A few questions for the experts. VI, Headers and Y-pipe.

[maximaman]

im in the process of installing a 2001 variable intake on my 96 and i was wondering if its possible to make the switch activate the solenoid before 5000 rpm??? say... 4200??? and if so, what would be the ideal pinpoint on the rev to activate it???

also... i cant afford cattman headers right now and the Y pipes that ive been looking at come with headers but im not sure if they are all that theyre cracked up to be. some claim in the teens for HP gain 13-16 and the Y pipes around the same. can i really expect 25-30 horses out of the header Y pipe combo??? it sounds a little far fetched.

i see that many of you maxima enthusiasts have warp speed Y pipes and those claim, dyno tested, around 10-15 HP.

let me put this into better perspective. if aftermarket exhaust companies live up to their word... i could expect 30HP from header/Y pipe, 8HP for hollow cat, 3 for midpipe and up to 15 for muffler. DOES THIS SOUND REALISTIC??? 55 horse power out of full exhaust??? ive never heard of crap like this. someone give me some realistic numbers so im not dissapointed at my next dyno...

[Beancooker]

Yes, you could activate the solonoid to open the butterflies earlier. It has to do with vacuum. You would need to have a vacuum booster to attain this. Follow the tubing, and you can probably see where it needs to be.

You have a 4th gen Maxima, so the headers won't give you a whole lot of gain. Your best bang for the buck is a Y-pipe, and it will give you between 10 and 15 HP.

Had a warp speed on my Max, and it was okay. I needed to have additional work done, to fix the banging.

Okay, you can't add up the HP numbers like that. You need to be realistic about this. The most you can look to gain from just exhaust is probably about 20 HP max. If you were forced induction, then exhaust would make a much bigger difference. Think of an engine as an air pump. The more air in, and out, the more HP you get. If you can get a lot in, but not out, it will cause a loss in HP. If you can intake 500cfm, but can exhaust 750 cfm, you're not losing any power, but you're not gaining anything over being able to exhaust 500 cfm. Hope that made sense.

Oh, no need to type all crazy in the title, or have everything in bold. I'm not that old yet.

[maximaman]

thanks I really appreciate it. You guys have the best knowledge out anybody ive asked and hookin up my max is gunna be a whole lot easier because of peeps like you. Any other pointers?

[PBfrEAk]

//threadjack

Had a warp speed on my Max, and it was okay. I needed to have additional work done, to fix the banging.

What type of banging are you talking about?

I've noticed that when I really jump on it it sounds and feels like my y-pipe is rubbing up against my floor boards. Is this just due to bad rubber hangers on my exhaust or what? (not that you would know for sure lol)

End threadjack//

[maximaman]

i suppose if the pipe metal is touching anything besides the hangers its going to have a slight rumble to it and especially if your mobbin it.

anyways... 96 max. Y pipe. no headers. variable intake. short ram with quarter panel air flow duct. port and polish throttle body. hollow cat. fuel chip. 140 lb. weight reduction. what kind of numbers am i looking at with this set up??? anybody??? i wont be offended...

[maximaman]

Yes, you could activate the solonoid to open the butterflies earlier. It has to do with vacuum. You would need to have a vacuum booster to attain this.

i just realized that i have no idea what a vacuum booster is. can you please describe in moderate detail how to tune this. i know that the HP drops off dramatically right as the power band comes to an end. can i "double dose" it by making the variable open up at the beginning of the power band??? help me out beancooker

[blackmax23]

I had the same banging sound from underneath the floor board with my warpspeed y-pipe. It was vibrating my whole center console, but after the seals tightened up and the pipe was broken in, everything was fine. I love the sound and love the mid-top end power it's given me! Also, you mentioned 8 hp from gutting the cat...not happening, the most you'll see is 3-5. And I wouldn't recommend changing your mid-pipe because it acts as a resonator and when you put a straight pipe in place of it, it's gonna sound like a ricer...especially when you rev it up, it's gonna pop like crazy on the way down the rpm range. It's not worth the extra 2 hp you'll get from swapping out the b-pipe!!!

[maximaman]

okay but nobody has answered my question yet. What is the vac booster and how do I program the butterflies to open at a specific time? I also heard that once you install the Y you gotta run the motor at idle for 10 min and retighten the bolts.

[maximaman]

somebody help me please...