive 2.5 Inch V Band Clamp" advertised to be A105 Mild Steel. They also welded on easily, but didn't seal as well as I'd hoped. The application of a little High-Heat Permatex as shown in the video fixed that problem right up though.