Hey folks! I've got some money burning a hole in my pocket and I am wanting to spend it on the car. I have been wanting to do something about the stock cat for quite some time since I already added Invidia Q300. I am currently torn between 70mm versions of the Invidia TP and Berk HFC.

I am trying to find out if anyone has had experience with both of them to tell me what they thought (or if you have one or the other tell me your experiences).

Right now, the car is my DD but it won't be for long. I am HUGE on how the car sounds and currently love the sound of the Q300 with the stock cat and header. Im hoping either won't change it too much.

Last note being I am in SC so no emissions checks!

 

Putting on a test pipe or decatting is always a good performance mod. It will def. make you exhaust sound different though. Gonna get a good bit louder. High flow cats not gonna change it very much, maybe slightly louder. I personally havent had a cat on my car since about 2 weeks after I bought it. Get a testpipe the same diameter as your exhaust and enjoy. High flow cat is a waste of money, IMO.

 

Scott, I have a Berks TP that I'm not using currently if you wanna try it out.

 

I have a berk HFC on the way. It was a couple bucks more than the TP, i hear it flows 93% As well as a tp (i read the stock cat is around 43%), its legal for STR autocross (a pipe isnt), its more eco friendly, its legal (nice to not worry), no cancer smell, supposedly less drone.

 

japhethwar: That's the mentality I'd like to have about it! Thanks for the input. I'm so tempted just to go ahead and order it but wanna take Tphong up on this offer and then we will see.

Toyo: Looking at selling it at all?

Angrywankel:Let me know what you think when you get it on!

 

HFC is not a waste of money.

 

Yay, something I can lend true opinion on! Here are the three setups I will compare for you that I have had in the past few weeks:

Stock intake, stock header, 70mm Invidia test pipe, Q300 dual - I found that this setup had a good amount of rasp both when revving up and while the engine was revving down under load (decelerating in gear). There was a point around 3-4k rpm that was very raspy or tinny, kinda like a civic with a crappy fart can exhaust. I was pretty upset with the sound and changed to the stock cat within a few days and sold the test pipe.

Stock intake, stock header, stock cat, Q300 dual - This is your current setup and as you know it sounds pretty good. I had a bit of drone between 3-4k rpm where the note was louder and resonated in the cabin with the top up. Rasp was eliminated and the note seemed clear through the rpm band. I personally liked this setup a lot. The only bad thing was the slight drone.

K&N FIPK, PLM header, 70mm Berk HFC, Q300 dual - Note that at this point, the intake and header changed as well. Therefore, I can not surmise 100% that the exhaust notes change are purely due to the swapping of the cat. This is my current setup and so far I love it. Best setup of the three I have listed IMO. There is fairly no drone in the lower rpm range (0-5k rpm). The exhaust is actually quieter in the lower rpms than the other setups, and sounds nearly like stock while at cruising speeds. The note gets obviously louder under load at cruising speeds, but not to the point that I would call it drone. 5-6k rpm is much louder and aggressive, and VTEC is beastly. The loudest, throaty and angry exhaust note of all three setups. I love it because it is subtle when you need it to be, and godly when you want it to be. I am extremely happy with this setup and plan to keep it as long as I have the car.

So, the Berk unit is more expensive (~$200 vs ~$100) but I feel it is definately worth it. You retain true emissions legal (though I know it doesn't matter for you SC jerks (jealous). For me it made the exhaust a lot less raspy and improved the note and volume in both low and high rpm.

 

Just grab a T.1.R HFC..

 

CoolGuy094 that is exactly the kind of review I was looking for! I have pretty much eliminated the thought of a test pipe and now am researching both the T1R and Berk. Since TPhong has a Berk Im going to try and out. (hopefully he wants to sell it!)

 

^Note that tphong offered you a Berk test pipe, not a high flow cat. Berk makes both.