RubyRed15
Ok, so it's blue.
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- #1
I thought it'd be nice to have a consolidated thread for Solo Performance Exhaust. I only have pictures so far, but will add video at a later time. Please add your pics and vids!
I will also add my review here.
My turbo-back installation was a bit problematic but Solo assisted by phone/text/email and helped me get it all resolved. Initial installation was no more or less annoying than any other aftermarket exhaust I've done, meaning it took some fiddling and repeated adjustment to get things right. Upon first drive, I thought it had a nice tone, but something was off, because it was just as loud inside the car with the windows down as with them up, and there were lots of vibrations. The next day, the right tip sagged, so I went in to investigate.
I determined that the root cause of the sag was my fault - I installed the band clamp slightly off-center, reducing clamping force on the upstream pipe. Replacing that clamp corrected the sag ever since.
However, I also determined that the downpipe needed to be centered in the exhaust tunnel, but it couldn't quite get there. The problem here was the way the bracket on the cat interfaces with the "J-brace" on the transmission. The J-brace will trick you into believing that there is a lot of play in three axes, but it really only allows for two (fore-aft and up-down). If you pay attention, you will see that the brace will draw flat when you finger tighten the bolts against the transmission. The first picture below shows the position of the bolt holes with the bracket loose; the second one shows the effect of finger-tightening the J-brace. Note that the inboard hole would barely be visible if I had gotten the same angle for the picture.
This was the source of the vibrations and unnatural cabin noise - high lateral stress caused by pushing the system outboard when tightening up those two bolts. Solo's engineer confirmed that a few whacks with a sledge to move that cat bracket outboard would not damage anything, and this allowed the downpipe to be installed in an un-stressed state, and solved the problem. I didn't take an after picture of the bracket holes after adjusting, but they were centered in the window.
In order to get the tips just perfect, I determined that the hanger rods needed to be unstressed in the rubber hangers. To achieve this, I twisted the rear-most hanger rods. Now everything fits perfectly.
The sound is very good. The volume level is just right, and you get some muted burbling and crackling on falling revs, and occasional nice, loud cracks on full throttle upshifts (the kind that are usually accompanied with flames, but I have no idea if this is actually happening).
I am very pleased with this exhaust system.
I will also add my review here.
My turbo-back installation was a bit problematic but Solo assisted by phone/text/email and helped me get it all resolved. Initial installation was no more or less annoying than any other aftermarket exhaust I've done, meaning it took some fiddling and repeated adjustment to get things right. Upon first drive, I thought it had a nice tone, but something was off, because it was just as loud inside the car with the windows down as with them up, and there were lots of vibrations. The next day, the right tip sagged, so I went in to investigate.
I determined that the root cause of the sag was my fault - I installed the band clamp slightly off-center, reducing clamping force on the upstream pipe. Replacing that clamp corrected the sag ever since.
However, I also determined that the downpipe needed to be centered in the exhaust tunnel, but it couldn't quite get there. The problem here was the way the bracket on the cat interfaces with the "J-brace" on the transmission. The J-brace will trick you into believing that there is a lot of play in three axes, but it really only allows for two (fore-aft and up-down). If you pay attention, you will see that the brace will draw flat when you finger tighten the bolts against the transmission. The first picture below shows the position of the bolt holes with the bracket loose; the second one shows the effect of finger-tightening the J-brace. Note that the inboard hole would barely be visible if I had gotten the same angle for the picture.
This was the source of the vibrations and unnatural cabin noise - high lateral stress caused by pushing the system outboard when tightening up those two bolts. Solo's engineer confirmed that a few whacks with a sledge to move that cat bracket outboard would not damage anything, and this allowed the downpipe to be installed in an un-stressed state, and solved the problem. I didn't take an after picture of the bracket holes after adjusting, but they were centered in the window.
In order to get the tips just perfect, I determined that the hanger rods needed to be unstressed in the rubber hangers. To achieve this, I twisted the rear-most hanger rods. Now everything fits perfectly.
The sound is very good. The volume level is just right, and you get some muted burbling and crackling on falling revs, and occasional nice, loud cracks on full throttle upshifts (the kind that are usually accompanied with flames, but I have no idea if this is actually happening).
I am very pleased with this exhaust system.
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