WRX exhausts: Megan, HKS Hi Power, Straight pipe, Invidia N1

[Super_HKS]

MY NEW SR*S CATBACK REVIEW CAN BE FOUND HERE!!!!!!!!
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...8#post23860728


+=+=9-18-08+=+=New catback on its way
I have just ordered a SR*S catback. Yes its the one from ebay. Anyways I wanted to get a louder catback and wanted to get that angled exhaust look back. I should be receiving the catback some time next week in the mail so I will be providing a full text and video review which I will post on youtube. If you want to see how this exhaust checks out, check back soon for my review.
Here is a teaser of what the SR*S looks like. Full 3 inch cannon shooter



*****NEW UPDATE 7-31-08********
The invidia n1 race had to go. I traded it for a Magnaflow catback/TurboXS standard exhaust. I truely am going to miss the invidia n1 but due to my recent career path change, I am needing to transform my car from import looking to a stealth/under the radar type. So With that said and done here goes my review on the Magnaflow catback.

First thing I noticed was that the piping and muffler was in very good condition. Rusting was minmal to none. The guy had it on his car for 7,000 miles. The install went smooth. The donut flange was a bit of a draw back in comparison to the flat flange but after putting in the donught gasket, we bolted everything from the downpipe w/o any problems. Now moving on for the axleback portion of the exhaust. The magnaflow uses a slip on system in which you slit one pipe over the other and bolt it in to insure the clamp is tight making sure no exaust leaks are present.

After putting the axleback in and the hangers in place it was time to fire it up. After beeing used the invidia's insane growl and sound, I was a little saddened by the quietness but I cant complain. When people get a stealthy exhaust the last thing they want is for it to be loud. After take it for a drive, the boxer noise went from beeing a pissed off beast to a mellow, mild, rumble. The magnaflow looks very sleek and stylish and has served my purpose for getting it in the first place. The stats and points review can be found below. Comments are appreciated. Thanks for your time




***UPDATE AS OF7-02-08****
I had a chance to pick up a new exhuast note about a weekend or so ago. I traded midpipes with a kid who had a n1 race. So with that said and done here is my little review of the n1 race
So I noticed during the install of the invidia n1 race midpipe, the piping was a little harder to get in perfectly. Because of the resonators missing, the fitment was a bit off. Anyways after sliding and adjusting everything around with the hangers, it was time to start her up...

On start up, I noticed the sound was a bit different but not too much different that the n1 street. After going onto the road, I went to about 3-4K. WOW It sounded sooo nice. With the windows in the front up, it sounds much like the invidia n1 street. When you open your back windows or hear your car from the side of a wall or a car, you can really hear the difference. The exhuast turned from beeing mild and deep to a more throaty, raspy, and deepend tone. IT WAS VEDDDDY nice. I am loving my exhuast right now. GOD I cant wait to get off work and hear that sexy beast.

On a side note, I have noticed since swapping midpipes, the exhuast has come out of one of the hangers and the bumper has slightly melted. Yes it is a big BIOTCh but hey ill try to readjust the hangers tonight and take some pix if I get around to it. Overall though everything has been terriffic with the n1 race and has by far exceeded my expectations on the sound of the subaru. I HIGHLY RECCOMMEND THIS EXHUAST> ITS not too over the top with the huge muffler and not tooooo loud. Its just right!

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My review of my exhausts on a 2005 wrx with a 2.0L engine
By: Daniel aka Super_HKS
All exhaust video/sound clips can be found here:
youtube.com/lilitalygarbler

Well it all started off with a bone stock 2005 wrx waiting to be modded. So as an 18 year old purchasing a 2005 wrx was a challenge. My payments were very high and I was only working at quiznos at the time making barely any money. (In October I started working tech support so instead of making 8 an hour I was making 15 so mods were easier to come by, but I purchased the car in may). So after driving around for 2-3 weeks being bored of the quiet stock exhausts I decided to pick up some extra shifts making a couple hundred more dollars.
While I was randomly looking on craigslist I found a brand new in the box MEGAN racing catback for 200 cash. I said OK LETS DO IT. So I picked up the catback and put it on that day. The exhaust was installed with stock downpipe, and stock up pipe.

When started up the exhaust was a little bit louder but not too loud. It sounded nice and had a rumble but being me Mr. I wanna be loud and bad ass, I decided to wait and go stage 2 very soon.

So after waiting a while and saving up money working my ass off at the stupid sub shop, Once again on craigslist I found a brand new invidia V2 downpipe (catless). It was even heatwrapped. Story behind this: Guy bought it brand new. Installed on his 05 STI with an invidia n1 and turned out he and his wife had a newborn so the wife demanded it off. Anyways I picked that up and the same day purchased we installed it. ( I removed the heatwrap as there is no need for it unless its pre turbo)

At start up the car had a lot more rumble. The car wasn’t completely catless yet so it wasn’t to its full potential. The car did sound terrific taking off. Nice deep rumble not raspy at all. Had a mello vrrooom

A couple weeks later I decided to trade my Megan catback for a HKS hi power catback. Within the deal I got a free OEM up pipe from an 04 wrx. It had a cat. (A couple days after getting the up pipe I gutted out all the catalytic material until it was clean as a whistle)
So after the up pipe and HKS hi power catback were installed it was time for start up!!!!!!
When first starting up the HKS, it was a totally different sound from the Megan. The HKS had a unique rumble and a purr like I didn’t quite hear in the MEGAN. The HKS on a drive was a lot raspier but has a very cool growl noise. Inside the cabin the sound wasn’t too bad. Only time it got a little hectic and had drowning, was on the freeway going about 70. I was used to the loudness from my previous car (04 straight piped civic), so it was all good

Moving on, I enjoyed the HKS hi power with full stage 2 protuned for a good couple months before I said DAMNIT I want something louder. So after much debate I decided to try out making a straight pipe

**THE PROJECT**
My friend CJ and I decided to put together a 3 inch straight pipe from the axleback on the HKS hi power. (The HKS hi power has different midpipe and catback lengths than other exhausts). So we basically took a bunch of stainless steel pipes and put them together to fit correctly.
After an hour or so, we finally got the straight pipe on there and ready to fire her up.

Specs on the car with straight pipe:
Gutted up pipe
Invidia v2 downpipe catless
HKS catback with straightpipe instead of hi power muffler
Injen SRI
On start up it was really nice sounding. Yes it was loud and is not the best neighborhood friendly trait, but damn it sounded like a rally car. After letting it idle for a while it was time for a test drive. I had my friend drive so I could listen on the outside.
I was really loud. Sounded great on normal driving. It had a really loud rumble and a loud purrr.
After getting on the throttle a little bit, the exhaust tended to get raspy. To put the sound of straight pipe in comparison to others, imagine an open downpipe just with more rasp to it. Driving the car daily was a big pain in the ass. At first its like OMG this is so loud and FU**ing cool. After the first week or so its like “OMG WHAT DID YOU SAY? I CANT HEAR YOU WHAT?” The car was so loud on the inside, it actually gave me headaches and gave me a migraine one day. It was really loud. Im all for loud but damn sometimes it wasn’t fun. Plus having a girlfriend and friends in the car didn’t make it enjoyable for them.
I must say though, I never did have any police problems with the straight pipe. They were behind me, on my sides and never did get stopped.
So after a good month or two of having that on, I decided to put the HKS hi power axleback back on.

After getting my hearing back (LOL), about 3-4 months later I was interested and in the market for a new exhaust. I posted up on my local classifieds in the northwest section that I was looking for either a Invidia n1, Tanabe concept G, or a perrin single tip.
After a couple of days go by, I had gotten an email in regards to an exhaust swap. An invidia n1 street. After watching lots of videos on the sound of the invidia I said lets do it.
**NOTE, that the difference between invidia n1 race and street is that Street has a resonator and the race is just one straight pipe with a muffler)
So after taking off the HKS hi power catback and swapping on the invidia n1 street, at idle It wasn’t too much louder but instead of the purr, growl sound from the HKS it was a very deep rumble. On take off it sounds very nice! The rumble is very awesome and is not overly loud (like the straight pipe). Driving in the car is enjoyable and when the windows are down you can hear the rumble bounce off the walls on the freeway, and off cars. So in conclusion, The full invidia N1 street so far has treated me very nice and I am enjoying it every time I get a chance to drive. Time will tell what happens next. Below I will give a little perspective on each exhaust in terms of grading. ** Also note that I will come out with a blow off valve informative session also upon request. BOV I have had include: Stock BPV, Blitz DD, APS 50/50, Ebay BOV, Tial BOV, and a turboXS RFL

Exhuast grading scale of 1-5 (5 beeing best)


*Megan Racing catback
Looks: 4 (looks like the HKS but sticks out more)
Sound: 4
Quality: 3 (Currently on my friends car. Has some rusting)
Price: 4 (At first MEGAN was a big ebay buy, price is going up since company is getting more popular)

*HKS hi power catback
Looks: 5(BEST LOOKING huge cannon slant exhaust on the WRX. Perfect angle)
Sound: 4 (Very nice rumble and unique growl, it is a bit raspy though)
Quality: 3 ½ (I noticed quite a bit of rusting on the piping on certain spots. Most welds were put together nicely)
Price: 4 (normal price is average for catbacks. I got mine for free)
<===== LOoks like this except without burnt tip and Carbon fiber
PIX of hks can be found here:http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3006793

*Straight pipe (3 inch)
Looks: 2 (no muffler so it was a bit bare looking. Looked like a rally car)
Sound: 3 (unbearably crazy drive with on the inside at times, very raspy, very loud. Attention attracter)
Quality: 4 Just stainless steel pipe
Price: 75 for material and time for shop used
Pix can be found on my photobucket album. My username is lilitalygarbler

*Invidia N1 street
Looks: 5 (Muffler canister isn’t too large, slant is great, and the muffler tucks wonderfully under the bumper)
Sound: 5 Rumble is very deep and is great while driving. Doesn’t give you a headache
Quality:4 ½ rust is showing a little over time. Welds were average for a machined welder
Price: 5 once again for a catback cost tends to be pretty average (Once again, I did get it for free)


*Invidia N1 RACE!!!!!!
Looks 5 ^Same as above
Sound 5 Sounds wonderful. Very deep tone although it can get on the raspy side (Hence the resonator missing)
Quality 4 Ive noticed since adding the race, my exhuast is off kilter making it melt my bumper
Price 5 Same as above. (I got my invidia n1 race for free via trade)


*Magnaflow catback!!
Looks 4: Not as cool as the tuner/import look but is sleek, stealthy, and under the radar
Sound 3: Not loud at all. It has a nice mellow rumble and has a nice low key tone
Quality 5: Welds are precise and well done. The overally quality of the stainless is very very good. Not alot of noticable rust, etc
Price 3: Good bang for the buck but the price of 700 from magnaflows website is a little excessive since its piping is only 2.5 inches and the exhuast isnt your typical aftermarket purchase

This isnt my car but you get the point of the exhuast. Under the radar and sneaky sneaky



Any comments, concerns, positive, negative feedback is appreciated. Thanks for your time
-Daniel

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[Super_HKS]

Updated post

[The Satch]

sweet man, i called you to ask a question, but i think your thread answered it.

[IIdiceII]

I'm thinking about doing this...I've had a good amount of exhaust setups lol...

I'll get johnnywas and gingertooth to do it to maybe. theyve had more than I have i think.

edit: I went ahead and made one I was bored!

[Super_HKS]

Originally Posted by The Satch

sweet man, i called you to ask a question, but i think your thread answered it.

morgan lemme know if you got it or not
Also did you likee the youtube video

Originally Posted by IIdiceII

I'm thinking about doing this...I've had a good amount of exhaust setups lol...

I'll get johnnywas and gingertooth to do it to maybe. theyve had more than I have i think.

edit: I went ahead and made one I was bored!

I was at work bored so I made one. Also Ive had alot of exhuasts and Blow off valves than most of my friends so i thought I would post it. Im really bored at work so I just may do a blow off valve review

[Super_HKS]

BTW If you guys liked this review and are wanting a Blow off valve review just ask me
I have had the following BOV's
Stock BPV
APS 50/50
Blitz DD bov
ebay/ Greddy RS bov
Tial BOV
TurboXs BOV

[Super_HKS]

Guys leave some positive/negative comments so I know what to work on or expand on for my next reviews in the future.

[Miercoles Cansado]

Nice! I've been checking out exhausts for a while. You helped me decide on the N1 street. Thanks!

[Super_HKS]

Originally Posted by brisby555

Nice! I've been checking out exhausts for a while. You helped me decide on the N1 street. Thanks!

Let me know once ya put it on how you like it

[lovinAWD]

Great review and very helpful. I actually just ordered a full TBE invidia n1race with catless up-pipe, I can't wait, should be here today. Was going back and forth between this exhaust and a TurboXS. Salesman was nicer at IAG so I bought what he suggested. I'll let you know how it goes when we install it this weekend.

[Super_HKS]

Originally Posted by lovinAWD

Great review and very helpful. I actually just ordered a full TBE invidia n1race with catless up-pipe, I can't wait, should be here today. Was going back and forth between this exhaust and a TurboXS. Salesman was nicer at IAG so I bought what he suggested. I'll let you know how it goes when we install it this weekend.

You will be much happier with the invidia n1 race trust me. The turboxs is nice but def not as nice as the invidia in my opinon.
invidia n1 race provides less raspyness
invidia n1 race sounds alot more agressive
Also the invidia n1 races muffler is smaller making it more under the radar.

[jobber]

good post

[Super_HKS]

Bumpalicious new exhuast added

[Super_HKS]

Originally Posted by jobber

good post

Thanks man I enjoyed writing it

[Miercoles Cansado]

I forgot to tell you, I went with the N1 street. It sounds great. I was a little confused when I put it on, I still have the factor midpipe so fitment with the CBE was a little strange. I love the sound so far, it's so good that I don't use the radio.

[Super_HKS]

^ Thats pretty much same with me. I LOVE listening to my car. Although sometimes its a 50 50 mix. Glad your enjoying it

[northernwrx]

PM'ed reference BOV

[96accord]

nice update!

[Super_HKS]

BUMP new exhaust review is up from the magnaflow catback

[OMG AWD]

i'm thinking about getting the Invidia N1 Regular Catback... what do you think??

[HawtSubieChick]

very interesting...my boyfriend has the HKS on his impreza it sounds amazing

[Super_HKS]

Originally Posted by 06STImulus

i'm thinking about getting the Invidia N1 Regular Catback... what do you think??

The regular meaning resonated one?
I think you will love it. The invidia n1 street sounds alot cleaner than the race. Since the race is resonatorless, their is alot more rasp comming from the exhuast. Watch my youtube videos for the invidia n1 race compared to the invidia n1 street and you be the judge. I love and miss the sound of my invidia n1 race. The sound was so amazing. Dont get me wrong, the magnaflow sounds great but its just not quite up to my noise par. I like everything loud and in charge. But hey for certain things you have to sacrifice. My new career will appreciate it, and my neighbors will certainly appreciate it considering I leave at 4:00 am mon-fri lolz.

Originally Posted by HawtSubieChick

very interesting...my boyfriend has the HKS on his impreza it sounds amazing

It sure does. The sound of it is more of a purrr than any other exhaust out there. The HKS has unique baffles making the sound a bit different than most aftermarkets out there. The HKS was great for me but I wanted to go with something that wasnt as big and that was louder.
The hks is a 5 inch tip with a huge cannister and is only on the medium scale for loudness. glad your liking his exhaust though. Sure sounds nice on idle and on low RPM

[Super_HKS]

If anyone has any questions about the exhuasts mentioned or any other questions feel free to ask here or PM

[wazzupidaug5]

will the magnaflow catback fit on an 06 2.5i?

[Da-Risin-Smoke]

I wonder what a Megan or Invidia would sound like on my car (with the exception of the 3" pipes).

I hear that HKS isn't very loud and it's too expensive for me since I might do a swap later.