Flowmaster Mufflers - Made In China Now

[PlayingWithTBI]

I used to work for the largest ladder manufacturer in the country (which shall remain anonymous) who went to China for their lower end household products. We found that their early production models were of great quality but, it went downhill after that. Our division in CA made more money reworking their products than actual ladder production on sight, LOL! Eventually we closed all of the plants in the US and opened one up in Juarez MX. I had to go there and help install and start up some of the equipment. Almost moved there, then quit, ha ha.

 

[Shwoody]

I appreciate being made aware of this, but personally it doesn't worry me that much. I probably wouldn't ever buy a Flowmaster product anyway but that's just because I believe there are much better performing options out there. You guys who are disappointed that you just bought Flowmaster stuff and found this out, I wouldn't be too worried. IMO a lot of the Chinese product hate is unwarranted. Country of origin is not the end-all be-all to quality. Chinese companies are capable of making everything from excellent products to complete garbage, just like everywhere else. It really boils down to manufacturing and quality control in the specific factory the products come out of. Flowmaster has been around long enough that I'm sure they probably sourced a good factory in China to make their stuff.

Not trying to steer anyone one way or the other, like I said I'm not a Flowmaster fan anyway. Just wanted to chime in with some of my observations over the years working with Chinese products. If buying from USA based companies is a priority for you due to economic/social beliefs I totally get that, but not everything that comes out of China is as bad as people make it out to be.

I agree that China is fully capable of making quality products. The junk they often produce probably has a lot to do with cheap consumers and companies wanting to maximize profits.
The quality of the Chinese Flowmaster actually seemed quite good, for now at least.

I think it's a moral issue for many people. Flowmaster started as a well-liked American company that was purchased by the Holley corporation and then Holley was purchased by some even bigger corporation who probably decided they could cut costs by manufacturing in China. People in the US use lose those jobs, and it's more economic support for China. It's folded and welded sheet steel, a simple manufacturing process with fairly low materials cost, why are we outsourcing that!?!? I know the answer but it's still disappointing to me.

I'd rather support a small company like Spintech. Owned by people who are actually interested in what they're selling (not billionaires who own dozens of other companies), made here in the US, and similarly priced.

 

[Erik the Awful]

I was rounding up my recycling last night a loaded my Flowmaster catalytic converter boxes into the bin. They both said, "Made in USA". The Cherry Bomb Salute boxes both said "Made in China". Personally, I believe you can't be both capitalist and protectionist. If we want capitalism to spread around the world, we have to accept that we'll be competing with other countries.

 

[Shwoody]

I was rounding up my recycling last night a loaded my Flowmaster catalytic converter boxes into the bin. They both said, "Made in USA". The Cherry Bomb Salute boxes both said "Made in China". Personally, I believe you can't be both capitalist and protectionist. If we want capitalism to spread around the world, we have to accept that we'll be competing with other countries.

In my opinion, it's not really competing. More like selling out to whoever can produce crap the cheapest. This is an American designed product that is used almost exclusively on American cars. It'd be competing if a Chinese manufacturer came up with a new muffler design that many people preferred.
It's kind of a lost cause but it'd be nice to keep more manufacturing here in the US, even if it means less profits for the corporations.

 

[Erik the Awful]

"More like selling out to whoever can produce crap the cheapest." Yeah, that's capitalism. I'm not making the argument that it doesn't hurt workers, nor that we don't need to manage the transition better. When everything moved down to Mexico, wages there rose. Then the Chinese companies undersold the Mexican companies, and production moved to China. Now wages in China are rising, which moves some of the production back here, and some of it on to India. Hundreds of millions of people are moving into the middle class.

 

[CrustyJunker]

Great, now you guys got me goin'!

I think a lot of high performance products (and tools) have gone by the wayside like this. I take pride in buying American products. Unfortunately not all hot rod guys think the same. I know guys that buy performance parts only by price. Easy example - buying counterfeit or knockoff parts on eBay constantly...Like unbranded $30 "chamber mufflers," mysteriously modeled after a major brand, exhaust tubing, fuel regulators, gauges, valve covers, oil pans, cylinder heads, rotating assemblies, you name it.

Hooker Headers I believe are made in China now, too. Again as earlier mentioned, no price savings for the consumer for cheaper manufacturing either.

I figure if I'm going to celebrate the American tradition of high performance automotive, I'd hope my money so far has been going toward safe working environments and quality standards here in the US. It's hard to justify spending more unnecessarily just for the Made In USA sticker, but I justify it to myself like it's the right thing to do. You don't always get what you pay for, but a lot of times you do.

 

[Supercharged111]

My Detroit Truetrac was stamped made in Taiwan. Can't say I was thrilled about that.

 

[98 Nitro]

My Detroit Truetrac was stamped made in Taiwan. Can't say I was thrilled about that.

At least Taiwan is a free democratic country and an ally.
In China if you started a union demanding better wages/benefits you would disappear. Theyve also often dumped products here for less than it costs for the materials it takes to make them to put our workers out of jobs. I always look at where something is made and made in China is always the last resort I'll buy from.
As for the Flowmaster they made some quality stuff but I wouldn't but anymore from them.

 

[DerekTheGreat]

Occasionally I stop by a muffler shop that I used to work at and recently, I noticed that all the Flowmasters they've been getting in are Chinese manufactured...

...Of course the price hasn't dropped at all.
Moral of the story: buy Magnaflow mufflers. Or Spintech if you're still after that hollow echoey sound.

HAHAHAHA!!!

Great post, and of course the price hasn't dropped. Undercut your fellow man to put more money in your pockets. Then justify it with ******, scummy popular business words like "Globalization" and "Sustainability." Sustainability is a big one around here. I vomit inside when I hear it because it translates into what you've posted. Meanwhile, these assholes do that ****, get on stage in the conference rooms, metaphorically suck & stroke each other and then celebrate at Flinger's... Meanwhile the company announces layoffs and shutdowns at various locations and many are left scrambling to figure out how to "sustain" themselves..

 

[Crookedaxle]

At least Taiwan is a free democratic country and an ally.
In China if you started a union demanding better wages/benefits you would disappear. Theyve also often dumped products here for less than it costs for the materials it takes to make them to put our workers out of jobs. I always look at where something is made and made in China is always the last resort I'll buy from.
As for the Flowmaster they made some quality stuff but I wouldn't but anymore from them.

They've also often dumped products here for less than it costs for the materials it takes to make them to put our workers out of jobs.

Has anyone here heard of a man named Henry Ford? Well this kind of applies to the Model T too but I know more about old tractors than Model T's. Back in the late teens to late twenties (100 years ago, damn!) he had a tractor called the Fordson. Hands down the biggest pile of **** you can imagine. Worm drive rear end for one example. An original design criteria for it was to be short enough to fit sideways on a train car so he could ship more/cheaper, so they had a nasty habit of flipping over backwards and killing the operator. Window-makers they were affectionately referred to. Anyways, long story short, they outsold any tractor ever manufactured. He sold them at a loss for a few years and must have bankrupted at least two dozen manufactures out of business even before the Great Depression hit. And there aren't too many around anymore in relation to Farmalls or John Deeres that had high production numbers too because they were mostly scrapped out and melted down to make tank tracks and ship anchors for WWII. EVERYTHING is manufactured to a price point. The chinks can make good stuff too. I used to be a Moldmaker but the profit isn't there anymore for the average shop because they are so labor intensive to build and compact for easy overseas shipping. If you are big, fully automated and doing medical, specialty stuff you can compete. That's what I don't understand about what a previous poster mentioned too, why does this **** go overseas? Minimal labor and larger shipping envelope for the weight. Why can't American college kids make mufflers over the summer? It may not be so much labor as it is all the other **** USA pays for that the chinks don't. Comp, environmental, unions etc. etc. That's really where it's not a level playing field for competition because the chinks and indians are eventually going to get better wages as they move into there version of "middle class".