Top 6 Best Exhaust Systems for 5th/6th Gen Camaro

There’s no doubt that the Chevy Camaro is one of the best-sounding pony cars out there in the streets today. The Camaro’s stock exhaust sound is just too good – it’s even eargasmic for some!

However, as car enthusiasts who are obsessed with personalizing our vehicles, the idea of driving a Camaro on stock can be slightly dull. Luckily, there’s enormous aftermarket support behind the Camaro’s back, where aftermarket exhausts of various types, sound outputs, and builds are present.

Most Chevy Camaro owners are looking for a more aggressive and intimidating exhaust tone.

There are many aftermarket exhausts for your Chevy Camaro that will give you the kind of sound preference you want, and below are what we think are the best ones we can recommend for your car.

#1 Borla ATAK® Cat-Back™ Exhaust System

  • Manufacturer: Borla
  • Part Number: 140356
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevrolet Camaro SS (2010-2013) – Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (2010-2013)

If you’re looking for raw, loud, and aggressive sound output for your Chevy Camaro, then you should definitely check out the Borla ATAK® Cat-Back™ Exhaust System.

It’s one of the critically acclaimed and arguably one of the best exhausts for the Camaro SS because of the sheer loudness and aggression it can impart to your car. Many Camaro owners claimed that their vehicles sounded like a real race car, but it’s not loud enough to annoy everyone around you.

So what’s with the Borla ATAK® Cat-Back™ Exhaust System? This exhaust system exists to give car enthusiasts a chance to make their Chevy Camaros sound like a good ‘ol traditional V8 muscle car.

Thanks to the ATAK® (Acoustically Tuned Applied Kinetics), you can enjoy a wild, aggressive, and street-legal exhaust tone that will give the other exhausts a run for their money.

Aside from the overly-emphasized aggressive sound output, the Borla ATAK® Cat-Back™ Exhaust System is also capable of boosting your car’s exhaust velocity, which ultimately translates into an improvement in both power and fuel economy.

Overall, if you’re into an exhaust system that has a solid build quality and at the same time can provide you with an authentic V8 muscle car sound, then this exhaust’s definitely for you. 

#2 Borla S-Type Cat-Back Exhaust System

  • Manufacturer: Borla
  • Part Number: 140356
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevrolet Camaro SS w/o NPP Dual Mode Exhaust (2016-2017) – Chevrolet Camaro SS (2018-2020)

An overly loud and belligerent exhaust system is not for everyone, and we understand that. Some car enthusiasts prefer an exhaust system that sits close to what the stock sound is, not too loud, but loud enough to tell everyone that you’re driving a badass Chevy Camaro.

Here’s another exhaust from Borla, but this time it’s not as overtly deafening as the previous ATAK® exhaust system. Come take a look at the Borla S-Type Cat-Back Exhaust System.

With this exhaust system, you can enjoy an exhaust system that’s louder than the OEM exhaust yet not obnoxious enough for your neighbors to hate you. It utilizes an x-pipe to ensure performance and improve the exhaust flow that’s leaving your car.

This exhaust system uses a CNC-machined mandrel-bent T-304 stainless steel to ensure that the gas flow will be smoother than the stock.

Once you’ve got this exhaust system installed on your Chevy Camaro, you can enjoy an almost stock sound while on idle and the loud iconic Borla sound whenever you put the pedal to the metal.

Borla advises the use of long tube headers to bring the best sound output and performance out of your car. For its price point, there’s no doubt that the Borla S-Type Cat-Back Exhaust System is one of the best exhausts you can have for your Camaro SS.

#3 Corsa Performance Xtreme Axle-Back Exhaust System

  • Manufacturer: Corsa Performance
  • Part Number: 14784BLK
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevrolet Camaro SS (2016-2019) – Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (2017-2019)

Drones are one of the most annoying things your car can spew out in your face (in this case, your ear). It’s undeniably irritating, and it can potentially ruin a fun driving experience.

Good thing there are some exhaust systems out there guaranteed by many Camaro owners to be droneless. Corsa Performance’s Xtreme Axle-Back Exhaust System is one of them, a bang for the buck investment you can put into your Chevy Camaro.

Corsa Performance’s RSC (Reflective Sound Cancellation) Technology is responsible for the drone elimination that the Xtreme Axle-Back Exhaust System has. Styled specifically for the Chevy Camaro, this exhaust system allows you to enjoy a calm run on the highway that’s free from drones.

On top of that, you’ll also enjoy a refined sound that’s aggressive and loud exhaust grunts during acceleration.

The Corsa Performance Xtreme Axle-Back Exhaust System is 5lbs lighter and can provide 4% more exhaust flow than your stock exhaust. It’s got 2.75” pipe and 4.0” exhaust tips made of 304 stainless steel.

What’s more, this exhaust system comes with black PVD Pro-Series tips that will make your car look incredibly awesome from the rear end.

#4 Flowmaster American Thunder Axle-Back System

  • Manufacturer: Flowmaster
  • Part Number: 817483
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevy Camaro LS (2010-2015) except convertibles

Chevy Camaro LS (2010-2015) except convertibles

Camaro exhausts don’t always have to be expensive! For the budget-oriented Camaro connoisseurs who want an exhaust system that’s cheap yet effective at the same time, we present to you the Flowmaster American Thunder Axle-Back Exhaust System.

It’s affordable, it looks decent, and it sounds impressive: like an actual vintage V8 muscle car!

The Flowmaster American Thunder is an axle-back exhaust system composed of parts like mandrel-bent 2.5” piping and 4.0” exhaust tips. The entirety of this exhaust is dyno tuned to make sure that it’ll give you as many performance gains as it can.

And also has a 40 Series Muffler that’s responsible for that iconic aggressive and powerful Flowmaster sound that most muscle car enthusiasts are familiar with.

This exhaust system has a pretty impressive reputation, even if it is at the lower end of the price spectrum.

A lot of Camaro owners who’ve purchased the Flowmaster American Thunder Axle-Back System on their cars claim that it sounds really great, and the videos and advertisements about it don’t do the exhaust justice; it’s just fantastic!

This product is arguably one of the best exhaust systems for Chevy Camaro.

#5 SLP Performance Loudmouth II Axle-Back Exhaust System

  • Manufacturer: SLP Performance
  • Part Number: 31212
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevrolet Camaro SS (2010-2015)

The SLP Performance Loudmouth II is not just your average run-of-the-mill exhaust. Yes, it’s the cheapest one on this list, but don’t underestimate it yet! It’s got a pretty excellent reputation in the Camaro community not only for being an affordable grab but also for the amount of value it can bring to you and to your car.

The sound it makes will get you back to the ’60s when the OG muscle cars are still roaming the streets.

This exhaust system has a decent throaty rumble; not too loud, but not too silent too. It’s got 4.0” dual wall tips to give your Camaro a showroom look, and its mandrel-bent 2.5” piping provides a seamless flow for your car’s exhausts, ultimately translating to reduced resonance and improved fuel economy.

And also, it’s made out of stainless steel to keep corrosion at bay. 

Quality doesn’t always have to come with a high price tag. The Loudmouth II exhaust system is apparent evidence for that claim.

And as the name suggests, the Loudmouth II will deliver that loud, aggressive, but not too obnoxious exhaust grunt for your Camaro. Overall, this exhaust system is hands down one of the best sounding 5th-gen Camaro exhaust you can find in the market today.

#6 Kooks 3” Axle-Back Exhaust System

  • Manufacturer: Kooks Headers and Exhaust
  • Part Number: 22606260
  • Vehicle Fitment: Chevrolet Camaro (2016-2021) – Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (2016-2021)

Papa Kooks and his family have been a vital part of the muscle car aftermarket scene. 

And even if he’s long gone, his heritage of making cars like the Chevy Camaro awesome still continues up to this day. For the Chevy Camaro, Kooks Headers and Exhaust offers you their 3” Axle-Back Exhaust System.

It comes with a pretty awesome set of quad black exhaust tips that will surely add more flavor to your car.

So what exactly is the Kooks 3” Axle-Back Exhaust System? It’s a race/street/track-proven exhaust system that’s proudly made in the U.S. soil. It’s an axle-back exhaust system that has a 3.0” smooth exhaust pipe that’s guaranteed to make exhaust gas flow as smooth as possible.

This exhaust also comes with a set of four black exhaust tips that will significantly improve how your car looks, especially from the back.

As for the sound, the Kooks 3” Axle-Back Exhaust Systems delivers a terrific exhaust grunt. It’s loud enough to make your car noticeable, but it’s not insufferable to the point that you’ll get some judgemental looks from the people around.

We recommend that you partner this exhaust system with Kooks long tube headers if you really want to achieve a wicked sound output endemic only to Kooks Headers and Exhaust. 

Please do note that some of these exhaust systems are for race competitions only. These said exhaust may not be compliant with some of your residence’s federal laws and regulations, so please do your own research first to avoid any waste of time, money, and effort.

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