Got my 2.5" SS Test Pipes from Zred yesterday and test drove today. I already have the Borla Dual so I was very interested to hear what they would be like. The sound is louder to say the least. I need a couple of objective friends over to get their opinions, but I like it. It is the same Borla sound, just louder. At idle it is the same, the biggest difference is above 4k. At that point it sounds very exotic with a nice deep growl. Not tinny or fart can like. If you shift at 4k you would never really know the difference. Inside the car, there is no drone. I tried to guage stop and go sound by peoples reactions, they were pretty normal. Consequently, when I jacked my car up I also found that my H pipe was loose. To others that have the Borla, I would come back in a month and retighten the clamps after initial installation. The construction of the pipes is excellent. They have nice welds and match up to both exhaust manifold and cat-back exhaust very well and in correct allignment. The performance is very noticable. I rememer when I first got my Z, there was no real heavy acceleration feel. Now I really get sucked back in my seat (other mods include: Pulleys, Injen CAI, Borla Dual). For $250 you can't go wrong. I was a little concerned initially about the pipes going from 2.5 to 2.25 from test pipes to exhaust. When I saw the inner diameter of the collector on the exhaust manifold I felt silly as it is probably 1.75. Obviously this car can use some headers! This weekend, if Isabel doesn't kill my car, I will see and hear it at VIR full. I think I will be pleasantly surprised. Easy, cheap, effective mod...

 

thanks

nice review, hopefully lsdunique's perform just as well since mine and many others are sent out today.

victor

 

If you have more problems w the H pipe clamp (you will) weld the union... Borla clamps are a little weak!

Nice review!

 

should we get it welded immediately after install or wait a few hundred miles for the metal to settle down?

 

both ways will work... but if you want to wait to see if you are lucky w the clamps go ahead!

 

i don't think so since we just did my friends car and it was hissing already.

 

Yeah... welded all the way!!!

 

im very happy you liked the test pipes is sent to you . if anyone is interested in these test pipes email me and i will get a set for you...

 

"ZRED" How bad is the smell wiht the test pipes? Do these throw a CEL??

 

I don't know if this has been mentioned before but there is one clamp that is different than all of the others in the Borla kit and that clamp is made for the H pipe. If you use any of the other clamps in the kit on the H pipe it will evetually leak no matter how tight you crank it.

I hear a lot of people having the hiss from the H pipe and would bet they put the wrong clamp on there. I have had my Borla installed for about 1500 miles with no problems.

Sorry for hi-jacking but I thought the info would benefit people.

Jeff

 

I'll buy a set only after a soundclip and before/after dyno is provided. I'm confident a lot of potential buyers are waiting on this as well.

IMO, this should be standard practice for manufacturers/distributors to maximize their sales.

 

re: H pipe, mine is definetly installed correctly with the smaller H-pipe clamp and I still had a little leak. It was very small as I only discovered it from moving the pipes around to install the test pipes. I found that the H junction was pistoning a little. I'm sure as the system heat cycles the metal will expand and contract a little. No big deal, just worth checking a month or so after install.
zx- in a perfect world that would be great, don't hold your breath. I'll tell you how different my lap times are. To me that is a lot better than any dyno.

 

can we wrap the H part with "header-wrap" material and then clamp it?

think that would help any?

 

the smell if any will go away within the first week....

 

i think i was the only one that has the CEL go on. it lasted for a day or two and never came back on. still good, here....now just waiting for my Nismo exhaust and headers and S-Tune Kit

 

Maybe... I never have the chance of use it... you can try it and let us know!!!

 

are these the zred headers ? I bought these from another member, and he only remembered the email, not the username of the guy he bought them off..

 

That makes absolutely no sense. Care to clarify a little please? No cats means unburnt hydrocarbons are exiting the exhaust, and they will keep exiting the exhaust forever - not just a week. It is the incomplete combustion of the fuel (hydrocarbons) that is causing that smell. In fact, it might contain CO (carbon monoxide) and that is very bad for you; plus it is odorless, tasteless, and colorless . So, you are either getting used to the smell, or ...

 

Those are LSDunique's pipes. The smell will not go away. The header wrap does fix the leak.