Gotta say WOW!!!

Had my R/T's on for about 3 months, and wanted something different.

Talked to Adam at Z-1 via PM and he assured me that quality wise, fitment and finish was second to none. He was right, welds are nice. Fit is spot on, does not hang low like other cats, but not as high as the stock cats.

Being a bit older, the rasp from the R/T's were getting old, even tried removing the heat shield between the floor and cats...not even. Still got the BRRRRAAAAPPPP at around 2500 til 3500, sounded kinda fartty, not to mention LOUD. I think the Nismo cat-back had something to do with it, mid pipe diameter is big.

Overall, sound is almost stock like, but after getting on it, pull and sound wise I think the Ultimate's are the way to go. Not loud, NO RASP!!!! I noticed on another forum member who has the Crawford Cats, when he bliped the throttle, there was a metallic sound, very high pitch. The Ulitimate Cats did not have that sound, just deeper than stock.

I think more guys should look into Ultimate Cats from Adam at Z-1 performance. He says the Evo guys swear by them. If you want cats that are not too loud, try the Ultimate Racing Cats.

 

cool, i cannot wait to hear them today!!

 

Good review.

I've been looking for some cats with no raspiness.

Thanks.

 

I gotta listen to this! Looking forward to it Dave.

 

What is the hp gain on those and do you have dyno's?

 

how much...and how do they match up to your fuji y pipe?

 

I won't say I told you so then

I know some people are biased towards one product or another.....we take things from a bit different approach. I like selling stuff that I would use, or have used myself. Such is the case with Ultimate's products. We have used the cats and test pipes, along with exhausts, etc. extensively for the Evo's, and have had nothing but stellar results. Fit and finish is spot on, and they work as advertised at a fair price. As such, we are proud to sell them!

I will have to get a dyno figured out for the cats alone one of these days...perhaps one of our local Z customers can work something out with us. I'll see what we can do.

Sound wise, I like to think I am a pretty good judge of what sounds good and what doesn't.....the Ultimate cats sound awesome....a bit louder than stock, but no unusual rasp, buzz, or noise whatsoever. So far, I have had mine on the car for about 12k miles, and am continuously pleased with them.

Just for spec sake, these are all stainless, and use 2.5 inch inlet and outlet. They are direct factory replacements, meaning you can use them with any Y pipe that fits the Z and any exhaust manifold as well.

Price is $474 shipped anywhere in the 48 states and Canada. Alaska and Hawaii are a bit more expensive to ship, so please call or PM/email for a quote. You can see them on our site here:

http://www.z1auto.com/prodmore.asp?m...ust&prodid=580

adam

 

How well do they flow compared to Crawford cats? As I remember from the flow graph that has been floating around these forums, Crawford was second to RT (and test pipes...), and Kinetix was third. Where does UR place?

 

Shivak,
Can you point out or link to the chart that shows the Kinetix flow bench number? I don't recall ever seeing one and would love to study them.

 

As far as flow, I think in the comparason between all the cats, the Ultimate had not yet come out. I would assume that they will flow as good as the Crawford ones, looking at the pics they look very similar.

 

Kinetix cats and Ultimate cats should flow the same. Both units use carsound cats. Ultimate cats are much better quality and finish because they are full SS. The Kinetix cats are SS piping only.

 

Another thing I noticed today was a bit more of the low end came back after the R/T swap. Remembered the posting about guys noticed that with less restriction i.e. test pipes low end power was traded for mid and top end.

 

Well, on that graph, the only cats that were on the graph were the stock, crawford and RT cats, don't know where you guys got that the kinetix were on there, but they weren't.

As for flow, that is anyone's guess, although all carsound cats should put out similar results. If I were to buy some cats today, they would be the Ultimate cats, followed closely by the crawfords.

 

Ok Adam, I'm very interested. My question is if my Infiniti dealer installs them and I still hear the strong rasp/rattle around 3-4K rpms I've been getting with my RTs, will you then take back the Ultimates, no questions asked?

 

I don't think Adam, or any other vendor would go that far.

 

I will buy them for $400 shipped if you don't like them.

 

I know this is a stupid newbie question, but bare with me:

Buying these cats replaces the pre-cats, correct? Now, when you buy an exhaust, like the Injen dual that someone did the video for in this forum recently, does the Injen exhaust bolt right up to these cats? And what happens to the main cat? Or is there no main cat? I've yet to look under my car, so I'm basically clueless to all the piping down there. Can someone give me a quick 101 on the Z's exhaust setup?

I just want to make sure I can buy these cats and then hook them up to the Injen exhaust and still be "relatively" legal.
(and not buy extra piping I don need)

 

The 350Z does not have pre-cats like Honda Civics or ULEVs. Those pre-cats are built into the exhaust manifold where they are effective immediately. Cats are not efficient until they are hot.

Ultimate and other high flow cats replace the main cats. One on each exhaust side before the factory Y-pipe.

If you select an exhaust system that matches up to the factory cats (i.e. cat back) or Y-pipe back or rear section only, then RT, Crawford, Kinetix, and Ultimate will all work.

Most cats will pass California smog regulations, except it is illegal to replace them before 50K miles, unless damaged. "I drive a low sports car and bottomed out on the bad cali freeways."

 

Can anyone comment on the sound of the Kinetix cats? I just ordered them, with the plenum, and they should be here tomorrow.

They'll be mounted between DC ceramic headers and a Borla TD cat back.

 

From what I understand carsound cats are not raspy or all that loud. I imagine it will be deeper tone for the borla TD. Most people say the Borla TD alone is as quiet or quieter than stock, so expect slightly louder than stock exhaust. The engine will howl at WOT with the plenum and free flowing exhaust. Nice.

Side note: what a install nightmare. Borla TD and Kinetix cats are infamous for leaks and poor fitment if not install perfectly.