I've been curious about this. I know that many people have complained about rattle in the exhaust when they add headers (usually with the Borla's.) I am curious to WHO here is experiencing this? Unless the car is super warm, I get rattle anytime I hit 2k rpm's. It then dies off right around 2.4k rpm's. It definitely isn't the heatshield. I've messed around with all the remaining heatshields, checked all my bolts and still cannot find the source of this. I highly doubt it's the cat.

Anyone else? What triggers it for you? What rpm ranges? What is your exhaust setup? Methods to deal with this?

It definitely isn't quite a problem, but annoying never the less. I'd like to see who else is having this problem.

I'm having the same problems as you. I'm currently running a TWE eq header, stock cat, and stromung cbe. The rattleing starts out at very low rpm's, and eventually goes away around 3-3.5k rpms. I'm going to crawl under the car either today or friday and see if anything is loose. If everything is tight like it should be, then I guess it's just something I'll have to live with.

I'm currently running a TWE eq header, stock cat, and stromung cbe.

How long have you had the TWE headers? Was the difference noticeable?

I had an exhaust leak with my old catback, it sounded just like a rattle at low-mid rpms. I guess I would look at all the flanges and see if any of them have any kind of carbon marks on them.

i have the same problem w/ my brullen header/hi-flow cat
it's a metal clicking sounds, only at first gear below 2000 rpm (after that my car is too loud to me to hear it, but i don't think it's there, hehe)
especally noticeable when the car is cold. I heard its the cat that's making the noise?

I to now have this noise issue and I have borla headers. It started after my clutch replacement. I have checked all of the heat shields and they were loose. After tightening the sound is still there. Should I check all of the flanges and tighten the bolts? I was also thinking it could be that my cat is going bad. Dont they make a rattling sound when they are worn out?

Yea, that's been a concern as well. I'd really love to hear from someone who HAD the noise and then removed cats. I wonder if that'd be the culprit. Or even possibly switching to a high flow cat.

Get back under the car and tighten the bolts. I have headers and no problem, its ok to really crank on your flange bolts, put a couple washers in there and really lay into them.

Not sure if this is your problem but i used to have a rattle noise coming from the muffler, but since it is my own design i dont know if this is your problem, plus i just got it fixed.

The muffler I put on sits right underneat this skinny metal fram and when the muffler moves around it rattles against it so what i did is i just took some plyers and bent it up and it went away. Just look right above the muffler when the cars idling right after you turn it on and if thats it you'll see. Hope that was some help, only reason i say this is cause my magnaflow muffler is somewhat similair to cobb, stromung, borla mufflers

i've had this rattle for a long time, I have Borla Headers (single port), stromung high-flow cat, stromung mid-pipe and stromung dual tip muffler. If i put stock headers on no rattle, but car sounds like a prop plane.. if i put the stock cat on with borla headers the rattle is gone also, but i dont like the sound. I have tried it all kartboy hangers, wrapping the headers no luck and since i have a singleport 2.2 i'm stuck with the borlas. I was thinking of taking my borlas apart and rewelding them cause we all know how excellent borlas welds are....

I had this problem when I had my RS. I would have to see underneath again, but the car was lifted and the source was I believe a bolt under the chassis. I had the noise especially bad when down shifting.

Good luck.

Im having the same problem with my borla's. they sound like sh== im really pissed off about it

Im having the same problem with my borla's. they sound like sh== im really pissed off about it

sh== how?

i got this rattle when i added borlas on my old car.. then i swapped out the stock wrx axleback for a prodrive and it stopped for the most part

but on my new car i got kartboy exhaust hangers all around and tightened all the bolts real good and nothing...so im super happy!

Yeah I have a stupid-ass rattle ever since I put on my Cobb EL Headers(catless). Just put my stock catback back on, no more rattles. And no more noise, hehe.

sh== how?
well the exhuast note itself sounds so sick but the headers are all raspy and rattley kinda takes away from the whole boxer sounds

I have the rattle too and I'm on a a completely stock setup with about 86K miles. Rattling probably started around 75-80K. I put the car up on a lift and checked all the bolts, and heat shields. Even took a few of the shields off (I just have to be careful not to park on dry grass when the exhaust is hot). The rattle's still there, so I guess I'll just deal with it. Maybe it's time I invest in an aftermarket exhaust. :D

I've got the TWE's. I've noticed they tend to rest pretty snugly against the underside of the transmission. Took it to a muffler shop to isolate the sound, and discovered it was definately coming from the headers. I'm hoping group N tranny mounts can reduce or eliminate the noise. Tried group N engine mounts, and that didnt help. Sucks. Some people who have these headers say they have a rattle, some dont. I'm also running a random tech highflow cat, and a wrx catback.

I gots the rattle too. brullen header and gutted cat, 2.5 inch random tech. mid pipe and a wrx axle back. It rattles from idle to 3000 rpms. Hopefully a new cat will quiet it down some. It's LOUD and RASPY!!

Chad

Had the problem for a while with my cobb headers/stromung catback... oddly enough it went away after I cleaned my air filter... no clue what caused it.

Sorry to bring this back from the dead but I've got the borla replica header and I'm experiencing this rattle and it's driving me nuts!

The rattle happens around 1200 rpm and again at about 2000-2100RPM. After that it's gone or I just can't hear it.

It happens more when the car's under load as well.

I have the borla replicas, stock cats and a custom 2.25" catback with a vibrant streetpower muffler.

The sound is definitely coming from the front of the car, probably the header. At first I thought it was because the header was touching my front swaybar on the drivers side so we made some clearance between the offending pipe and the swaybar and that seemed to decreased it, but it's still there.

I've also taken off the driveline protecter plate thing that ran the length of the driveline. It almost sounds like a thin piece of metal is vibrating like a heat shield or if there was some thin outer shielding on something and it rattled it would make that sound.

What could it beeee?!?!?!?!?! :(

I have the stock headers and they had a rattle but it was the heat shield. Once removed all was good.

Is it possible the header pipes are touching each other or could touch?
If you think yes... wet some cardboard and jam it in between to see if the problem goes away. (take the cardboard out after this test... do not leave it there!!! And don't run this test for very long... the cardboard could catch fire.)
If it did go away get some headerwrap or carefuly try to spread the pipes further away from each other.

Good luck

If it did go away get some headerwrap or carefuly try to spread the pipes further away from each other.

Good luck

:huh: Good luck would be my best advice too. That would be quite the task.

FWIW, my replicas don't rattle.

:huh: Good luck would be my best advice too. That would be quite the task.

FWIW, my replicas don't rattle.

I totally agree, it may be a tough task and it maybe tought to do carefully.

But, I've seen some close up pictures of a few borla-replicas and swore the pipes were touching. Two or three millimeters (0.118") maybe all that is needed to stop a rattle.

Had Cobb's EL Headers on my car for a few years. When I first pop'ed them on, I had this issue, but as time went on, it went away. Not sure what the dillio was, but it was annoying at the time.

I don't know what the heck would make it rattle, it happened when I got my new exhaust system on. The system is on tight and the rattle is coming from the front of the car.

me gots a rattle/rasp noise too. sounds mines coming from right below the shift lever or cat area. mine makes noise in the midrange 3,500 to 5,000 or so then exhaust might be louder than it.

set-up:
2005 2.5 RS
Borla header
Stromung single HFC pipe
Stromung XA catback
KartBoy hangers

I have checked all heatshield stuff, checked all bolts and nut tightness, and made sure piping was not hitting rubbing anything and still have it.

Might be the thinner wall piping of the borlas or rasp of the borlas combined with the hfc.

I can tell you guys that, once you make the exhaust free flowing without a resonator and muffler, it gets raspy and may even sound like loose metal parts clacking around at certain RPMs; 2300rpms-2700rpms.