This study is on the performance of the perforated tube muffler when it operates as an exhaust silencer with through-flow, steady or pulsating. Theoretical estimation of the insertion loss was made by means of transfer matrix and by using the impedance equation for the perforated tube obtained for the case of low-speed steady through-flow. Experiment was performed for the measurement of the insertion loss at two flow conditions. The one is a steady flow from the exhaust pipe of an idling diesel engine. The effect of the through-flow velocity and steadiness on the muffler performance was obtained. By comparing the theoretical prediction with the experimental result, the validity of the impedance equation in the theoretical model was discussed. It has been found that steadiness as well as magnitude of the through-flow has a significant effect on the performance of the perforated tube muffler. Especially, the self-noise due to the pulsating flow in the engine exhaust system must be taken into account for the prediction of the muffler performance.