Wow Great comments everybody now I'm certain to buy the 3.5" monster as soon as my new guages come in and are installed.

 

i'm in vegas.

like everyone else said, it's rather large but the quality is awesome. it is loud w/o the silencer but a good loud.

my only gripe is that the o2 bung is very close to the tranny so a mechanical fix, which i prefer, is a tight fit. also you're gonna have to file down the wastegate separator to fit the stock turbo.

other things to remember is that this tbe has little or no backpressure so watch your boost. plus at full throttle your injectors will prolly max out so might want to get an upgraded fp for safety. a reflash will hopefully fix any issue. my 2 cents.

v

 

I want to reiterate the comment that the 3.5" exhaust is serious overkill for a street vehicle; I wouldn't put it on anything that wasn't being trailered to the track. A local tuning shop here in town that only uses APS products won't install the 3.5" on anything that isn't pushing 400whp (that's 500+ at the crank), and never on the stock turbo in any situation. With the stock turbo boost creep is a very real danger, even with wastegate and mechanical fixes in addtion to ECU tuning.

As for the noise issue, with many exhausts but especially with the straight-through designs such as the APS, adding a high-flow catalytic converter greatly reduces the noise. I've got a friend with the APS 3" twin-tip and he left in the up-pipe cat and added the APS midpipe cat, and it is as quiet off-throttle as a Borla Hush catback; it only roars when you put your foot down, and the sound is comparable in volume to Mustang Cobra level (factory exhaust). With the TBE and tuning he's got a totally stock-looking, stealth WRX that has no trouble cranking out 300 flywheel horsepower on 91 octane. The APS high-flow cat isn't considered a restriction until you are well over 400 crank horsepower (check the APS site) and also helps prevent backfires and fireballs, two things that will get the police on your butt faster than anything else; you might as well be firing a rifle out the window!

 

So far...it's pretty loud, but nice...reflashed the ECU with Cobb AP...no CEL's, no boost creep (have never experienced boost creep in Hawaii), fitment was excellent, challenging install due to the pain in the butt intercooler...and the oversized cast iron elbow piece that connects to the turbo...

The car runs very nicely and the turbo spools up quickly...when you get on this thing, it roars...like it would scare the crud out of the poor raspy Honda next to you...between hearing the turbo spool up, the chuffing of the blow off valve, and the roar of this exhaust...I think the poor guy will forget to shift! Heh heh...

 

I respect this tuner's decision to apply this exhaust for any car over 400whp, but it sounds to me like he is trying to hype up the product a little too much.

In comparison to another car my tuner had finished a few weeks earlier, another 05 STi, my car made boost and power 200-300 RPM soon in every category. It just made boost and held it damn well for the vf-39.

The exhaust is no different that your catless HKS or APS 3" besides the fact that it is a little less restricitive, looks better (subjective), sounds better (subjective), and has a better design. And besdies being a few more hundred from the bank, you can't find a better exhaust.

The idea that it shouldn't be used on anything more than 400whp sounds more like marketing to "reserve" the exhaust for those with more serious power. But, as we all know, just because you are pushing 400whp doesn't mean you are going to be faster than me with my stock turbo in certain areas of performance.

Boost creep is a simple fix btw, I think this one is hyped up as well. If tuning doesn't fix it (which worked for me BTW w/ the 3.5") than a wastegate port will solve the problem.

Good luck.

 

U Pushn At The Wheels?

 

Certainly every tuner has their opinions; his is based on building 550hp STIs (often still with dealer plates on them and less than 100 miles on the odometer) and 400hp WRXs on a weekly basis. That he could make the extra money on the exhaust and chooses not to is interesting, at least to me. He didn't see any benefit installing the 3.5" connected to the stock turbo, and starts recommending the 3.5" when the APS snails (his slang for turbos) begin to get unpacked and installed. He's got an all-Aussie show car (Whiteline suspension, every APS bolt-on ever made) that is an absolute terror, that thing could outrun a Viper or C5 Vette all day long on pump gas. It's his daily driver

In any case, I think you'll agree that the benefits of the bigger exhaust only start to be seen when your foot is flat to the floor, and not all of us drive like that all the time It certainly is nice to have power on demand, and it is an amazing-sounding exhaust.

I'm going to stick with the 3" version of the exhaust because 1) I like the stock look, 2) I'm only going to 300hp and 3) it is worlds quieter and mates up better with my stock turbo. Post a sound clip of yours for us, I'd love to hear it!

 

Yeah Pics and a clip would be nice!

 

on page 1, my car sounds exactly like this...because of the header...not sure how it sounds with the stock manifold...

I can tell you this...I am very happy with the exhaust...

With my AVO Short Ram intake...the exhaust is noticably louder at all RPM's...

When I replaced my stock intake...at lower RPM's it was quieter...gets louder as the RPM's get up there...but not as loud as when I used the intake...

I'm going to run it like this for a bit...

 

Awesome vid clip...thats fkn nuts....+10 on the dougnuts...lol

 

For people interested in this exhaust...

Since being installed, (2 wks) I've thrown two Cel's now...no problem with my Cobb AP...so, my suggestion is..

If you don't have computer mgt...I recommend getting a cel fix...I prefer a mechanical fix but due to the location of the o2 sensor bung on the downpipe, it will have to be modified...

Recommend getting urethane Kartboy hangers...this exhaust is beefy...not necessarily much heavier than any other quality TBE...but like those as well, get the stiffer urethane hangers to keep movement to a minimum...

I would also recommend getting the standard length ones, not the extra long ones...the standard length ones hold everything together nice and tight near the frame...the extra long hangers (I tried them) put the exhaust too far down...possibly allowing the exhaust to scrape...I changed mine back before this happened...

This system does backfire a bit...you know, when you get on it, then let off the throttle quickly...it kind pops and bangs...pretty cool.

This exhaust will also add in a vibration factor...due to the size of the piping, the exhaust tone will cause a vibration at times throughout the car as certain resonance frequencies are hit...again, I don't mind because I like to feel my car...

Just some things I was thinking about...

 

I picked up this exhaust the other day if you guys are interested. It was a price too good to pass up, I called my buddy who really wanted the 3.5" and said please buy it. Well, situation now is that I am out of the whole LOT of money and he cannot afford it or something like that (really no good excuse). I am now at college and this money is needed back into my bank for better uses (he he he he).

Yes, I still have my 3.5" on my car and plan to keep it forevar!

Any questions about the 3.5 APS exhaust, PM me. I have had my own exhaust (purchased used) for about 5000 miles now and I couldn't be happier. It makes driving the beast that much more enjoyable (if thats possible of course ;P)

https://www.i-club.com/forums/used-aftermarket-car-parts-sale-99/aps-3-5-turbo-back-exhaust-norcal-109114/

 

Hey mark email me some pics at roelrodriguez@hotmail.com I might be interested in buying your 3.5" TBE!

 

We have this exhaust on our shop car right now and all I can say is WOW. It's very loud compared to other systems that are out there as you can see by the sound clip. The car was recently dyno'd at 382WHP 17psi on 91oct, elevation 4300 feet. Up in the higher HP numbers you will see the benifits to a 3.5 system compared to a 3". Regardless, execellent build quality, we are very pleased with it.

Nick
RallySport Direct

 

382WHP Stock?