I have a Dinan CAI. I plan to add 15% pulley, MTH and one-ball mod. I'm not looking for mad power, and don't have any plans at this time to go beyond this setup.

Question is - for just sporty street driving and occasional twisty club runs (including MOTD), would I see noticeable performance gains from a Milltek exhaust vs. the one-ball with the rest of these mods being constant? Based on everything I've read, I'm thinking "no" - I understand the the Milltek and other aftermarket catbacks are pretty, sounds sweet, etc. I know the Milltek posts the best dyno numbers for peak torque/hp. But from strictly a street performance perspective, I haven't seen anything that conclusively proves the one-ball is signifantly disadvantaged. Can anyone either confirm or provide me with some data or personal experience with BOTH options that will help me decide?

Thanks

 

well i can't speak for the milltek... however, i have a 15% pully an alta cai and the one ball mod on my car... Obviously I noticed the difference in the pully... the cai definitely makes more noise... weather it give more performance i have no proven idea. And the one-ball mod was a nice addition.

I did notice a small difference with the oneball... Where i notice it most is down low... the car is much better at pulling off in first gear and feels like it has a touch more power throughout the range... I like it to be honest and probobly won't upgrade until i do headwork.

All in all I spent about 300 on oneball, pully and cai... so i would say im happy with what i got back for my money... I think if you want to go bigger you should look at a better exhaust... By this I mean the whole thing header and all. I think you will find a nominal difference with just the addition of catbacks. They are all so similar and will offer very little from brand to brand that it doesn't justify the difference to a different one unless you are going to get rid of hte bottleneck that is the stock header. Then 2.5-3" catback will probobly start to help.

You should especially look at new exhausts when changing head or injectors imo. I look at it this way... You have to keep the amount of air going in and hte amount of air going out in balance. If you change alot of things with the intake path... you should start changing the exhaust an equal amount to make up for it.

 

That's the kind of advice I'm looking for. Thanks!

 

one-ball is competitive with most of the cat-back systems (the sane ones at least). You get to a point where it's just a friggin piece of pipe. With standard bolt-ons, the choice in exhaust is purely aesthetic, far as I'm concerned.

 

GTT tested the one ball and found it to be nearly as good as milteck and in some cases better than some aftermarket stuff and as good as the works

 

Wellllll.......

I've seen Roland's backpressure numbers - and they are impressive. But I've seen dyno numbers from other sources that suggest the one-ball is nowhere in the same league at making hp and torque. But I also know that most dyno numbers are so un-scientific that it shouldn't pay much attention to that, either...

I guess ultimately what I'm looking for is someone who has run a similar setup (CAI, 15%, ECU) with both a one-ball, then an aftermarket cat-back - to testify whether they did or did not get any real gains from the cat-back....

 

PM Agro he has a setup like that.

 

I've been thinking about a one ball. Hey Chris, would you and a floor jack be available in the early morning at AMVIV to assist in some market research? Agro will never miss it. Ok, maybe a little.

 

I did my ECU after the exhaust, not before. I was very happy with the 1-ball when I had it done. I could feel it immediately, and I like the slight lowering of the tone in the exhaust. It's not annoying for road trips. My wife didn't notice any change in the sound, but then, she wasn't listening for one.
One of the other cars in the SCMC has the new Unichip that can be reprogrammed with a bluetooth PDA, a Borla (I think, maybe Milltek), Alta CAI and a 15% pulley for about 2 grand or more total.
I have a Hot Air Intake, 15%, Fireballed ECU and one-ball, cost under a grand, and our cars have almost identical performance from traffic lights.
I've recommended the one-ball ever since I got it and can't see any reason not to do it. I paid $40 and was back at my desk in an hour. The catbacks start at somewhere over $300 and can go over $1000. Try it, if you don't like it, spend the bigger bucks to go with an aftermarket catback and sell/give your one-ball to someone in your local club.

Chris & Eric, if either of you guys want to get the one-ball done at AMVIV, I'll direct you to the place that did mine. Stealing mine might be just the slightest bit obvious. And eventually could be painful. Have you seen The Mask?

 

Thanks Agro - that helps. Hope you successfully fend of the poachers...

 

Well, I'll tell the security guys to keep an eye on my car.
Anyway, there are often spare exhausts available by the end of the weekend.

 

I am super happy with my one-ball mod. More HP, better sound, and low cost. What more can you ask for! :-)

 

Hey Agro,

I'd like to know where this place is as well.

Richard

 

I just spoke with Chapo at AAA Muffler and let him know that there might be a bunch of MINIs visiting him for partial castrations during AMVIV weekend. He say's he's open and operating on Saturdays and can take care of you.
The number is (702) 450-3896 and the address is 4881 E Flamingo Rd, 89121.
Mapquest's directions from Palace Station are here.

 

Awesome thanks!

 

Wish I could be there...

 

true it only realy seems to come into its own when matched next to a good aftermarket header and prorted head, Rolands S now makes 280 and has the one ball on it and janspeed header (custon to GTT with a higherflowing cat) and has the head all ported and gass flowed not bad from what was a stock part thow

 

Wish I could get 280 just by doing the oneball......

Hell, they could do the one-ball mod on ME if it would give my car 280...

 

lol i wish too would be cheep as chips

 

Finally got my one-ball done last week at GrassRoots Garage. Write-up is in my blog.

I LOVE it. Great sound. Flow seems good - I had it done at the same time as my pulley, so no telling if it independently made a difference - but I think it did. I'm happy!

 

Blimey,
I'm a little late in finding this thread and commenting --
but I'd read some comments elsewhere of people who had problems with the Milltek used in conjunction with the M7 USS. I'll eventually add the USS to mine . . . and I'll probably also go with the one-ball.

 

Yep - that kinda decided it for me. If my choice is USS or shiny exhaust, I'll take the USS, thank you very much. I'm happy with the one-ball.

 

I didn't notice any performance difference per say with the one-ball. It was definitely lighter. I think you drop almost 25 lbs with the one ball. I've heard some that sounded great (Mine didn't) however the burble is slightly annoying. To me it sounds like a coffee can with bb's rattling around when it pops and burbles (Very tinny). If you're going for a nice exhaust, you can't go wrong with the Invidia . I think there's a group buy out on it.

 

Mine sounds great - and the burble sounds better than stock on mine! I'm very happy with the one-ball!

 

I was thinking one-ball or the $300 TC Sporline Burnout exhaust. I have heard that it is a pretty good system, but you can't beat the $90 bucks for a one-ball.