The tail pipe is the visible end of the exhaust system, the chromed or polished section that exits the rear of the car and presents the system's character to anyone behind the vehicle. The original tail pipes fitted to classic MGs during production were typically simple straight or angled cuts in the final outlet section, with a relatively understated visual character. Tail pipe accessories cover the renewal, upgrading, and visual customisation of the system's exit, with options ranging from period-correct chromed replacements through to performance-look stainless tips.
Tail Trims
The most common item is the tail trim, a polished sleeve that slides over the existing tail pipe and is secured by a grub screw or small clamp, dressing the exit without disturbing the rest of the system, available in chrome and in stainless steel and in straight and lipped styles. The chrome trim is the period-correct choice for visual originality, while the stainless trim is the longer-lived alternative that does not corrode from road salt or wet-weather driving and retains its appearance over extended service. Without a trim, the exhaust tail pipe presents a raw cut metal edge that discolours quickly and collects soot and road grime, so a trim covers this edge with a polished finish, and as a secondary practical benefit the stainless trim physically shields the cut end of a mild-steel tail pipe from direct road-spray impingement, delaying the first corrosion break at the exit. The lipped style extends slightly beyond the rear valance for a more prominent accent, while the straight style sits flush for a more understated appearance, the choice being purely personal preference.
A tail trim must match the outer diameter of the existing tail pipe for a correct fit, so the system fitted should be confirmed when ordering, as standard and big-bore systems use different diameters.
Performance & Sporting Tips
Performance and sporting tail-pipe tips are stocked for owners who want to give the rear of the car a more aggressive visual character, the range including larger-diameter cylindrical tips flared out for visual effect, angled-cut tips with sporting profiles, and twin-outlet conversions that split the system's exit into two separate pipes. The visual effect is meaningful, a polished stainless twin-outlet conversion behind a tuned car giving an unmistakably sporting appearance from the rear, with the fit-and-finish of modern stainless work substantially better than anything achievable in the 1960s. For a more substantial upgrade, Supersports rear silencers with rolled-edge polished stainless tail pipes are available in single and twin-tailpipe configurations, offering both a visual and an acoustic improvement over the standard cylindrical rear box, covered in the Stainless Steel Exhaust Systems section.
Supporting Hardware & Finishing
The accessory range covers the smaller items that come up alongside any tail-pipe work, the rear-bumper cutouts for cars where the tail pipe exits through the bumper, the heat shields used on some applications to protect the rear bumper or body panel, and the rubber-mounted clamps used to support the tail-pipe section against vibration. High-temperature exhaust paint in silver, black, red, and white refinishes manifolds and front pipes, formulated to withstand temperatures up to around 600°C without blistering or peeling, applied in multiple thin coats and heat-cured by running the engine to operating temperature, while exhaust assembly paste applied to every joint during fitment fills microscopic gaps to create a gas-tight seal that prevents the ticking sound of exhaust leaks and acts as an anti-seize compound to ease future disassembly. The visual specification of the tail pipe and its accessories should be matched to the rest of the car, period-correct chromework for cars restored to original specification and stainless or performance-look hardware for cars built to a more sporting character, with a polished stainless trim not being a factory-fitted item and therefore not appropriate for strict concours originality judging.