Many. About 20-25% of the 3" systems are ordered for normally aspirated VQ30DE motors. Those customers have seemed quite pleased.

Brian

 

 

Looks like one side is bigger than the other! I'm looking at the tubing near the flanges...The one without the bolts seems to be bigger!

 

Its an optical illusion. The flanges are the same size.

Brian

 

I wasn't asking about the flanges...but the tubing next to the flanges....the furhther end looks a bit smaller like 2.5".....maybe these eyes are playing tricks on me.......I thought some GG's were some DD's yesterday.....I better go to the optometrist.

 

It's still an op[optical illusion since both sides are identical.

That one is dirty

 

I thought the exact same thing until I reversed it...both end flanges are the same size.

 

How much is that cat by itself?

 

You need to telephone Cattman.com (Brian) on price info..

 

.

 

Cattman FastCats are normally $249.99 retail, $237.49 w/ max.org discount, and $224.99 (+ free shipping) when ordered with another exhaust part.

I've got one unit in stock right now, and its very easy to make more.

Brian

 

I'm running 3" Cattman catback and I love it top quality. (Mine is supercharged)

 

You got a nice ride! I do miss the boost of my GTP I can see having a 3in exhaust for a boosted engine, but I'm not sure if it would be beneficial over a 2.5 exhaust with my 3.0, unless I had headers, Y-pipe, intake, computer tune and maybe even cams... Mine right now is all stock, and I'm doing research to see what I can do to improve power without going broke, so that rules out cams. The budget is limited, so I'm trying to get the most power per dollar. I still need money left over to do the suspension too.

 

Modding = going broke, pretty much rule of thumb.

 

Yup that's true... Before I start getting into modding I gotta figure out how to get rid of the P1320 code that's been haunting me the last 3 months!

 

Thanks you. My first mod was Cattman Y pipe, high flow Cattman cat., 2.5 Cattman catback, E. manage, short intake, tuned, dynoed 220whp., after that I added UDP, which technically should add 5-10 HP. If you go this rout + Cattman Headers minus the Y pipe you should be running 230-240whp. Good luck and let us know the outcome.

 

I dont know, if i was you i would do some looking around, like this thread and their title temp hiatus...


Plus this comes up in a tread also about them: Update - I've attempted to contact CustomMaxima several times. I've left them two messages asking them to please call me back and I also tried contacting them via email. I give up and I'm going to my bank today to fill out paperwork to dispute the charges.

I want to return my "ebay"/CustomMaxima fstb but there's nothing I can do if I can't even reach somebody to issue me a RMA form and talk to me about my issue. There's no way I'm paying for shipping to return it and "be assessed up to a 30% restocking charge".

I like the Temporary Hiatus status. If you're on hiatus from the forums and from customer service all together then you shouldn't still sell parts.

 

There are good quality exhausts out there for affordable prices, and then there are some of equal or minimally improved quality selling for alot more. On a logical standpoint, I don't see why someone would buy brand A exhaust for twice the price cause it might produce 1 or 2 HP more than brand B. For example, I bought a Magnaflow stainless cat-back when I had my SVT Focus, for about $250ish shipped. It was crazy easy to install, everything fit perfect, and it didn't bump or bang into anything, and it sounded great without it being fart can ricey Other cat-backs I priced out for it were alot more expensive, and didn't really offer any significant improvement in hp and torque over the Magnaflow system. I run into the same problem buying parts doing my custom mountain bike builds. I'm not going to upgrade my 9 speed rear cassette for an extra $200 to save a few grams of weight! Gimme the $40 cassette please! So, if you want to spend double or more the price on something that has minimal gain, go for it... Me personally, I'm all about the horsepower per dollar ratio

 

I run into this perspective every so often over the years we've been doing this. It typicaly boils down to "if this (product name) costs more than I'm willing to spend, that's proof that Cattman is ripping me off."

And its usually started by someone who rudely proclaims to know the truth that everyone else is blind to... without knowing anything, on any level, about what he's talking about. No clue about any of the hundreds of cost factors that determine the price of a part, yet more than arrogant enough to talk smack about our company and business practices. It baffles me that someone can be so confident about something they know absolutely nothing about, and yet spew on and on about everyone else is brainwashed

I'm pretty open about how our little micro-company does business, so I'll just lay it out for everyone who thinks that we could sell this part for $500 if we just weren't so greedy (and let's be honest, that's exactly what a few people have said here).

I have no doubt we'd sell more if the price was less, but the part can't be made the way we make it for $500, much less sold for that much. I pay WAY over $500 each for these when I buy 15-20, and that's before factoring in the costs of operating my business.

Unfortunately, what sounds good pricewise doesn't pay for a what I consider to be a good, or even adequate, product. Our exhaust parts are made by our (exhaust) partners of almost 10 years, one of the top shops in the country, with manufacturing in Orange County, CA. They make parts for some of the better known european and japanese performance specialists

Unlike parts that are made in factories on the other side of oceans, there is full accountability in my supply chain, up and down the line. Our deliveries are overnight, and we can offer options and variations on many of our exhaust parts - basically custom work. I don't have to worry about the quality of our materials, whether steel meets specifications for thickness, annealling, proper stainless alloy, etc. It all comes from US sources, nobody is cutting corners, nobody is substituting underspec materials and workmanship.

So, what if everybody "BANNED" (banded) together and stood up to Cattman and refuses to pay these prices...? Well, that's easy, the parts would disappear and I'd spend my time doing consulting work that is not as enjoyable, but pays far more than my Cattman work. The tiny margin we make on these parts when charging "ripoff" prices" is considered chump change in this business, and I sure can't sell them at the loss we'd take if the price was $500.

I'm baffled by the comparison between the US-made 3" Cattman catback and 2.5" Chinese catalogue headers (I won't refer to a specific brand, most of the re-labelled Chinese parts seem to come from the same factory). There are obviously significant differences in design, required production precision, performance, material specifications, sound, etc. - the parts aren't comparable, so what's outrageious about a $200-250 price difference?

The bottom line is that Cattman exhaust prices are what they are because of the way we make the parts. I may be too much of a perfectionist to do well in this business, but our prices have nothing to do with being greedy. If I added a fat margin to our cost of production, no one would buy them.

I can't cut corners to make a cheap part. Every company sets their own standards; these are some of the Cattman requirements that set our Maxima exhaust parts apart from the competition; particularly from equipment purchased from Chinese catalogues.

- I won't send the production overseas and I won't buy substandard products out of a catalogue put out by a third-rate Chinese factory. [Some of the best factories in the world are in China, they just don't happen to make Maxima parts.]
- I have to completely trust my supplier, and that means knowing him face-to-face and where to find him if something goes wrong. There are many hidden ways to be cheated when corners are cut inside resonators and mufflers; trust is critical.
- I want our catbacks to be just as durable and quiet a year (or two) from now as they are the first day.
- It has to fit right, no prybars or torches allowed.
- I want my parts made to order. If someone wants an extra O2 port, or some other change, I want to be able to call and get that done on the fly. If the customer runs over a block, I want to be able to get the part fixed exactly right on the original fixture.
- I want to receive my parts by overnight truck, not wait for a 5 week ocean voyage.
- I don't care about the cheapest materials, I want the best. Thick steel tubing and flanges where strength counts, not paper-thin. Massive amounts of the highest quality German exhaust fibreglass stuffed into the muffler and resonator, not wimpy amounts of cheap fibreglass that will disappear within a year and get much louder. Just two examples, there are many more differences, small and large but its late...

Some would rather pay $500 for a part and get something that cost $250 to make, but others see more value in spending $750 for a part that costs almost $600 to make. Our parts aren't for everybody, but if they're not for you (no one in particular) just don't buy them. Buy the Chinese stuff and I hope it works out. Just keep in mind that one of our biggest sources of customers are people taking off cheap imported parts they're unhappy with (usually a massive understatement).

Anyway, this is a rambling mess, but I don't do my best work this late at night, and I'll be too busy most of the weekend to give this more attention.

Brian

 

Cattman, is your exhausts just packed with fiberglass only, or do you also incorporate stainless steel wool and ceramic material as well?

 

Old Cattman's were packed with high quality fiberglass (the Catbacks with the flat fwd and aft resonator bulkheads), but since going to the bullet style resonators they've been Stainless steel wool

Hope you can find a 3" Megan Catback (they don't exist)....Hope you find a 2.5" catback they're really hard to get.....but the sound quality is nowhere as tamed as the Cattman brand of the same size (2.5").....GL.
Just head on down to a Local custom exhaust shop and ask for a quote!!!! I think you'll kinda understand then. But make sure it's with mandrel bent SS T304 or T409 tubing (aluminized) with all the same stuff we're (Cattman's Catbacks) equipped with!!! My quess will be a starting quote price of about $1000-$1100......

 

We used stainless steel wool in a resonator for a long time, and although its very durable, it doesn't muffle sound nearly as well (given the same volume of material) as fibreglass.

The open resonator and muffler in this system are fairly compact and don't allow for a thick layer of sound deadening material. Even though the tubing is 3", the resonator shell can only be 4" diameter, so the emphasis has to be on sound deadening.

For an application like this, we use a German fiberglass that's designed for 10k rpm motorcycle muffler applications. It does just what its designed to do, muffles very well when used in a tight shell, and stands up over time to the pounding of a high performance engine. It should work well, the stuff is quite a bit more expensive than the standard material.

Brian

 

The Megan exhaust for the Maxima is NOT made in the US, nor do they claim it to be. I don't see any US-made parts for the Maxima on their website.

 

Cattman, does your 2.5 exhaust also use the same German fiberglass as well? I would assume it would be a bit quieter, since the 4" resonator would have more room for the fiberglass to be thicker layered? And it is layered, not "packed" in like traditional old school glasspack's?

 

Here's why you don't need to think about this too hard. Your alternator converts mechanical energy into electricity at a certain rate of efficiency (expressed as a %, indicating the degree of wasted energy). Then this happens again, as the electric s/c converts electrical energy back into mechanical energy, again with a significant cost in efficiency.

Let's say the conversion rates for the alternator and motor were each 50% (probably pretty close) - but one compounds the other, so in the end, the mechanical energy being generated by the electric s/c "blower" will only be 25% (0.5 x 0.5) of the mechanical energy required to spin that increased load on the alternator (a 75% power loss).

Bottom line is there's no way the small amount of boost (if any) produced by the electro-s/c will equal the amount of drag required to generate it. No dyno tests required to prove this law of physics.

It would if we made it now, but the last time the 2.5" systems were manufactured, we were still using s/s wool-packed resonators, and we have no plans to make the 2.5" system at this time.

To tell you the truth, I've never been around to see the fibreglass incorporated with the resonators or mufflers - keeping in mind that my exhaust partners are 500 miles away - so I can't describe the process, but I have no doubt that Scott does it the way that provides the best results.

Brian

 

Interesting... so by this rationale, how is it that a diesel-electric locomotive produces such massive amounts of power to pull thousands of tons of freight? It too converts mechanical (diesel) energy into electrical energy, back into mechanical energy to drive the wheels with the electric motors. I haven't looked up the power the diesel engine, generator, and electric drive motors produce... Perhaps i will tomorrow out of curiosity.

 

Its not the same thing. Once burning fuel is involved, we're talking about thermal conversion rather than mechanical conversion, and in this case, the car and s/c example has three steps (my previous discussion didn't include internal combustion component of converting thermal energy into mechanical energy) versus the locomotive's two.

Of course its possible to use diesel fuel to produce horsepower via electrical motors, its just a question of how efficient that conversion is. In the case of the s/c, with the proper design, a device like this could add a small amount of performance by slightly pressurizing the intake stream - so in that sense it works, just as the locomotive works - but whether or not this type of parts is successful is determined by the net amount of power it makes, and we know the power loss from the drag caused by an increased load on the alternator will at least offset any power that the "boost" will produce.

Brian

 

They say Cattman is a real Cat unlike Custommaxima's which they say is just a shiny test pipe with nothing in it, like mine my stock one didn't have nothing in it like a test pipe!! But still loving the Cattman Exhaust Top Quality Products, cant wait to get them Headers and Don't B1tch about the price if you got it, you got it, if you don't you dont, but dont try to dog the product or compare it to a Megan!!

 

Would you be interested in a used 2.5' Cattman? Those baffle plates are available for 4", 3.5" and 3".....check with your local exhaust shop these really do work to quiet things down! The bad part is drilling holes in your exhaust tips........for the retaining screws!

 

Those blacked out muffler are Vibrant's low profile exhaust mufflers that tend to reduce the POPO's tendency to visually single out the big shiny exhaust tipped cars

 

Yes I am interested in a used 2.5 Cattman. I'm also looking into buying either the Warpspeed or Cattman Y-pipe and a high-flow cat.

The police do profile here ALOT and that's the point i'm trying to make here. I am a Maxima owner, not an owner of a 15 year old Civic with a huge shiny exhaust hanging off the back of my car with a giant Cessna wing on the trunk lid and an unpainted body kit with cut springs and no hub caps! I love the look of the Maxima, and I want to give it that in return. Anything I plan on doing with my car I want it to look good and professional. The one thing that I really like about Cattman's exhaust is the dual outlet tips. It looks great, isn't all "riced out" and tucks in nicely under the bumper without looking ridiculous. A friend blacked out his aftermarket exhaust on this GTI and left the polished tip, and it looked really good.

Cattman, what would the price be on an exhaust package with Y-pipe, cat and the 3in cat back?

 

I want to see dyno results on a car that anit modd the hell out
you lose a little of the low end i think about like 8 hp to gain 10 up top over the 2".50
for an extra 200 dollar over the previous cattman and over 450 more then the megan racing witch is made in the usa also... i talked to the good old people over at Warpspeed and their thinking about doin a 3" since its in a high demand hopfully at a lower cost

 

It's why I'm proud to be an American, competitive free market capitalism! If Warpspeed makes a high quality 3in exhaust to compete with Cattman, it should make things quite interesting! Classic Economics 101, supply and demand! I'm not sure if Megan's products are made here in the USA, and they currently don't have a 3in exhaust from the Googlin' i've been doing. I think I'll go with getting my suspension done first, and hold off on my exhaust purchasing to see what Warpspeed is up to...

I would like to see 3rd party independent testing of ALL exhausts available for the 3.0 and 3.5's with minimal mods, or no engine mods at all. After testing all the 2.5 inchers out there, then do the 3 inch exhaust test and compare it to the rest. I would even have an exhaust shop make a 3 inch system to throw it into the mix as well. A dyno exhaust shootout!

 

Like you said yourself, maxima car parts aren't in much demand. And to have a company make these parts for us, you're going to have to pay what they ask since there aren't a lot of companies that make the part. If you can't pay for the part then buy a civic. Supply and Demand.

 

Let me get this straight, you're saying that the price comparison isn't valid because the more expensive systems are mass-produced (most of Vibrant's parts are manufactured in China, I'd note) versus the less expensive limited production US-manufactured Cattman parts? Huh? You're missing his whole point.

As far as this goes...

"I would like to see 3rd party independent testing of ALL exhausts available for the 3.0 and 3.5's with minimal mods, or no engine mods at all. After testing all the 2.5 inchers out there, then do the 3 inch exhaust test and compare it to the rest. I would even have an exhaust shop make a 3 inch system to throw it into the mix as well. A dyno exhaust shootout!"

Sure, you'd like to see something like this. And I wish that beer was free, but you'll note that there's no data available like this for anything made for the Maxima, or for most other cars for that matter. Stop and think for a minute. Doing something like this correctly is expensive, so why would an independent evaluator - with nothing to gain from the test either way - put together a rigorous, several day testing session that would cost thousands? Major magazines don't do this kind of intensive evaluative work. Three different systems on same car, with and without other mods - hmmm, maybe 9 or 12 different modification combinations to try... Anything less would compromise the results, making them useless... right.

And what would be the point of testing with little or no other mods? That doesn't make any sense at all - a 3" exhaust is for serious performance enthusiasts, and header/y-pipe combinations and/or turbo or s/c are the norm. Why evaluate the 3" catback runs with a stock intake/exhaust since that's not how it will typically be used.

Next, I'd be more than happy to make a 2.5" system again. That system may be a better choice for some 00/01 drivers, they're easier and quicker to make, and the profit margin's slightly better. There's no reason not to, except the 3" system has soaked up most of the demand for our 2.5" systems, especially since more than half of our 2.5" systems were already going to VQ35DE owners (the motor that benefits the most from the 3" tubing). Its like any other exhaust part we make, once we receive 8-10 qualified orders are received, I'll order a production run. Just a matter of demand.

Finally, we've been doing this for 13 years, and I've seen a lot of companies come and go. We're still doing what we do because we offer exhaust products that have a clear advantages over those sold by our competitors, and when you lay them side-by-side the differences couldn't be more obvious. I hear the stories every day from customers who are taking off other systems; without naming names, it baffles me how companies that have sold these parts for years still can't make a part that fits consistantly.

People who want to be confident they'll receive a consistantly excellent product buy the Cattman part. Those who hope for the adequate and are willing to take a chance will buy from other suppliers. Maxima parts sold by other companies never compete with ours on the basis of quality, they compete on price, knowing that a certain % of the market (particularly 1st time buyers) will accept a lesser product for a lesser price.

Yeah, there's a lot of people who are proud to be Americans, but don't really understand the free market. Think a little harder about the free market implications of this situation. If it was possible to make a Cattman-quality part for this tiny market, sell it for less money and get an appealing return-on-investment, there would be other companies doing it. But there aren't, and never have been. The bad thing about this is that it doesn't say that we make great parts because we're the only ones that know how - of course that's not true - it says that we're the only ones willing to for the amount of money we make doing it. Looking at it from the other direction, the good thing is that my poor judgement is the customer's gain, since I'm offering a product that the free market says should either cost more, or not be available at all.

Its not usually a matter of affordability - someone who can afford a $500 exhaust can typically afford a $700 exhaust - its a matter of how people spend their money and measure the value of their elective purchases.

There's no right or wrong with making either decision. But there is a right and wrong about intruding rudely on threads to repeatedly spew the same ignorance and **** everybody off.

Once again, its late. Done for now.

Brian

 

PM sent

 

If you were smart you would have scraped up a few extra dollars and got you
a set of JWT cam before you put an 3" on a stock motor on an n/a motor you lose 8hp at the low end to gain 10 up top over the 2"50 model but a thats just my two cents

 

Cleaning up ...

 

What is this nonsense going on in my thread?

 

I agree... dude u gotta chill some! Warpspeed is aware of what's up, so going on and on doesn't help. It's not like Warpspeed is gonna have their new competitive exhaust ready to ship tomorrow...