davemax

Is the installation of a 5th gen muffler direct bolt on to a 4th gen or are there some modifications required. If so what are they??
Thanks

Kevin Wong

I bought my 5th gen muffler from Maxedout and it was not a direct bolt on. He replaced his muffler with a universal fit muffler, so the installers of his cut the stock muffler pretty much at .5" from the muffler. In other words, there was about 3" missing in order for it to possibly bolt on directly. I checked to see if the hangers fit...and they do. So, I thought about just cutting my stock muffler at that point and weld for a perfect fit, but I didn't feel comfortable with that. Instead, I took it to Huntington Beach Muffler and they fabricated a little 2.5" pipe with bolt-on abilitly to the muffler. It took about 20 minutes and they charged me $20. I thought that was more than fair, considering there was no possible way I could do it myself. In hindsight, I think I would have just had the muffler welded on. I'm happy with the muffler and I think I'm going to keep it on.

BTW, How far are you on the exhaust mods? I have a JWT intake, Stillen Y-pipe, Courtesy B-pipe, and 5th gen muffler. With all that, the car is not loud, but deep enough for me. You'll definitely hear the mods in 1st and 2nd gear without getting a headache, and 3rd-5th gear are as quite as stock.

davemax

Well I have done mostly suspension work on my car. Springs wheels, tires and FSB only. Still waiting for the AGX's.....At the moment I'm not thinking of getting the y Pipe but it's crossed my mind. Maybe next year I've spent a lot of money this year on my car.
But I do have the stillen intake and I love the growl. I'm a daily driver and don't want to have a loud noise every time when I drive. I had a Porsche 924 before with a straight pipe and it sounded like those Hondas and Integra's on the road. Been there done that. I like the quietness of the Max and the growl when pushing the RPM. Some people say HKS others Apex but was interested in the 5th Gen exhaust. Do you know if I can get a sound file of the the Apex or HKS on a Max?

Thanks

Kevin Wong

I have a friend with an Auto I30 that has the Stillen intake, Cattman Y-pipe, RT Cat, and Apex'i WS Cat-back. I'd have to say that my setup with a 5-speed is quiter than his (5-speeds by nature are louder than Autos). I was also told the RT cat further reduces noise and the 5th gen muffler increase all low, mid, and high end power. My friend complained that he feels a loss on the low end. I'm also a daily driver and I we use this car for vacations. I'm happy with my setup. I totally feel you on the budget. I think I've spent more money in the last 12 months than in the entire 4 years I've owned the car. Just look for good deals like I have.
ie I bought the following this past year:

H&R springs w/ Tokicos barely used $350
17X8 GS400 wheels/tires fitted $800
Stillen Y-pipe new from Stillen $99
Courtesy B-pipe used $150
5th gen muffler used $125
UDP new $150

I knew what I wanted, but I just searched for the deals.