...been working diligently on a nice clean way to get the truck 'quiet' while also not melting the spare tire, and this is how I did it. There's now another big 3" in/out Walker QuietFlow 20146 muffler under the spare tire well, with three nice strong and rust-proof 1/8" aluminum heat shields linked together to keep the heat under control...I hope. 3" downpipe from the center exhaust routes into the muffler, and I have a simple turn-down tacked in place until I get the bed on and fab up the actual tail pipe. Main shield bolts up to the spare tire crossmembers, and the muffler bolts up through slots in the shield to the same crossmembers. Measurements indicate the rear axle has a full 6 inches of compression before it will contact anything, and in my experience that is 'plenty'. Look under any pickup - there's lots of empty space under there, and I'm usin' all of it.

Is the shielding overkill? - maybe, but this aught to keep my spendy Toyo from wearing out due to heat. I got the muffler and shields as close to the chassis as I could without hitting under articulation - testing will confirm or deny if my calculations are correct. Pics -



















the two connecting shields - one a 'wall' the other connecting to the main shield above the tire -



the three heat shields bolted together making a nice barrier between the 'heat' and the tire -