Best exhaust mod path for a daily driver

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by FR-Slide

Baller on a budget here.

Cars, tattoos, and lifting/food take up a lot of my disposable income, so I'm trying to plan this years mods. I've left the 86 mostly stock, focusing on the aesthetic stuff like interior and cheap exterior stuff so far.

Originally I was just going to get a muffler delete, like a Berk Dual or maybe Nameless, since the price was right and I was mainly after the sound. Power is definitely lacking, but it's a daily first, so that's not the worst thing, and it's not like axlebacks ever give any gains anyway. I was going to pick up an OEM-style lower "diffuser" to complete the rear of the car, but didn't want to exacerbate the parachute effect.

So, I started looking at stuff like Driveway Lab's diffusers, which both looks badass and is functional. But not cheap.

So then I started thinking that I could just leave the axleback alone, and try to get sound out of the front of the exhaust. Was looking at FT86SF catted UEL headers, since I don't really want to get a tune or deal with potential CELs with spacers. But in all their videos, the exhaust sounds almost stock with the header, which kinda goes against the whole reason I started out on the exhaust... The torque gains are great, and I guess I wouldn't mind having the car be quieter, and I do like the UEL rumble, even if it's quiet. But it seems like adding anything downstream of the header gets loud, fast.

So, for about the same cost (~$850) I could either get:
- Catted UEL header
- Muffler delete and diffuser
- Something else (like a FP/OP/catback set up)

Any thoughts on which path? Looking for sound, mpg, aesthetics, performance in that order (I think). Also looking to avoid a tune, for now.

If all you want is sound:
A. Get a catback of your choice. Leaving the cat-forward section stock and just doing the cat-back will give you the best sound with the most options on the exact sound you want.

If you just want performance:
B. Do the cat-forward (everything but the catback) section and leave the cat-back stock. In this case, a budget catless header combined with an over pipe and a catless front pipe.

Just off the top of my head, the cost will be about the same either way. The tricky one is:
C. Doing the entire exhaust (header, over pipe, front pipe, catback) while still sounding "good" (Of course that depends what you consider good sounding).

A gets best sound with the most options on sound quality
B gets the 2nd best performance while still sounding more aggressive than stock, though maybee not the sound quality you want,
C gets the best performance but is the most difficult to do while still sounding good / being daily driver tollerable

[FR-S Matt]

Originally Posted by ???

If it's a daily driver, you definitely don't want a muffler delete with any other mods. Sure, you might gain a hp or 2 and lose some weight in the rear but you upset weight balance and only have one tip which doesn't look so good. The FT86Factory header is great both in performance, quality,etc. you can run a full exhaust with it and not get drone. It all depends on your catback. An invidia n1 will drive you crazy (pun intended) with a full exhaust and a q300 will give you no drone and will only be noticeable when you want it. Do some research. The header is definitely one if the best bang for the buck upgrades on this car. A header alone, chatted or not, will give you sound when you want it, no drone, will get rid of the torque dip, give you more power throughout the whole powerband, etc. I strongly recommend just getting the FT86 chatted if you want power, sound, drivability, no cel, no tq dip, and UEL.


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I don't know where this statement started, but this surely is not true. It takes a tune with the header to get rid of the torque dip, not just the header by itself on a stock tune. A bit more power? Yes. Sound? Yes. Eliminating the torque dip with just a header alone would make this the most sought after header for this platform.

[???]

It depends on the header, he dyno, etc. some dynos have shown no tq dip with just a header and some show a small tq dip with a header. Maybe the hks el is better than the borla el header. I don't know but it definitely helps


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[FR-Slide]

Originally Posted by mad_sb

...
A gets best sound with the most options on sound quality
B gets the 2nd best performance while still sounding more aggressive than stock, though maybee not the sound quality you want,
C gets the best performance but is the most difficult to do while still sounding good / being daily driver tollerable

Thanks for the breakdown. Eventually, I have no doubt I'll start focusing on performance, especially once my warranty is finally done. Probably not FI, but at least full exhaust. For now, my main focus is keeping it mechanically stock(ish) for daily use, and focusing on OEM+ type aesthetics.

So to that end, what I was mostly looking for NOW was an inexpensive way to up the sound level, as well as some better looking tips. Originally I had thought the Berk/Works kit would be good, since it was basically shiny tips and noise, but down the road, it'd likely be too loud (with rest of the exhaust upgraded).

I guess I am worried (as you say) that I could purchase a catback that sounds great with OEM header/FP/OP, but then is godawful when those are replaced...which means I'd have to re-purchase another system. OR I could just live with stock and save up enough to do it all at once, but that's no fun.

[HSayaovong]

Originally Posted by gabeg86

Just a thought and it's a bit above your budget, but you could get the open flash header and tune it with the open flash tablet for both maximum performance and to get rid of the check engine light. Combo package for $1000

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I just bought the OFT and was thinking about the OFH but it's it really that much different from other uel headers? As far as hp gains is concern

[gabeg86]

Originally Posted by HSayaovong

I just bought the OFT and was thinking about the OFH but it's it really that much different from other uel headers? As far as hp gains is concern

No the gains are about the same but the price is what sets them apart unless you get borla with their ugly collectors and warped flanges (unless they have addressed those issues ). The quality seems to be pretty amazing from the reviews it has gotten. So basically it has the quality and performance gains that are similar to headers that cost ~$300-$400 more.

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[SirBrass]

Originally Posted by FR-S Matt

I don't know where this statement started, but this surely is not true. It takes a tune with the header to get rid of the torque dip, not just the header by itself on a stock tune. A bit more power? Yes. Sound? Yes. Eliminating the torque dip with just a header alone would make this the most sought after header for this platform.

I'm wondering if the torque dip can be eliminated by simply deleting the header cat on the stock header and then tuning. Would definitely be a cheaper path for someone who is otherwise satisfied with stock power but wants a refined stock setup and NO torque dip.

Seems it's mainly the first header which is the major contributor to the torque dip (that, and the tune). So, I wonder how much dip would be left if it (header cat) were gone.