I just got a small dent in my exhaust pipe today. I was wondering what exactly the effects are of such a dent. I would assume it cuts down the preformance a little but can it lead to other problems that are more serious?
Small dents have minimal effect. If they start getting big enough, they reduce the volume of the pipe which changes the way it resonates. Usually, you'll start loosing top end and maybe even pick up a hair more midrange/bottom end if you dent it just right. Kinks and crushed sections are the worst.