Exhaust Narrowed Down, Need Personal Reviews
 

Hello all,

I'm hoping I can get some advice on a purchase I'm considering.

I can finally afford an exhaust upgrade, and after some browsing through the exhaust sticky and some Googling, I think I've narrowed my choice down to the HKS Hi Power Spec L or the Nameless Performance Axleback and High Flow Cat Package.

I love the look and the sound of the HKS, and the HP gain is acceptable (though not a big factor in my decision). I'm just not sure I can hear the exhaust note in its entirety through my laptop speakers. It sounds like it's got a very deep tone through low RPM.

I like the look of the Nameless and the dyno is pretty impressive -- as is the price. It seems like you're getting a lot for your dollar, but I can't be sure.

Can anyone share any experience on this? Or have any suggestions for other exhausts? Ideally I would go with the Powerhouse Amuse R1000... uhnnn... but, ballin' on a budget.

Very much appreciated.

Realistically there is negligible power gain installing a cat back or axle back.

It is all about the sound. That is unless you are widening the diameter for a future FI install.

Just sayin', since it appears you believe this is a significant power enhancement.

I had the HKS Spec-L and it was a great piece, good sound and super light weight.

However, if you plan on upgrading the header, it will sound like dogshit. There is a reason it's no longer on my car (specifically around 1:06)
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HWPxwkExps"]Nameless FR-S header, HKS mufflers - YouTube[/ame]

I am also interested in this since the Spec L seems to have fallen out of favor. We have a local guy with a full nameless system and it is VERY loud. I liked the spec L until i heard Decay's video with the header, it seemed tame and light. I am looking at spec L vs perrin right now but not in a rush until i get the header and front pipe done.

Let me just say, the HKS as a standalone piece without other exhaust mods, sounds great. However, if you plan on upgrading other stuff the best choice for daily livability is a resonated Perrin. It seems to sound best with a fairly large variety of aftermarket headers.

Oh, no, I'm not too concerned about power with the exhaust. It just looked like more than I expected from the dyno. I'm in it for the sound. ;)

Completely agree with Decay. I had the spec L also, without headers it was quiet and sounded beautiful on WOT. But once installed headers it sounded like crap. The exhaust was too light and since the flow from the headers has increased, it rattled like tin cans :bonk:

you say 'finally afford' so i assume your on a low budget. if sound is all you want a muffler delete and removing the header cat will you cost you next to nothing and save you money for worthwhile mods like an map flash

I love the quality and look of HKS stuff and it's no doubt they're a working legend in the tuner scene not only in hokkaido but internationally, but man I can't get over their and other japanese exhaust designers' sonic approach with these small displacement performance engines..

It should also be mentioned that the HKS unit is a full cat-back, while the Nameless unit is an axel-back. Not sure if that matters at all to you, but it should be noted.

Like mentioned before, there is no cat-back that will give you a power gain of anything over negligible. Doubly so for an axel-back. It really comes down to sound and looks, however there are two other factors that are often not considered and sometimes should be.

The canister style of the HKS unit will be much lighter than the center-mounted muffler style of nameless unit. Unfortunately, the canister style also produces more drag on the car because you have that gaping hole where the stock center-mount used to be that can trap airflow. I am honestly not sure which one of these is going to be more beneficial between these two units, and I am sure it depends on your use of the car.

If you add a diffuser that completely covers the hole in the rear, then that removes the second variable and the canister style becomes the obvious choice when concerned with performance.

i dont know about you but my Perrin is a catback (and i dont think they ever had axlebacks only for our cars)

Oops. Meant to say Nameless, not Perrin. Fixed, thanks.

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I personally like the HKS more. Both design and sound i preferred it more as I have heard both. The big con to HKS is that a lot of systems have been found to rust or crack. Not sure if they ever fixed that issue as that is why I did not buy it in the end.

I have the HKS SpecL Titanium on my car and not only is it beautiful, it sounds amazing as well!