You guys with your dual 2.5" exhausts make me lol. So many of us are touching the ~500 crank hp number where 2.5" exhaust becomes a very real restriction. I dig Sabre's X-pipe to dual N1 setup though, that's a good blend of V8 tuning and JDM look.
I also sigh when I see nice headers then a y-pipe into a JDM catback with guys trying to 'fool some people' into thinking its a stock FD. I don't get that, there's no fooling when you step on it.
Anyways, I digress...
Let me preface this with the notion that my car's aggressive looking enough that no one knows what it is ~ I get people asking if it's the new Vette, a Viper, some kit car, etc. It scares people. I dig that. I wanted to build an exhaust that kept them guessing.
I had JTR 1 7/8" ceramic coated headers into a dual 3" -> single 3" chambered Magnaflow and the overall volume was OK, but it sounded too much like a truck. Also, I know that a single 3" pipe is not ideal performance-wise, and who knows if there's any X-pipe scavenging happening in the muffler.
I enlisted Luke @ Blu808 when I wanted to make a new system, and he finally agreed. I wanted to make an exhaust system that was performance first, everything else last, and after hearing Conrad Grunewald's 2010 Camaro with it's LSA on straight pipes all season (we built that car and campaigned it in Formula D to a 12th overall finish this year) I knew what sound I wanted.
Without question, I wanted center-out tips. Mid to high end hp meant H-pipe instead of X-pipe. I wanted a straight-pipe sound without rattles and without the 110+db noise, that meant mufflers. Due to the fuel tank location (I chose not to go with a fuel cell), this gets tricky. Lastly, my car's low (yes, it's lower than yours) so ground clearance is of utmost importance. Boom tubes are the answer.
They're each 7.5" x 1.5", 16ga mild steel, and TIG welded by the Luke Lonberger. Started with 1.5" tube cut down the side with a sidecutting bit on Luke's mill, then 6" x 18" plates welded in.
From my JTR 1 7/8" headers, we have some intricate 3" sections to clear Hinson's early trans mount, and then a couple SLP "mufflers". Pic from mockup:
As you can see, not much muffling going on. I wanted 3" perforated-core mufflers with stainless steel packing, but my overall width restriction of ~9.5" killed 99% of my options... these have a 4" outer diameter so they fit, but just barely.
Math said the H-pipe should come right where the middle of the mufflers were, so for packaging's sake we put this beauty in right after the mufflers:
The ease at which Luke makes these technically perfect, aesthetically pleasing pieces EVERY TIME continues to impress me. Check out this weld from one of the transitions...
Anyway, car still needs paint/bodywork since my SEMA-sponsored-job fell through, so no 'finished' pics. Here's a vid I took driving home though. I believe it's a 2nd->5th run, with some traffic in the way.
http://www.facebook.com/v/143533812356677