Agency Power Exhaust - My Experience
 

Hey guys, I just wanted to share my experience with installing the AP Headerback system on my personal/shop car. I've read the horror story threads and I know there's a bad reputation for them on this forum. My situation was unique so I decided to give my story.

I obtained an Agency Power Cat Back System from a customer for a crack head price because he had 2 exhausts. It was brand new in box and never installed. It was not my first choice for exhaust, but the price was right so I took it off his hands. After I bought it, I then read that long thread about terrible quality, bad customer service, etc. This didn't sit well with me, but I had already spent the money and I didn't want to sell it to a customer if it was going to suck. So I put it on my car. Fitment was a pain, the tips are very hard to get even due to the design of the exhaust. But once I got them even on both sides I was satisfied. I put an extra TBolt clamp on the joint that supposedly failed on the car in the bad thread. I honestly don't think it needed it but just to be safe, I did it anyway. The tone of the exhaust is great in my opinion. It's a little loud, but I don't mind that. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that the tips stuck out past the rear bumper more than other exhausts I had seen.
After 2 weeks of driving around with the exhaust I decided to order the Agency Power Front Pipe/Over Pipe Combo in an attempt to pull the exhaust closer to the bumper. I installed it 2 days ago and it worked! I guess the stock front pipe is longer, causing the cat back to be pushed back. As soon as I put the front pipe and over pipe in, the exhaust fell right into place. The sound obviously got a little louder, but so far it doesn't have that catless raspy sound, it still sounds throaty and deep.
In conclusion, I have put 200 hard miles on this exhaust and it hasn't given me a bit of trouble, it fits well and sounds great. It has a much different sound than most others I've heard, mainly due to the 2 small mufflers vs 1 big muffler design. I would recommend it to others, the only warning being that it is louder than Perrin/Nameless/Borla, and it has a slight in cabin drone. But the performance gains feel noticeable, I haven't dynoed or anything yet, it just feels stronger than before.

I don't work for Agency Power, I don't know anyone who does, I'm not even a direct vendor for them (I get their products through a dealer direct warehouse). I just want others to know that I have had success with it, so don't count it out completely due to the bad reputation.
Catback
http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/...psfccab366.jpg
Front/Over Pipe
http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/...psd33ff2bd.jpg

Videos

Catback Only
http://s1273.beta.photobucket.com/us...55a7e.mp4.html
Headerback
http://s1273.beta.photobucket.com/us...1ae62.mp4.html

Sorry for crappy iphone front facing camera videos.

Thanks for reading, if you're interested in this exhaust I recommend getting the headerback for proper fitment, just PM me!

Aren't you worried about rust from the non-304 Stainless Steel?(I think they use 409?) I guess that'd be my biggest worry. We'll probably find out in the next few months when we can get more long-term feedback from owners.

I have the luxury of garaging the car and not daily driving it, so if that is a problem, it probably won't effect mine. However, from a consumer standpoint, only time will tell. I've owned a lot of Hondas over the years with a lot of crappily made exhausts and even those take years to cause an issue.

I would love to see a dino with the over pipe and front pipe. my girl has had hers for a few months now through the winter and no rust so far. but we do stick it in the garage every night.
How much would you say the tips got pulled in after the over piping and front pipe? To tell the truth we both like it sticking out.

I think they do use 304.

Make sure the hangers are 304. That's where I saw the most rust on my last exhaust, even though it was 304 piping the hangers were something else and rusted.

I think it is almost an inch further in, its very drastic. Before it was sticking out quite a bit, as you know. Now its similar to how the Perrin/Greddy tips are, if you put a straight edge across the opening of the tip it nearly touches the bumper now.

If I recall correctly, at some point in one of their mega threads it was uncovered it was 409.

Thx for letting me know. I origonaly intended to buy the whole system including headers but I needed the money to fix my clutch on my Celica.

Do you think you may get a chance to dyno it at some point?

Accelerated Performance uses a 409 muffler and hangars.

Agency Power uses slip fit joints that fail, but I'm pretty sure they are 304. Someone just needs to slap a magnet on it. If it sticks its 409, if it very slightly sticks it's 304.

You are probably right it was not Agency Power but Accelerated Performance.

nope it no stick. I could not reach the hangers.

You wrote a review after only 200 miles?


http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...z/facepalm.gif

I'm glad someone posted this...
It seems to me ONE guy had a failure and wasn't taken care of so he went to the forums to vent, which is fine.

However this sheep mentality many have here (because for many, it's a first car, or first car to mod - so they don't know any better and just listen to the mob) seems to have caused issues with what might be an otherwise decent product.

AP has made stuff for the E46 M3 crowd for years, to say the people who drive those cars are "a bit more discerning" would be the understatement of the year (I know, I owned an E46 M3, and being originally a Japanese car guy, and then Corvette guy... I don't exactly fit in there) - I couldn't imagine the AP issue that was so highly publicized being anything other than an isolated issue with a less than positive outcome.

I bought an AP down pipe and doubt I'll have issues with it. As far as the 304 thing goes. I don't keep stuff long enough for that to be an issue, and if you don't live in the salt belt, it's a non-issue also as that is what mainly wears away lesser stainless steel.

*edit* looks like its 304 anyway.

Thanks to the OP for posting a review.


*Edit* See what I mean about M3 owners? :lol: Just kidding ;)

Um, no not really ONE guy.. try a bit more...

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...ighlight=vivid

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=930971

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13011

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12553

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12181

More than enough I'd say.....

OBVIOUSLY not 100% of their products will be bad. But the amount of bad vs. the good scares a LOT of people from getting their stuff. And its not only about being good or bad products, its also about blatant lies.

Fair enough, however when I brought up a test pipe and other brought other stuff up... I kept seeing the SAME ONE THREAD.

I figure for the $360 I spent for my test pipe I don't mind tac-welding the slip joint (if it even needs it, doubt it will). Closest you can come to an over-pipe and front pipe combo in price is FA20Club and thats $450+shipping so realistically about $480. $120 is way more than a tac weld at any shop. So the over/front pipe combo is worth it to me.

The exhaust, well I haven't bothered to look much because, as others said, it's a little loud. However a tac weld would fix the issue. If the exhaust is cheap enough to be worth it? I dunno. J2 and ISIS are pretty cheap exhuasts and IIRC the ISIS exhaust made one of the most hp in the DSPORT shoot-out.


*edit*

WTF all those threads are about WHP claims and who Vivid is vs Agency power... Admittedly I skimmed thru but none of those threads were in regards to build quality or FAILURES - which is what my post was about and what you highlighted - Some of those threads are about STIs not BRZ/FRS. I wouldn't call that backing up your point. If you'd like to post links to individual posts showing failures I'd be all ears tho. Help me understand here sir

Hey man, it is your money and you spend it however you want. I have no problem with that and respect it. And you actually make good points. I still wouldn't touch it with a 20 foot pole.

The NASIOC thread is not about numbers, its about build quality and orders gone bad. Lastly, if you read again my post read the bolded part. THAT is what the threads here are about, blatant lies.

You bolded failures, and then brought up lies. Hence my confusion.
I'll definitely post my exhaust my review... the setup is Borla UEL, AP over/front pipe, and a Q300 cbe

Corrected that for you :) I brought both (first thread is about failures and orders gone bad).

This is what I was referring to and what I was explaining...

http://i.imgur.com/dKRtJ.jpg

That should clear it up.

Nevermind...

Its funny you mention that because AP has a bad rep among E9X M3 owners as well as they sell their exhaust as their own and it is actually fabricated by the same people who make the megan one. The Megan costs around 600 bucks and they are way north of 1000k for the same system.

Read post number #11 a reputable vendor confirms this as well as many other posts in the thread. Of course there will always be idiots like the one in post #86.
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=455961


So many problems man, check out my link above about the E9X M3 exhaust as well, same thing as the Megan but costs more than twice.

Always had a good rep among E46 guys...

Maybe they got lucky on that one... or perhaps they've bought megan stuff an re-badged it since.
I don't work for em or endorse them, just saying it seemed to me like a lot more to do about nothing. I can admit I was wrong.
I'll still review the AP front pipe then too

BTW you should be fine with an over pipe as there is nothing that can go wrong with it. The problem comes from the slip joint the AP catback uses in both the y pipe connection and the right canister.

Thats the thread I saw (and what I was referring to as "the one thread") - Ironically I said the exact same thing about the over pipe "what could fail" - http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25962 in that thread.

Everyone told me they're crap and it'll fail anyway. Even tho basically it can't fail unless the flanges are bad lol. Hopefully they aren't haha.

I think the problem is, a lot of people are not really thinking about can it fail or not (including me). A lot of people are just fed up with the way AP runs their business and jump the gun instantly to say how bad they have been/are.

To give you an example, I wouldn't touch the AP overpipe (even though you are absolutely right, nothing can go wrong its just a pipe) just because I won't give money to a company that runs their business the way they do given that there are numerous other amazing options (albeit more expensive).

Again, no knock on you. I respect your choices and opinions.

I figure I'm giving Jeremy at FT86 Speed factory my business really. Yes AP makes some money but like we all agree, it can't really fail it's just a pipe, and for the price I can't get close to it (FA20CLUBs stuff would be 470-485 shipped for me). I paid much less. So if I was gonna buy it anyway, at least its from a vendor who might be more likely to help. If they can't or won't so be it... I'll get it welded.

I have NEVER had a bad experience with FT86SpeedFactory. The majority of parts on my car, minus the LED stuff, comes from them.

Their exhausts for what they charge your better off getting another one from a more reputable vendor. But since you got it at a steal then it dont matter.

FOr anyone else thinking about getting one your better off getting a Megan IMO. than spending that much more for one that is similar to theirs.

Didn't see that Megan had stuff out yet? Maybe I missed it.

I'll say I paid a little more for my Borla header from them (FT-86 speedfactory) but I know they're getting the earliest shipment so it's worth the extra couple bucks to me.
Also I know they have great service so if the header, AP pipe, or my cat-back has issues, I'll be in good hands.
I try and deal with companies I know and have had good luck with, hence why the suspension was from RCE and Strano, Tires from Tire Rack, Brake stuff from Rev Works, and the exhaust from FT86 speedfactory. Eventually the turbo kit and tuning will be from Drift Office. I have talked to these companies and either dealt with them in the past with good experience or they have a great rep and were helpful to me.

Just wanted to share this:

Agency Power = Garbage: http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...24409A387C.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...F57A70A7F9.jpg



And here is my new invidia setup that i had to buy since my AP took a dump, look at the fittings they are flanges which are much better since they will never pop off. The AP's slip joint acts as a connecting pipe and that is the main problem with it. Having owned both the AP and Invidia i would recommend the invidia hands down, the sound is throatier and more refined plus its a tad quieter and does not drone like the AP did also fit & finish is much better. Ill be posting a vid comparing both exhaust but imo the invidia is a much better choice.

Pics of the invidia:

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...S/DSC_0420.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...S/DSC_0421.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...S/DSC_0423.jpg