[Z06] X pipe alone worth it?
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 83
Likes: 0
X pipe alone worth it?
i was originally gonna buy LT and a catless X pipe for my car but the $ just isn't gonna be there this year since i need new tires all the way around, would it even be worth it to get a catless X pipe and have the car tuned for it and the vararam intake?
Pro
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 625
Likes: 0
From: Anaheim Hills CA
No. Most LT header sets come with the xpipe as well anyway. But either way, an xpipe alone won't give you much performance gains. You can see some decent gains with just a tune, but since you will need to retune it once you get the headers anyway, you might be better off to just wait for that too since tunes can cost up to $500ish
Racer
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 404
Likes: 0
No. Most LT header sets come with the xpipe as well anyway. But either way, an xpipe alone won't give you much performance gains. You can see some decent gains with just a tune, but since you will need to retune it once you get the headers anyway, you might be better off to just wait for that too since tunes can cost up to $500ish
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 6,366
Likes: 249
From: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
I also agree that you should just wait until you can afford the headers. LG street headers go on sale occasionally and they include the x-pipe. The quality is excellent and the gains with the whole system are real. You will need to have your car tuned once they are installed, so you should plan for that, too. As far as going catless is concerned, I don't know what your reason is for doing that, but the negatives outweigh the advantage. With high flow cats like you get with LG's, the hp loss is minimal, maybe 2-3 hp. Without the cats, the exhaust odor can be quite objectionable to most people. The LG streets include both cats and the eliminator pipe should you decide to try out both options for yourself.
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 83
Likes: 0
I also agree that you should just wait until you can afford the headers. LG street headers go on sale occasionally and they include the x-pipe. The quality is excellent and the gains with the whole system are real. You will need to have your car tuned once they are installed, so you should plan for that, too. As far as going catless is concerned, I don't know what your reason is for doing that, but the negatives outweigh the advantage. With high flow cats like you get with LG's, the hp loss is minimal, maybe 2-3 hp. Without the cats, the exhaust odor can be quite objectionable to most people. The LG streets include both cats and the eliminator pipe should you decide to try out both options for yourself.
high flow cats are expensive, the smell doesn't bother me cause i'm never behind the car, just driving it, i've spent the last 5 years driving catless cars (on the race track of couse
) i'm not sure i'll ever be ready to dump $1g into headers for this car, mabye i'll just buy a short shifter or somethin
Racer
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 410
Likes: 0
From: Topeka KS
I think it's BS to spend over $1K on exhaust too so I went the budget route. I found some used FLP LT's on the auction site for about $250 plus cat delete pipes for another $50 leading into my ARK X pipe that cost around $150 if I remember correctly (bought it to get rid of the exhaust "jingle". All I need to do now is get a muffler shop to fab up about 12" of pipe on each side to connect everything together. I'll be at around $600 max once I'm done.
As for going catless and having the "negatives outweigh the positives"...that's not right if you're in a state that doesn't check emissions. I agree that the power loss is minimal with high-flow cats but it's still a power loss and it's still heavier (marginally) than a catless system combined with a higher cost. As long as the exhaust isn't dumped the slight odor doesn't bother me at all. I guess all the cars from the muscle car era just stink horribly right?...not exactly.
As for going catless and having the "negatives outweigh the positives"...that's not right if you're in a state that doesn't check emissions. I agree that the power loss is minimal with high-flow cats but it's still a power loss and it's still heavier (marginally) than a catless system combined with a higher cost. As long as the exhaust isn't dumped the slight odor doesn't bother me at all. I guess all the cars from the muscle car era just stink horribly right?...not exactly.
Last edited by civlant; Jan 4, 2009 at 12:42 PM.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 2,087
Likes: 4
From: granville mass
As far as going catless is concerned, I don't know what your reason is for doing that, but the negatives outweigh the advantage. With high flow cats like you get with LG's, the hp loss is minimal, maybe 2-3 hp. Without the cats, the exhaust odor can be quite objectionable to most people. The LG streets include both cats and the eliminator pipe should you decide to try out both options for yourself.
No one is going to convince me that they can feel 2-3 hp, or an extra 6-7 pounds on their cars. And, I can sure smell a catless car when I'm behind it.
Smell is one thing, but with all the "green" think/talk, why would anyone not running a track only car not put cats on?
It just doesn't add up for me.........
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 6,366
Likes: 249
From: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
I wonder about going catless too.
No one is going to convince me that they can feel 2-3 hp, or an extra 6-7 pounds on their cars. And, I can sure smell a catless car when I'm behind it.
Smell is one thing, but with all the "green" think/talk, why would anyone not running a track only car not put cats on?
It just doesn't add up for me.........
No one is going to convince me that they can feel 2-3 hp, or an extra 6-7 pounds on their cars. And, I can sure smell a catless car when I'm behind it.
Smell is one thing, but with all the "green" think/talk, why would anyone not running a track only car not put cats on?
It just doesn't add up for me.........
Racer
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 348
Likes: 0
From: Mooresville NC
You can shop around for both headers and X-pipe separately. I got almost new TPIS headers for $400 and found a Corsa X-pipe on Ebay for $177. A local muffler shop put the X-pipe on for $60. I've noticed the HP gain immediately and will get more gain once I get it tuned. The X-pipe quieted down the load rumble to a nice purr and almost eliminated the burble when decelerating. Keep looking around and you find some deals out there. I'd probably leave the cats on. The muffler shop I took mine to would not remove them anyway due to air emission rules in our state.
Racer
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 410
Likes: 0
From: Topeka KS
