C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

[Jack O.]

I have an original set of '69 sidepipes which have a small metal tab welded onto the muffler toward the rear. At first I thought someone added these because my repro's don't have them and nothing in the assembly manual indicates they are used. Then I noticed the skinless L88 in the recent edition of the Restorer also had these so I'm wondering if they are an early production way to attach the covers eventually repalced by the Z bracket which attaches to the frame. Another interesting note here is that my car is listed in the judging manual as the earliest seen with sidepipes and it does not appear to have any holes drilled in the frame to attach the Z bracket. Anybody know the scoop?

[Jim T.]

Re: C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

Jack I ran 69 factory option side pipes on my 70 from about 74-81. I started with a used set of covers and mufflers and eventually replaced all the chrome covers and bought new side pipe mufflers from GM. The new mufflers as well as the old ones had the tab your refer to.

[Kent K.]

Re: C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

Jack----
Is this the bracket in question? Maybe it will help someone else answer your question. This photo was taken of a bracket on some NOS side exhaust I obtained for my '69 whose mufflers are plumb worn out.
Kent #6201

[Kent K.]

Re: C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

Sorry --- Here is the picture

[Jack O.]

Re: C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

Yep, that's it. Must be original but I'm wondering what it's used for if anything. Thanks.

[Chuck G.]

Re: C3 Welded bracket on sidepipe muffler

Going from memory here, but I belive that the early 69 side pipe cars had the cover attached to the pipe directly. That bracket was used to attach the rear of the side pipe cover to the pipe.

Somewhere along the line, GM realized that bolting the cover to the moveable pipe wasn't a good idea, so the "Z" or "S" bracket was added to hold the cover to the frame. Chuck