Iwas wondering if anyone has the the Apex N1 Exhaust and if it is good for the WRX ?

I dont have te A'pexi N1 or even a WRX for that matter, but I hear from most people that they like it. I've seen pictures of a WRX equiped with the N1 and it definately looks very nice. Some have said it's a bit too loud though. (theres always the silencer). If you like the N1 design check out Tanabe's Racing Medallion.

Tanabe (http://www.rd-tanabe.com/english_top.html)

thanks

Does Tanabe have a website

try doing a search for mackin industries....that's tanabe's mother company

Please use this forum to post REVIEWS only. I'm no moderator, but I know this isn't the place to be asking questions.

Tanabe's web site is www.rd-tanabe.com

I bought a used N1 for my 2000 RS, It had a small rip in the can because the guy before bottomed out. I welded it back together and thought it would be even louder because of the possibility that some of the packking was lost and it would sound loud and annoying. But I was suprised on how good it sounded, it wasn't too loud or too quiet. It was just perfect loud when you wanted it to be loud and just a mellow rumble when cruising down the highways. I love it and so do all of my friends they say it is the only car that sounds good but doesn't give them a headache after a long trip. There are 2 kinds you can get the resonated and nonresonated, there is a world of difference between them and you should get in touch with APEX and ask them about it. That is why some will say their's is loud and some will say it is just right. I have driven Subarus with both kinds and I prefer the resonated because even though a loud exhaust is cool at first it will get old and you will hate it. A lot of my friends made that mistake and now wish they would have bought the resonated one. Good luck with it I think it is a great product

I purchased a used universal NA Apex'i N1 backbox and had a 2.25" cat-back built to go with it. I don't find it too intrusive at all. It produces a very nice sound inside the car but doesn't drone. Sounds much better with the windows down, though :) I am using the non-resonated version. The mufflers themselves are a very well built piece that is highly regarding in the import tuning world. They are rather pricey, but are worth it due to their low-restriction design.

It is getting removed soon for a 3" mandrel bent system with a Magnaflow :lildevil: <-- i want that to work still...

-Jon
www.nothingserious.net

great exhaust I love the sound so much :)

i have a turbo back on my wrx wagon. fits great, but one hanger. I have not modified it at all (to fit the last hanger), and dont plan to.

Quality - top notch. comes with a small layer of heat coating. when looking at it off the car, it is the straightest exhaust i have ever seen. Like you could actually look down the muffler (if you want to call it a muffler) and see light on the other end. i didnt think it was goong to fit, but when installed, it fit perfectly. the muffler is staright through. The down pipe is ~2.5" at the turbo, and 3" at the flange that attatches to the rear section. the rear section starts out 3" and tapers to almost 4" to the muffler. the tip is about 5" at the opening.

install - took about an hour for both the dp and the rear section. the dp was about 40 of those minutes. make sure you have extra bolts, i strippen one in the process. or rather, it fell apart on me while taking the car apart. the kit i got had extra bolts, so i used one of those. make sure to use anti seize when replacing the bolts. also, make sure to tighten all bolts at the turbo, THEN the flange, THEN the hangar bolts.

performance - sick. sounds like a v-8 or porsche, and loud as hell. very bassie. i felt a signifigant increase in power, drivablility, and the turbo spools much quicker. i would go as far to say that lag rarely is an issue.

price - i got mine for 800 bucks. in the box, shipped to my door, it was 850.

i would recommend this to anyone who doesnt mind a loud, race look exhaust. if you dont like loud exhaust, then dont get this exhaust. i did order the "butt-plug" to spare the block i live on.

any questions, please PM me.

pics are located here

www.joshandashley.com

josh

i have the N1 and it's nice and grumbly at idle. its pretty quiet most of the time but at WOT it's pretty loud (but not ricey). i recomend it to anyone but u have to not mind the large cannister.

Has anyone compared the performance between the APEX N1 and the GReddy EVO? They both seem similar but whats good for what? Anyone?

Apex N1 is angled tail..it sticks out toward left...but i think Greddy EVO is just straight . so looks is different.

performancewise im not sure.

Masaya

anybody know will the N1 fit ok with a syms rear bumper?
and does the N1 fit on a 01 RS?

i went to some wed sites like http://www.apexi-usa.com/exhausts_n1_applications.asp and it list fit 96-00.....

my friend in his Impreza loves his. i like hte sound gets nice anddeep with time.

Its coffee can style, but everyone seems to like the performance and sound

http://wsphotofews.excite.com/035/Aj/MB/l5/0C82854.jpg
http://wsphotofews.excite.com/036/z1/hd/Ru/eD20452.jpg

is there going to be a wrx sedan catback application available anytime in the future?

i have a custom apexi n1 exhaust. 3 inch piping. it sounds great, real quiet with that v8 noise. nothing major in performance but than again what catback is?

dennis

I just bought the Apex N1 and downpipe from 'josh,' who posted about it earlier. I'll be installing it next weekend along with a Vishnu up-pipe. Anyone in the LA area who wants to hear it can contact me.

Aaron

I dont have Apex N1, but my friend does, and its louder than my HKS hiper. I suppose he is running catless thats why his is REALLY loud, I can hear him from about 1 and a half block away.

for a sound clip of HKS hiper go here (http://www.hks-power.com/exhaust/imprezahiper.html)

good luck on your decision

I picked up this exhaust a few weeks ago from SpeedRacerParts.com (http://www.speedracerparts.com/imprezawrx.html) for less than the listed $439 (cuz of all the other toys I picked up :D).

Impressions:

1. It looks really nice. The fat tip, the way the muffler hangs, everything looks great.

2. The fitment was perfect. I simply drove the car up the ramp, unbolted the stock cat-back and bolted the N1 on. Took me less than 45 minutes, I think. But then, who's counting when you are having fun getting your hands dirty :D

3. It sounds great. Without the silencer, which was the way I drove around after installation, it is aggressively loud, with the tone of the boxer engine clearly audible. With the silencer in place, it is only slightly louder than stock.

4. Performance - I definitely feel the revs climb faster with the N1 in place. I do feel a difference with and without the silencer, which is the reason the silencer is off the car :)

Here's a pic

http://forums.i-club.com/forums/attachment.php?postid=2712821

By the way, the cat-back is the only performance mod I have on the car so far.

a couple of more pics...

http://forums.i-club.com/forums/attachment.php?postid=2726189

I must definitely agree with you.

I have the N1 also and it sounds and feels great!

When I installed tho it took me about 2 and half hours as all I was using was a manual car jack.
Aligning and geting the coiled bolts on to the cat were difficult as I had no leverage. But that don't matter much. I got it in and it is Schweet!:D

Hey Robert,

Nice pics and thanks for the review. I hope you don't mind me saving a couple pics for future reference.:)

TIA

Glad the review was helpful. No problems about saving the pics.

Originally posted by CRXguy
Hey Robert,

Nice pics and thanks for the review. I hope you don't mind me saving a couple pics for future reference.:)

TIA

This is my first post here on the I-club, although i've been browsing through most of the forums. Anyhowz tho, I have to agree that this new exhaust has just taken my breath away. Ok, that's a bad joke, but it's really an awesome exhaust. I just got mine today from Gruppe-S Engineering (I think I got one of the last one's on sale) and had it installed at Suby Specialties. There are some things that i've notice so far with the exhaust put on.

1. My blow off valve (GFB 100% vent) reacts much quicker.
2. It just sounds great, even without the silencer it doesn't sounds like a typical coffee can exhaust.
3. It feels like there's better response at the throttle.

Okay, that's all i've gotta say for right now. I've gotta take more time to observe it, but this thing is great. I just find it strange that the midpipe is 2.5" and it flares out to 3" as it gets to the muffler. No complaints otherwise.

:D

So would anyone be kind enuff to post a sound clip of this exhaust? Anyone???

I had a videocamera in my car during my runs at Buttonwillow last Sunday. The only thing I heard was wind noise (because we had to drive with the windows down). I will try to get a soundclip.

Even though it sounds somewhat loud inside the car, people told me my car was fairly silent compared to some of the cars out there. This was WOT going down the front straightaway.

Yeah its funny though, some ppl say its friggin loud, some say it aint. All I know is my legal limit where I live is 90db....

Oh, and thanks, if u can get the soundclip...post it hear or email me at

civ11c@hotmail.com ?

Thanks buddy...

Sorry I have been extremely busy, so no time for soundclip yet. One of these days...

I'm almost positive the N1 would mount at an angle for the sedan as it does for the wagon.

Nice looking car! I too would like to hear it, also does the exhaust mount at an angel on the WRX impreza sedan as well? I really like that look!

I finally made a recording with an external microphone (placed near the license plate). I guess the quality of the microphone wasn't all that good, or I will still getting lots of wind noise). Anyway, here's me getting on the freeway... (my server is too slow for stream, so please right-click and save the files locally to your HD)

audio and video of idle and acceleration (http://robert-judy.net/cars/impreza_wrx_wagon/mods/exhaust/n1_exhaust_accelerate.MPG) (7.2mb)


audio only of idle and acceleration (http://robert-judy.net/cars/impreza_wrx_wagon/mods/exhaust/n1_sound.mp3) (388kb)

Thanks for taking the trouble of getting the sound clip....

The recording sounds kinda distorted though....

robb91b, that sounds good. To change the subject what size rota's are those and what springs to you have. You have a very clean looking wrx, rims,lowereing,exhaust, good choices.

robbert99b, sorry for the mispelling bro.

Originally posted by TRACER
robb91b, that sounds good. To change the subject what size rota's are those and what springs to you have. You have a very clean looking wrx, rims,lowereing,exhaust, good choices.

thanks! actually i have d-power ts05 18x7.5 +45mm offset. i'm running DMS coilovers.

I have the apex'i N1 exhaust for my GC8. I havent really noticed a serious power change. The sound is good, alot deeper than most other imports. Its not too loud either, so thats good. Seems like it gets a little meaner sounding the longer i have it on. Im pretty happy with it.

Dave

I have a 2002 2.5rs
Do you think that the N1 would fit my car.

I just wanted to post my experience with Apexi. I had an Apexi N1 on my '00 Civic Si. The thing rusted through in about 7 months. The hanger at the muffler broke off too. I called Apexi and even though it was inside the 12 month warranty period they would do NOTHING for me. They were a bunch of jerks.

You couldn't pay enough me to put one of their garbage products on my car.

Buyer beware.

i don't have the n1, but i do have an apex'i cat though... the apex'i gt spec...

here it is on my car
http://members.nasioc.com/UserPics/12579/myReX.jpg

Here's what it sounds like, it's a quicktime file (http://mythz.toclan.org/images/vroom.mov)

Yeap! The N1 is sweet.
You said your only mod was the exhaust so far.
If you plan on gettin a DP....Be prepared for a car that sounds like a CHOPPER!

It gets pretty loud. I left my silencer in tact for that!
But it does sound good!:D

APEX'i GT Spec RULES

Gotta say that this thing makes a 4cyl. sound just like a race car. I've also removed the exhaust restrictors (cat & resonator :lol: ) and upgraded the piping to 2 1/2". Better pick-up, awesome sound, a great way to scare small childer and intimidate Hondas. The silencer makes it sound like a farting monkey (best way to describe it, very wierd sound) but makes it the sound disappear for long hauls.
Haven't heard a ScoobySport to compare it to (perhaps in a month or two) but, HOLY CRAP!!!

i had the n1 catback.. and agree on the sound. but mine wasnt that loud, but sounded great.

man, i heard those things were LOUD.

Volume is a matter of perception. With my setup (unrestricted and up-sized) it sounds loud, yes, extremely loud perhaps would be the word for it. :devil:
But...when revved up it sounds nothing like the 1.8L 4 cylinder that it is, more like an angry rally car that wants to spank something. At idle and with proper shifting it becomes a low grumble that covers background noise and can smoothly drive beside you. For long distance (rides 1+ hours) I put in the silencer and the muffler disappears. With that minor inconvenience I have noticed nice torque gains and the butt dyno gives me a warm smile.

I have the N1 hooked up with no kitties after the turbo, without the silencer the rally car sound is there (could use some more "backfiring" sound), but for the most part it is great. I don't think it's that loud, I have heard louder for sure, but there is no ricers sound to it at all. I think there is more power, not too much, but some. I need an uppipe, then I'm be happier.
MCL

X-cellent sound... and she spits flames on the down shift... so they tell me...:alien:

Actually if you want flames...:devil:

Drain your fuel tank until its got about 1/8, 1/16 left; the less the better. You won't be cruising too long with this trick but, it looks cool on the strip. It helps if you use premium.

Then you dump in a full bottle of octane booster (almost any brand will work, but obviouosly, the higher the better here).

Floor it.

Most of the times it works. When it does, be sure all your friends are around. If it doesn't, you'll just have a blazing fast launch.

I had the N1 (had to take if off to fit the new stuff)...

I loved it! The sound was awesome, and never, ever too loud (and no droning either). I also loved the look of it too...

If anyone is interested in buying a used one, PM me for details...

can [W]Dark[R]BuDDha[X] please re up load they sound file for the APEXI GT spec exhaust sound file because it no longer works any more thanks

Does anyone have the Apexi bolted to any after market downpipes? If so which and how was the fitment?

Originally posted by TurismoLou
Does anyone have the Apexi bolted to any after market downpipes? If so which and how was the fitment?

yea, my gt spec is bolted on to the Invidia V2 downpipe. beware thought my exhaust is mad loud. heads turn when i get on it on the highway...

I have the Gruppe-S uppipe and Helix DP from Gruppe-S. No problem with fitment. Exhaust is loud, but not "mad loud"

sounds pretty crappy...anyone have a better one?

i cant decide what to get

well this is a limited hosting service max downloads per day are at 3 or so... if someone in the nasioc community can host this .mov file for me i'd appreciate it... give me a PM....

the sound clip (catless) (http://geocities.com/krazy_kcboy/wrxBackEnd.MOV)

i am runnin the Apex GT Spec exhaust as well as a Helix (invidia) dp

i love the look, and the sound

peace!

interesting guys... My friend put a GT spec in his stock 04wrx.. and boy did he lose some massive low end torque...

did he put only the catback on or down pipe too? because the gt spec has major piping and with the stock downpipe ur are gonna lose major low end power

Originally posted by [W]Dark[R]BuDDha[X]
did he put only the catback on or down pipe too? because the gt spec has major piping and with the stock downpipe ur are gonna lose major low end power

yep.. stock everything else... car's a slug..

anyone have pics of this on their car?
and how does it run with the car??
sound? quality? etc?

heres a pic on my RS, sounds great. quality is A+, direct bolt on system.

http://usera.imagecave.com/03RS/RS1.JPG

99subi has the apexi. he apparantly loves it.

i cant really see from this angle but does this catback angle to the side a little bit or not at all??

the catback has a very slight angle, not drastic though

i have a 2000 rs with it on there. it sounds great it has more of a rumble than a buzz whitch i am a huge fan of. the outlet seems kinda big but it helps performance wise. i like it alot. i bought the car off someone else so im not sure how long it has been on there but the front of the muffler portion is starting to rust out. other wise im pretty happy with it. if you want a pick or two from under the car i cant take them and send it to you.

send me the pics!
deejaynutts@yahoo.com

I would have to disagree with most of you. I know its all a matter of opinion, but Im not a fan of the can mufflers, JDM is cool, but I dislike that aspect of it. One came on my car. Sound I found to be quite ricey, almost too loud, and it droned on the highway. Like I said, all a matter of opinion. But something that isnt a matter of opinion is build quality. Mine had a hole along the seam about 4 inches long just before the muffler, and it most of it was severly rusted and ready to flake into a hole. It was only on the car around 15k miles. So, unless your dead set on the look of it, I would pass it up for something similar that uses a better quality steel. Thats my .02 tho. And, I may still have pics of it from when I sold it.

Just hit you up with 3 pics, look for brian0007@yahoo.com.

i will post pics tomorow of mine including my reveiw of it

You can find a sound clip of the N1 on my car here

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=785155

The exhaust doesn't come out straight. If you've seen the Invidia it comes out like that. Slanted to the drivers side. Not because the canister is that big, cause it's really not, but to make the rest of the exhaust as near straight back as possible, with as little bends as possible. VERY nice exhaust. Excellent quality. Not ricey in the least.

Sounds like a V8.

I just installed an Apex'i N1 catback on my car this afternoon, and I have to say I like it quite a bit. Nice and burbly around town and quiet on the freeway. I think I'm the 4th owner of this piece and it looks to be in good condition still. Some scrapes along the bottom of the canister due to the angle, but oh well. I love the angle too, mad tyte jdm.

I love the way it sounds and made a very noticeable increase in power. No numbers but you can really feel the power difference. You can hear the turbo spool much louder now also. It is awesome, I love it. I got a stanless downpipe and it looks really nice. I will clean the engine bay and take some pictures. I am really happy with the quality of the products.

Michael

congratulations on the purchase

I'll first begin this review by showing a couple pics I took of the exhaust:
http://www.explicitmedia.net/cody/exhaust2.jpg
http://www.explicitmedia.net/cody/exhaust1.jpg
http://www.explicitmedia.net/cody/exhaust02.jpg
http://www.explicitmedia.net/cody/exhaust01.jpg

So down to the review:

My 1st impression when I started my WRX after installing was complete satisfaction. I was a little nervous when I got it becuase several people had told me that this was a LOUD exhaust and it turns heads everywhere.

I have a 3" catless Helix DP along with the exhaust and I can confidently say that this 'being an incredibly loud exhaust' is completely not true. Anyone who thinks this is a loud exhaust has never heard this N1 on my friends Stage 3 EVO...THAT is loud.

The puuuur of this exhaust is just too good for words. I have a fairly decent drive I do everyday and over the weekend I didn't turn my iPod on once. I prefer to listen to that low rumble. :p

When you are on the gas it sounds amazing. It does NOT have a defening roaring to it what so ever. Even at 6,000rpms it still sounds VERY deep and throaty.

NO HIGHWAY DRONE at all. It is virtually silent and sounds nearly stock on the freeway. I was able to listen to some music very comfortably over the exhaust. Even on WOT i was still able to hear my music (and it wasn't very loud).

I did not want an exhaust that was going to turn heads. Especially since there are so many cops around here. Heading into work there was a couple cops getting gas at this intersection that I was stoped at. I decided to cruise off the way I normally do to see if they would look over at my car. I took off when the light turned and they didn't even flinch :lol:

Summary:
-Perfect deep throaty exhaust the emphisizes that beautiful boxer music without turning heads and creating a lot of distraction.
-Exhaust tip looks great and isn't too big. Looks very beefy and sporty and I dont need to worry about riping it off on a big speedbump.
-NO highway drone. Easily able to listen to music and comfortable volume even at WOT.

I payed around $450 I believe for this including shipping from Grupee-s and got it in 3 days and I have to say that I am more than happy with it.

nice writeup.. give it a coupla months tho.. it'll get louder and you won't even notice it. :D

I agree with him 100% it sounds great and is not overly loud at all

how much loud in decibels? (db)

About the loudness, I had always heard that the N1 is one of the louder/raspier systems on the market, but on their website, it states:

All A'PEX exhaust systems comply with applicable emission laws since they neither modify nor relocate the required factory emission control devices; they are considered "direct replacement" parts. Such parts do not require a CARB Executive Order (EO) since they are not "add on" or "modified" parts. A'PEX exhaust systems are "functionally identical" to the OEM parts during emission tests. Sound levels are tested on stock vehicles before the product release to ensure compliance with the 95dB limit.

So I guess with a stock up/down pipe the sound according to them should be under 95dB. If this is still too loud you can add their silencer and lower it about 7 more dB.

One question I have though, is about the N1 system's raspiness at higher RPMs I've heard about from some people, any thoughts on that from people who've used this system?

Hey do you have a resonator? I ordered the same exhaust from gruppe-s a while ago and they sent my the race one without a resonator, its just like the N1 I see from other places but instead of a resonator its just a straight pipe. This thing is prob what you heard from people, this thing is freeeeeeekishly loud. I have the stock downpipe and anything over 4k just drowns the hell out of the cabin and when the turbo spins down my ears start to bleed. Mine came with a silencer but I don't wanna use it cause the hole is pretty small and I want the flow to be worth the 450 I spent for it.

I'm looking to buy an APEX'i N1 catback muffler for my GC. Anybody care to share their experiences with it? Also looking at Borla UEL headers. Anybody have a review of either or both, or know where I could find one?

Thanks,
LP

I'm running the apexi n1 catback...pretty nice...mellow tone around 2-3k...lets the boxer sound rip at higher rpms....no dissapointment.

I've got the N1 ExTi (Titanium muffler, stainless piping) on my WRX. Picked it up for a steal at A'PEXi's sale this spring, couldn't resist. I have stock UP/DP at the moment, but those are soon to go. With cats, it's not nearly as loud as I expected, and sounds great, nice and deep. Very much a trademark Subaru sound. With the silencer in, it sounds exactly like stock from inside the car. The ExTi also has an adjustable tip, which uses the same hole and bolt as the silencer, and which is just a titanium sleeve, cut at an angle at the rear, which allows the placement of the tip to be adjusted to match aftermarket bumpers and such.

Only complaint is that A'PEXi supplied a really cheap retaining bolt for the silencer/adjustible tip. Less than a year after buying it, it's totally rusted. I'm gonna have to saw it off and replace it with a decent stainless bolt/nut. It's an annoyance, especially because it means I can't put my silencer in.