I'm planning on getting a pulley, intake and probably unichip. I'm still on the fence about the exhaust though because I've read comments about 05 exhaust being very good, at least compared to the older models. What do you think, is it necessary or not.

 

I'm waiting for the same reason, I have yet to see a direct comparison of the '05 stock to any aftermarket gains. I bet it's VERY minimal compared to pre '05 gains.

 

The weight reduction factor should not be forgotten though.. You can also just get your own exhaust customize, but keep in mind that you're reducing some serious "lbs."..

Just installed my ALTA today, and when I was removing my 03 exhaust.. WOW that thing is HEAVY!!!!!!

///Gilbert

 

betet:
what do you think of the alta?
does it stand crooked? I have a 2005 and I am currently waiting for a back order on the Borlas.
I previously owned a borla exhaust on another car and was really happy with it.
If you could give your impressions on the alta would be of great for us.
Is it really loud?
thanks

 

Serious weight difference, are you kidding? The delta is not even the weight 4 gallons of gas - and that is barely even noticeable.

 

Exactly. Betet is out of his mind. A 15-20lb weight loss is nothing unless it is unsprung weight. That's only about a 1/2 of one percent weight reduction. That's the equivalent of a half of one horsepower (maybe 3/4). And on a modded S with 200+ hp? You have to strip a couple hundred pounds to notice.

 

I feel that greatgro is correct. If the extent of your weight reduction is just with an exhaust mod, the 20 or so pounds shed will be quite neglible. If however you plan to follow a serious plan to lose weight, there are not many easy 20 pound chunks to lose, and the exhaust would then be a no-brainer...

I'm currently at negative 168 pounds, and with front seats, flywheel, crank pulley, front sway bar, and front control arms to go, that will get me very near a 250 pound delta. Much more can be lost, but I don't want a gutted track car look for my MCS. It has been said that 16 pounds is tantamount to 1 hp. If so, that would be a good 15 hp, and I personally find that very attractive, especially since I can actually make money on some the items being removed or replaced Today, out goes the Xenon pump, reservoir and plumbing! I'm guessing about 5 pounds, depending upon the size of the reservoir. Weight up front is much more challenging, and/or expensive to make happen, but it's like gold on this car!

One more thing to note is that loss of weight has other appelaing benefits: better gas mileage, improved braking, and a more responsive suspension. I'm glad I put an emphasis on this early on...

bambam, if you plan to mod your MCS or any car for that matter, I find that it really helps to have a goal as to what you want. Once decided, look at the various paths to get there. You might find that you don't need to lose 20 pounds with an exhaust, and if so, pick on other attributes.

Just giving my thoughts...

 

I've been doing some musings on $/HP here. While it's still rough and there's more accurate numbers that can go in, but exhaust systems are very pricey in the performance ranking.

Start with a cold air intake and a pully (if you do a belt and better plugs at the same time, the cost goes up a bit). IF you do your own work on the pully install, it really saves $. If you belive the claims on MTH as an ECU mod, go for it, especially if you have a friend with a cable. Even if you don't, it's still smart money (that is, if you believe it works). MTH also gives you traction control modification, that is worth the price of admission alone. But if you don't believe the MTH claims, I think the Apexi is a better deal. You can tune it yourself (if that's your bag) saving dyno $. It's also about half the price of UniChip.

If you plan to go way out there with tuning and mods, then the initial cost difference of the ecu mod is less critical, as you'll put more dollers into tune optimization. Then the fact that the unichip does timing and fuel can be an advantage of Apexi, that only does fuel remaps.

The cat-back comes after the intake and pully, but before the larger IC, or performance head. If you do a low-ball exhaust (this can be done pretty cheap, but it's a custom job...), you can make it a more aggresive $/Hp number....

Also, if you're an AGS fan, do that before an exhaust. But becuase of expense with the TB (AGS pro) and no real numbers that I've seen yet, I guessed low HP numbers for it.

If you're willing to go under the torch, the One-Ball is attractive. You loose about 20 lbs combined with a better flowing exhaust (I've seen claims of 0, 5 and 12 HP, but I'd guess 3-4), that's about half the benefit of the most aggressive claims on a cat back system at 20% of the price.

Anyway, I was surprised by some of the things the tables show.

If you want to change the sound or look of the car, the $/hp metric isn't the right one, but it's a good one to keep in mind if you care about performance. If you just want a differnt exhaust system, go for it, I won't mind!

Matt

 

Tony B is dead on!

 

I guess there are potentially 3 things to gain from an exhaust change:

performance (more power and/or less weight)

a more desirable sound

a more desirable appearance - namely the tip

Oh, I got nearly 10 pounds out of removing that Xenon washer system!

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=46365

 

I never thought of trying to cut weight, the first place I would start is my waist There's an easy 50lbs there.

Sound would be one of the factors of doing an exhaust but I would really love to hear them all first, live, not recorded.

The other thing is the two guys I've talked to told me that it only makes sense to do it all, pulley, intake, chip, and exhaust. One of them was the dealer trying to sell me dinan stuff and the other was a local shop in town here. The dinan stuff looks tempting but also a bit expensive. I'm going to have to think this whole thing over some more.

 

While it is true that for some adders you won't get the full benefit until the entire system is treated (like adding intake and exhaust capacity help, but are really good when you do your head), they all do something. Just adding the Alta CAI got about 10 Hp for EuroStylesEast (but I think they have some heat and cooling issues with thier dyno set up). I'm sure going from a stock intake to the Alta on a car with a race head, header, no cat and open exhaust would net even better!

TonyB is a big fan of having a goal, and I agree. I did "better" on my last car, and it was very, very expensive. I"m not as disciplined as Tony, but I'm doing much better on this car, looking for deals, but only on stuff that fits the final goal.

That said, go ahead and add a CAI when you can. Wait until you can affort the pully and add that (if you're doing the work, start with the pully!). If money is a barrier you can look for lower cost compramises, like making sure your throttle body to SC runner is smooth and not constricted, tuning the by-pass valve so that it closes all the way, one ball exhaust, MTH and hot air intake, that will get you most, if not all of your benenfit.

The thing to watch for is if you buy a tuned produce, like a Shark ECU remap, it may not be spot on if your mods are different than what it's targeted for....

Anyway, you can do this, and do it for not too much money. Just figure out the target, and pull the trigger at items that get you closer to your final goal....

Matt

 

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the '05 exhaust is identical to the earlier years, with the exception of the hanger orientation. The ~ 5hp increase and extra burbling of the '05 has been reported somewhere here on NAM to be ECU related. If true, there may actually be less to gain on the '05s with software mods than the prior years, but the exhaust improvements should remain about constant.

 

I like the idea of having a goal in mind and for me all I want is a little more low end when taking off in 1st. I'm not looking for something too extreem.

 

A more desirable appearance but more than just the tip. If you stand 15 or more feet behind Mini baby's rear, it looks like Mini baby's diapers are full the way the mufflers hang below the bottom of the car! With the Milltek, it sounds great, the tips look great and no unsightly diaper bulge!

 

Yes. This is correct. The only difference between '05 and earlier exhausts is the hangers.

ripley.

 

Good point. Don't want the ******* to show . Lowering also has a way of eliminating such a view...