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Exhaust Upgrades

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Exhaust Upgrades

The stock exhaust has a catalytic converter and dual mufflers. The system is stainless steel and 2.25" into the rear muffler, with two 2" pipes out the back. It seems to be a good quality system because I haven't heard of many problems. However, if you're lookin' for a deeper sound or more flow...

 

Exhaust Modifications

  • Here kitty, kitty! -- Some people have, um, well, reduced the restriction of their cat by just hollowing it out, hollowing and putting a straight pipe inside (sleeved), or even just removing it altogether and welding a pipe in it's place. THIS IS ILLEGAL IN THE U.S.!! You have a pretty good chance of getting caught if your car is routinely inspected by the state. If you need a new cat, try Discount Converters Ltd. for some good prices. Note that there are two types for the 20V: one has the O2 sensor mounted in it, and the other doesn't.
  • Center resonator -- Some report having removed the center resonator with little or no change to the exhaust noise. I believe this is mostly a cost-saving measure (buy a pipe instead of a box) but beware that doing this might cause a loss of power. The resonator is designed to damp acoustic resonances in the pipe which otherwise cause back pressure at certain RPMs.

Exhaust Replacement Kits

  • Scorpion makes a cat-back bolt-on kit for the 20V (Pictured at left). TAP sells it for ~$800, but Denon (888-468-0688) or 2Bennett may have it for less. It is a good performance system, but some find the noise level to be too high. Check out the audio clips on TAP's web site.
  • B & B makes a kit called the TriFlow for around the same price. (Tip shown at right) However, it is only guaranteed to fit the sedan.
  • Stebro has a stainless kit that is a little less expensive. It is not as well constructed, and the performance increase is probably a little less than the other two, but the noise level is more civilized. Many have reported fitment problems, especially on later cars with a rear swaybar.
  • Another option is to find a competent shop that could fabricate a custom system. They could probably do it for less money than these big brands. The problem is finding a shop that will mandrel bend the pipes. Without the mandrel bending, a larger exhaust will be no better than stock, and may even be worse!

 

Exhaust Hangars
The three rubber hangars on the rear of the car stretch out with age. If they stretch far enough, the pipe will begin to rub on the rear driveshaft, and eventually spring a leak. One solution is to buy three chain reinforced donuts (P/N 171 253 147 G) from Techtonics Tuning (503-843-2700). That's a VAG P/N, so you might be able to get them at your local dealer. These are also helpful for adjusting exhaust postion on a lowered car, or with aftermarket exhaust replacements.  (Peter Schultz)

Some have reported problems even with the chain reinforced hangars. Another option is to use heavy-duty nylon tie-wraps to brace the rubber donut. Just zip one up around the outside of the donut. The rubber continues to dampen the motion of the exhaust while the tie-wrap supports the weight. (Bob D'Amato/Ian Duff/Paul Royal)