Catback Exhaust
The stock catback system, or anything rewards of the mid pipe is actually not a bad system. It flows fairly well and doesn't sound that bad. We had previously installed a good Cold Air Intake as well as a Bassani X-pipe. Since the front end is breathing well, the mid pipe is getting a few more HP, we wanted to make the car sound better and get even more performance out the car. A good deal on some Borla Catback fell into our laps and the time has come to give her a new sound.
We begin with a look at the stock exhaust so that you can see the difference upon completion.
Start the installation off by jacking the rear of the car as high as possible with the rear wheels removed. I had a funny notion that I would be able to get the stock exhaust out without cutting but this just isn't possible. Take our advice, it is not possible and if you did succeed, you spent too much time doing it.
I also disconnected all the shock linkage so that I could drop the differential as far as possible. With out the car on a lift you need as much room to maneuver the pipes around to get into position. The Borla system has the riser over the differential as part of the muffler section while competitor brands sometimes make this part of the tail pipes.
Our subject car was purchased in Canada and had the car completely undercoated to help stave off any salt problems. This created a little bit of a cussing match during the installation because the rubber support grommets got coated during the procedure. There was a battle between the grommet and a screwdriver and the screwdriver won.
There are 2 hangers per side. I removed the lower grommet only then moved up to the stock muffler connection to the Bassani Xpipe. I removed the bolts from the flanges but left the pipes resting in place. I then worked at getting the upper grommet loose. I also decided to complete one side at a time, if you do it this way you won't have to support the stock H-pipe or after market X-pipe.
My initial idea of removal came to a quick end, but it worked out for the better. With the stock exhaust now free from the rubber supports, it was fairly easy to cut with a hacksaw. There is a segment between the support rods just aft of the muffler. This will allow someone to weld it back together without much problem. There is always someone looking for a Catback system to install on their V6 power Stangs.
With the stock exhaust off and sitting side by side with the Borla, you can see the difference in size and pipe works inside. The stock pipes ways approximately twice the Borla works. Borla's design is a straight through path for the spent gases to pass.
The passenger's side seems tighter than the driver's side so I improvised to make sure that the pipe had ample clearance from all surfaces that might produce a nasty clunk when you don't want to hear any. Take your time before tightening everything up to make sure you have clearance everywhere.
Now back to the X-Pipe joint. Take your time to align the bolt where they will be protected from rocks. This take but a second but will make removing the pipes again much easier.
With a duplicate procedure for the driver's side, which now only took 1/4 of the time, the complete system is much more compact than stock. The new mufflers fit up nice and tight and look like they should have been there long ago.
Finally I leave you with a pic of the new exhaust tip profile. The new tips are rotated so that the angle matches the profile of the bumper. They look really good and the sound these pipes produce is incredible.
