filter + muffler = faster?

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

I have a high mileage stock 240 which I love dearly, but am toying with the idea of modding it harmlessly to give it a little more sex appeal and maybe speed. In perusing the FAQ, I read that a simple K&N air filter and an HKS performance muffler will give me a 10hp boost. My car-crazy friend thinks that it will actually slow it down.

Question 1: Will I see performance improvement from an air filter and muffler, or do I need a full intake and cat-back and maybe headers?

Question 2: What sounds good on an S13? What sounds bad? Currently I'm thinking either HKS or Apex'i.

Question 3: I'm cheap. I see $400 HKS mufflers for $40 on eBay. What's the deal? What am I looking for?

Thanks... One of these days, I will be mechanically inclined. One of these days. ;D

Post by **GEO** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

hahah they are talking about full exhaaust systems.. not mufflers.

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

well it mentions an HKS muffler at $390 from modacar.com, which i found. full exhaust systems go for $600 or $700 from the same place.

Post by **deftdrummer** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

dun dun dun dun dun rice boy

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

...your mom

Post by **stretch240sx** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Yorb wrote:...your mom

good come back

the 40 bucks on ebay is definately just the muffler, which wont do much for power, the 400 is probably cat back...

Post by **Rockenreno** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Yorb wrote:Question 1: Will I see performance improvement from an air filter and muffler, or do I need a full intake and cat-back and maybe headers?

Yes, though it will be minor. Full intake and full catback will give larger increase. It is also possible to see a decrease, though you will probably gain around 5 hp.

Quote »Question 2: What sounds good on an S13? What sounds bad? Currently I'm thinking either HKS or Apex'i.[/quote] The Apexi Dual N1 is the most popular system. Just avoid anything that resembles bees in a tin can in sound. Our engine tend to make good sound from aftermarket exhausts though.

Quote »Question 3: I'm cheap. I see $400 HKS mufflers for $40 on eBay. What's the deal? What am I looking for?[/quote] You will be able to tell the difference. The ebay ones are not real, they are imitations and very low quality. I am a fan of quality. Go with the real thing. Apexi Dual N1 Cat-back exhaust goes for around $500 if I remember correctly if you want to go that route. Good luck.

Post by **Former_240_s14** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Rockenreno couldn't be anymore correct.

The mufflers on ebay usually say HKS "TYPE" muffler or HKS "STYLE" muffler. When it comes to these types of products remember one thing......."You get what you pay for!"

Just a plain filter/muffler combo will give you basically no hp increase at all, or at least none that is substanital enough for you to notice. In order to really notice an increase, full exhaust "header, hi-flow cat, cat-back" is needed along with a CAI (cold-air-intake).

don't listen to the guys around here that try to be hard on you, sometimes we all forget where we came from, and that we all didn't know as much in the past as we do know now.

goodluck!

Rubin

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

thanks guys *sniffle*

your kindness brings a tear to my eye.

what's a good intake to go with then? i have a friend that has an injen, with flowmaster exhaust on his s13. i havent gotten a chance to hear it, much less drive it, so i dont know, but i hear injen is fairly popular. (i dont just wanna go with whats popular though, if there's something better)

Post by **Rockenreno** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Injen and AEM are both popular, its debatable whether either is "better". I've never heard anyone be unsatisfied with either.

Post by **k6kicker** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

faster, nah, better throttle responce, most certainly

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

okay so now i'm leaning towards putting a bit more money into it. you think an aem short ram and either an a'pexi n1 dual or an hks would help? i can get the aem short ram for $150, and it looks like the exhausts run about $600-650. how much does it take to get one of those put on? i dont have access to a lift and there's not a lot of room under a 240 =/

k6kicker - what do you mean by 'better throttle response'? picks up quicker when you step on it?

Post by **Hellion240sx** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

where can you get an aem for 150??? also Rockenreno where did you find the dual n1 for 500??? i want to hear those things ssoooo bad.

anyone know where i can hear these at clip wav. or something???thanks

Post by **GEO** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Hellion240sx wrote:where can you get an aem for 150??? also Rockenreno where did you find the dual n1 for 500??? i want to hear those things ssoooo bad.

anyone know where i can hear these at clip wav. or something???thanks

yo I got mine for $144 and free shipping at http://www.dragracing.com

Post by **SloS13** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

dont waste your money oh I/H/E..save up for turbo. anything else would be...uncivilized

Post by **IvoryJ30t** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

deftdrummer wrote:dun dun dun dun dun rice boy

im gonna go ahead and refrain from this conversation.

Post by **240SX=fun4me!** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

I read up on HKS intakes..... might wanna look it up

thats What I plan on grabbing

Post by **Rockenreno** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Hellion240sx wrote:also Rockenreno where did you find the dual n1 for 500???

http://shop.store.yahoo.com/ph....htmlalso $530 at enjuku, I'm sure you could find it cheaper if you looked harder...

Post by **SloS13** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

why spend $500 on some steel piping when you could have an exhaust done at any muffler shop for less than half that?

Post by **MainEvent212** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

because these have R&D backing, as well as the fact that the muffler shop wont use as high quality steel, letting it rust easier and sound crapp(y)(ier) than the true catback from a company

Post by **D1SR240** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

from what i have read a muffler will only change the sound of you exhaust, if you want power gains your gonna have to get all the piping, so a full cat back system

Post by **Stoked** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Who says a muffler-shop exhuast won't sound good? I got a 2.5" catback exhaust on a Protegé5 I used to have, and it sounded sweet as hell. VERY nice deep, warm fuzzy exhaust note, never raspy. Total cost of $280, including $150 muffler (N1 style, good quality muffler though).

Not a 240sx, but it should still have similar sound qualities.

Post by **D-UNIT** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

^^ ywah I agree. If you can find good quailty stainless pipe = ( no rust ) for cheap and whatever muffler you choose , A muffler shop could probably install it for less than $45.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

D1SR240 wrote:from what i have read a muffler will only change the sound of you exhaust, if you want power gains your gonna have to get all the piping, so a full cat back system

You probly meant a full exaust system. Header, hiflow cat and catback.

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Hellion240sx wrote:where can you get an aem for 150??? also Rockenreno where did you find the dual n1 for 500??? i want to hear those things ssoooo bad.

anyone know where i can hear these at clip wav. or something???thanks

The SoundDomain.com store has AEM short rams for $150. Free shipping, too.

This alternative of just buying a muffler and having a shop put it on with generic piping intrigues me. Where do I go looking for good quality piping though? I've never even seen the bottom of a 240SX, I have no idea what I'm looking for.

Also, could someone tell me what exactly a full exhaust system is? Krazy says it's a header, hi-flow cat, and a catback. Where does it all fit in the exhaust line? Also, what are their jobs?

Still learning. =) Thanks!

Post by **sohc90adel** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

500, 600-700 dollar systems do not give you more HPs than a custom exhaust system. I went to a muffler shop and got me a header (pacesetter) which i have had no problems with. 2.25 piping which will take a really long time to rust a highflow catalytic. a resonator and magnaflow street series muffler for 380 bucks..

cmon people you are telling me a hks, apex1 or whatever is gonna be that much better than what i have? dont spend 500 bucks on a cat back then 100 on high flow cat than 300 on a header that is insane! you only get like 10 horses anyway.. is it worth it? listen like somebody else said if you want your car to go fast get a turbo or nitrous, evrything else does make the car go faster but not as fast as you think. I love the mods that i have done, but if i were to do it again i would have gotten a 55 shot of nitrous then act clutch,then lsd than intake and exhaust. But what do i know. Im just letting you know what i think.

btw...act clutch is sick! chirp in third anyone?

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Here's my only problem with turbo: my engine has 155,000 miles on it.

Post by **spec-v5150** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

sohc90adel wrote:500, 600-700 dollar systems do not give you more HPs than a custom exhaust system. I went to a muffler shop and got me a header (pacesetter) which i have had no problems with. 2.25 piping which will take a really long time to rust a highflow catalytic. a resonator and magnaflow street series muffler for 380 bucks..

cmon people you are telling me a hks, apex1 or whatever is gonna be that much better than what i have? dont spend 500 bucks on a cat back then 100 on high flow cat than 300 on a header that is insane! you only get like 10 horses anyway.. is it worth it? listen like somebody else said if you want your car to go fast get a turbo or nitrous, evrything else does make the car go faster but not as fast as you think. I love the mods that i have done, but if i were to do it again i would have gotten a 55 shot of nitrous then act clutch,then lsd than intake and exhaust. But what do i know. Im just letting you know what i think.

btw...act clutch is sick! chirp in third anyone?

Yeah in my opinion...even the R&D is not worth the money. Ih say an apexi will give me 7hp for 500 bucks and custom will give me 4 or 5 at 100 or so...gee what do I do. We are talking minimal differences here. SO what if you actually do lose 2 or 3hp. Like that is really goign to make you shoot down the 1/4 mile any faster. Piping is piping to me. IF you can get some ghood mandrel bent piping cheap--go for it

Post by **lok** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

I purchased one the N1 "type" mufflers from ebay, due to the fact that my factory muffler basically rusted from the inside out.

Cost only 50 shipped and 80 to have 3 inch mandreal cat back made, and it sounds very deep and nice on the freeway. I plan on trying that megan(sp?) 3in mandrel since it is stainless steel.

Just my two cents on the ebay mufflers.

Post by **Yorb** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 5:37 pm

Well my muffler isn't rusting. =/ I have no excuse, I just want a little sportier sound/feel I guess. And maybe a speed boost, though that may be too much to hope for. ;D

So if I find a local muffler shop that has stainless steel piping (mandrel bent? ¿Qué es?) and will put my muffler on for a good price (by the way what's a good price?), am I good? (With a short ram of course.) Will it be pointless without headers? My friend seems to think the main bottleneck is going to be there (at the head).

So back to the mufflers. I see A'pexis for $180, an HKS for $390, and then these $50 eBay knockoffs. Lok - you had a good experience with one of those? Was it just good as a replacement for your rusted one, or good as a performance part?

I really don't want to pay $200-400 for a muffler if I'm already paying X amount of money for the catback piping and installation, plus $150 for the intake and $250 or so for the headers (if I decide they'd be worth it).

Sorry for questions. =) I'm still waffling on the whole idea.

EDIT: Here's an eBay muffler. Is the tip too fat? Four inches seems like a big *** for an unmodded four-banger. =/

filter + muffler = faster?

filter + muffler = faster?

Re: filter + muffler = faster?

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