Exaust

[twentyfive]

Hey Guys iam new to the forums just bought a 2002 LX and i love it.

My question is i would like to put an exaust on my car in the next few weeks/months. i want the best sound/least torque lost for my buck and was wondering what you all recommend brand wise and also structural wise (Full system, cat-back, or just muffler). Please remeber that iam on a tight budget and am looking to really spend only $200-300 but i am open to a little more if you guys really think its worth the upgrade (will just take me a little longer ).
Iam located in Calgary,Alberta so any of you guys in the area willing to part out your decent condition systems iam also interested in that.

Anyways thanks in advance for your replies its a pleasure to be apart of these forums

-Nik

 

[02pro-es]

racing beat

 

[twentyfive]

Thanks for the quick reply man any idea the approx price and where to buy from? Pref. canadian location?

 

[02pro-es]

http://www.racingbeat.com/http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/www.racingbeat.com

 

[sam1]

i gutted my cat and straight piped it from the axle-back. cost all of $25. no gain/loss on the butt dyno, but it sounds great, nice low tone

 

[DiS]

full replacement exhaust will definetly be better of course but some people like yourself are on a tight budget. Although, most of the cat-back exhausts that are avaliable for our cars, are over 400-500 bucks. Good quality/good sounding exhaust will cost you a pretty penny unless you get lucky and find someone who parts their car out and get their aftermarket exhaust.

Best sounding catback exhaust in my opinion is JiC cat-back. (I have it, plus the custom straight-through B-pipe....2nd CAT eliminated). JiC exhaust sounds like music. Very deep throaty tone. Here's a thread with the video clip of my exhaust http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123641181&highlight=exhaust

Other than that, you can always just get an axle-back exhaust like racing beat. There are actually 2 versions of it that come on Mazdaspeed Protege and Protege MP3. I had the axle-back from Mp3 before this full exhaust and it was ok. Not loud not quiet and at the same time looked good.

Megan Racing also produces the exhausts for the Proteges along with few more companies out there.

 

[twentyfive]

Wow thanks for the replies guys.

Sam1 when you say you gutted it did you just replace with a delete pipe or actually remove insides of it. Is it easy to do?

I found a decent deal on a catback in my area problem is it is designed for a P5. i saw somewhere that when someone installed a p5 catback on a pro the system came up short by a few inches. can this be modified to fit or is it completely different bends.

Thanks again for your replies much apreciated.

BTW DiS i love the sound of your exaust!

 

[kute]

either racing beat or magnaflow exhaust. I found the magnaflow for $318 shipped, that's what I'm currently saving up for.

 

[twentyfive]

I heard that the racing beat isnt much of a difference to the stock muffler. Is that a load of BS or close to the truth. I want something thats a real difference but not ricey maybe this is the exaust for me?

 

[kute]

well all the exhausts out there are 2.25. If you want to start noticing some gains, get a header or midpipe. But even those together won't yield high hp gains.

oh, when I put in a 2.5 system in my protege 5 (magnaflow catback for the msp), the loss of torque wasn't bad at all and it helped out the car a lot in higher rpms. Some say 2.5 isn't useful unless turbod, but I didn't care much for torque loss.

 

[DiS]

well all the exhausts out there are 2.25. If you want to start noticing some gains, get a header or midpipe. But even those together won't yield high hp gains.

oh, when I put in a 2.5 system in my protege 5 (magnaflow catback for the msp), the loss of torque wasn't bad at all and it helped out the car a lot in higher rpms. Some say 2.5 isn't useful unless turbod, but I didn't care much for torque loss.

all the exhausts? Please don't mislead the new guy. I think you meant to say THERE ARE exhausts of various sizes.....and I know that my stock exhaust was NOT 2.25'' but 1.75''
You can find any kind of exhaust out there...and if you can't you can always custom make it.
My JiC cat-back is 2.5'' diameter and custom B-pipe is 2.75'' diameter.

I heard that the racing beat isnt much of a difference to the stock muffler. Is that a load of BS or close to the truth. I want something thats a real difference but not ricey maybe this is the exaust for me?

well Exhausts on msp and MP3 proteges are made by racing beat. Although you can always get an aftermarket racing beat exhaust.

i saw somewhere that when someone installed a p5 catback on a pro the system came up short by a few inches. can this be modified to fit or is it completely different bends.

yes you heard correctly hehe. The reason why exhaust system on p5 is shorter than the rest of the Protege sedans, is because P5 is actually a little bit shorter in length than others. Exhaust difference is 5 inches. So yea, if you are going to get an exhaust for your sedan, which was meant for the p5, you will be short 5 inches. Always can modify it and weld extra piece of pipe at the end of the tip (extending the tip) but thats just too much hassle in my opinion

 

[D-rock240]

Racing Beat axleback from a MP3/MSP if you can find one used here. I'm happy with mine.

 

[sam1]

Wow thanks for the replies guys.

Sam1 when you say you gutted it did you just replace with a delete pipe or actually remove insides of it. Is it easy to do?

I found a decent deal on a catback in my area problem is it is designed for a P5. i saw somewhere that when someone installed a p5 catback on a pro the system came up short by a few inches. can this be modified to fit or is it completely different bends.

Thanks again for your replies much apreciated.

BTW DiS i love the sound of your exaust!

i just ripped the insides out with a 36" screwdriver and put it back on, took about 1.5 hrs to get it completely cleaned out. i was told that it would make the exhaust note "tinny" and whatnot, but it did not affect the sound what-so-ever. it did smooth out my idle quite a bit, tho. it was VERY nasty inside.

 

[sam1]

all the exhausts? Please don't mislead the new guy. I think you meant to say THERE ARE exhausts of various sizes.....and I know that my stock exhaust was NOT 2.25'' but 1.75''

my stock exhaust is 2.25" OD and about 2" ID and it does narrow in some of the corners.

 

[DiS]

my stock exhaust is 2.25" OD and about 2" ID and it does narrow in some of the corners.

you might be right, i might be wrong. Ill check tomorrow....you're probably right.

 

[twentyfive]

was thinking about going to my local muffler shop and getting them to run reg 2.5" piping from the cat-back then welding on a performance exaust muffler. would this give me as decent if not as good deep tone as if i bought a full stainless steel kit?

also what size piping is best for my ride. i only plan on doing small mods to the engine such as a cold air.

thanks guys

 

[sam1]

i think 2.5 is just about perfect for an N/A application. i think if you could get a custom mandarel bent (do not get crush bent) exhaust from your local muffler shop for cheaper than a production cat-back system, i would go that route. the reason i did my straight pipe is 1) i was bored and needed something to keep me out of trouble =) and 2) it was super cheap and i dont want to updrade anything until i do my turbo project, just to have to re-upgrade.

 

[sam1]

you might be right, i might be wrong. Ill check tomorrow....you're probably right.

well mine narrows pretty significantly at the spot going over the rear crossmember, probably to the point where it is only 1.75 ID or maybe even smaller.

 

[NoVa 2.0]

This is the exhaust i have on my ride, and i love it. Its a bit out of the price range u mentioned, but worth the extra hundred bucks.

CorkSport 'Power Series' Exhaust System

Fits 99+
The 'Power Series' Exhaust System is constructed of 61mm (2.4") mandrel bent T304 polished stainless steel. This is more than a cat-back system, due to the cat location it is longer than most systems (3 pieces). It does eliminate the second cat on the 2001- cars, and eliminates both cats on the Mazdaspeed versions. The Power Series system also weighs 20lbs less than the stock system. The 4" tip looks aggressive, yet not over the top. Removing OEM catalysts is not legal and thus this system is sold for race use. Built in resonator creating a quality, not buzzy sound.

Price: $419.00 *

(nana)

 

[ezekiel]

Wow thanks for the replies guys.

Sam1 when you say you gutted it did you just replace with a delete pipe or actually remove insides of it. Is it easy to do?

I found a decent deal on a catback in my area problem is it is designed for a P5. i saw somewhere that when someone installed a p5 catback on a pro the system came up short by a few inches. can this be modified to fit or is it completely different bends.

Thanks again for your replies much apreciated.

BTW DiS i love the sound of your exaust!

7 Inches to be exact i have a 02 protege lx and am looking at the megan racing catback ($369) which is for the P5 a mazda tech said all i'd have to do is add a pipe to make up the difference. I believe you can get the pipe at autozone or something like that for a couple bux.