Hey guys and gals. This is my first post so be gentle. I've visited the site since I first purchased my G back in September of '07. I really want to do a couple of additional mods to the car.

Mods so far:

Stillen Intake
12" Eclipse Sub
Hacked stereo to be able to watch TV from iPod while in motion
Goodyear Eagle F1's
Tinted Windows

The car is an '07 G35 Journey with the premium wheels automatic transmission. I would really like to drop the car a little but not get too aggressive with it. I would also like to get a more aggressive exhaust tone out of the car without any highway drone. I want it to sound better than stock while standing still, sound mean as hell when I punch it, and be fairly quiet while on the highway cruising at 75MPH.

Z1 Motorsports is only about 50 miles away and Forged Performance is only about 20 miles away, so I've got a couple of reputable shops close to me. I spoke to one of the guys at Z1 about the Eibach Pro Kit, and he told me it would cause the car to "porpoise" (whatever that means) and that I would hate it, but I see quite a few of you have that setup. He recommended Tein and/or something else.

As for the exhaust, I don't think I can pony up the money for the Stillen cat back system, but I can get the Magnaflow system installed for $750 by Magic Muffler in Norcross, GA. They also told me they could do a custom Magnaflow job with bigger pipes and an X-pipe (once again ignorant to that term) for about $550. Does the Magnaflow sound good? Is the Stillen worth the premium price? Would just cutting off the factory mufflers and putting a couple of Magnaflows or another brand on there get me what I'm looking for?

I'm located in Alpharetta, GA, so if any of you have any shops you recommend I would love to hear it. And... before you veterans of the board tell me that "search" is my friend, I have done a lot of searching, so now I'm asking for your opinions in this thread.

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

-Jason

 

If you're not looking for performance and just sound I would just get the Tanabe Exhaust, sounds good when you punch it but very mild when you don't.

 

Forged Performance is a really good tuner so I'd recommend you do your work with them.
Sharif and Ryan are both very helpful there.

For exhaust, catbacks tend to be significantly loader than stock so I'd say go for the Tanabe like Clement said, otherwise the Magnaflow mufflers would also be decent. But neither of these will give you any performance gains, although you wouldn't really notice any gains from a catback anyways.

For suspension, you could go for the Impul springs for a really mild drop, but they're expensive. The Eibachs are good but they drop the car well over an inch. Not too aggressive but not too mild either, plus they're not too expensive.

Good luck

 

Thanks for the suggestions. Please keep 'em coming. I've put exhaust mods on just about every car/truck I've ever had and have never really been able to feel much of a difference in performance. The only one I ever felt it with was a 2001 F-150 SuperCrew 5.4L, but in one weekend I put a Gibson cat-back system, an Airaid intake, and SuperChip on it so I'm sure the combination of the three curve ***** I threw at it were the reason I could really "feel" a difference. I'm sure the SuperChip was the monster HP gain in that combo.

I searched Tanabe's site and it only showed two dealers in Georgia, one of them being Nopi. Nopi didn't list any Tanabe mufflers on their site. Any suggestions of where to pick up the Tanabe's?

I really don't know much about Forged Performance other than another G driver I met told me they do good work, but I used to live just a few miles from Z1 and have seen some AWESOME work that they do. Any reason why to choose Forged over Z1 Motorsports? Z1 does seem a little pricey on their work in that they are the experts and estimated 4 hours of shop time to do the springs whereas Forged estimated 2.5 hours.

Any other suggestions on springs, exhausts, or other mods would be greatly welcomed.

Edited to add: I also need brakes soon. Should I just get the factory rotors turned and buy some aftermarket pads, or should I get new performance rotors and pads? This is a car I definitely plan on keeping for at least 2 more years. I've got my eye on a Benz C63AMG, but not going to have funds for the upgrade for another 2 years or so.

 

Okay, well for the tanabe's you can either contact andy at HPautoworks or Rick at riverside, I know they both have them and can ship them to you. I think Rick might still have some at groupbuy price.

As for brakes I think you can get the BBK that comes with the sports package for around 1500 for all 4 corners but remember you're gonna need new wheels if you want them to fit.

All I can say is any 1 mod you're not gonna feel a real difference, I have HFC Tanabe's and Intakes and if i drive a stock car back to back with mine i can feel a difference.

 

The BBK would be useless for you unless you track your car or you want it just for looks.
You can find rotors and pads on websites such as stillen.com
They won't make too much of a difference though, since the stock brakes are already quite good.

I really don't know anything about Z1 so I can't comment on whether they're good or not but everytime I've heard anything about Forged it's been nothing but good things.
The estimated shop time has nothing to do with their quality, as a matter of fact I'd say it shows that Forged are better at getting things done in a timely manner, if anything.
Changing the springs really shouldn't take much longer than an hour or two anyways.

 

Since it's an '07, clear bra may be too late as far as paint chips go, but an inexpensive great safety mod would be daytime running lights (e.g. using existing fog lights).

 

I have the stillen cat back with absolutely no complaints but I can't say for sure that its worth the money. I was in the same position, and wanted something that was louder when I got on it but mild all around especially on the highway so I opted for the stillen. The combination of the exhaust and intake made a difference in performance and like I said i'm happy with the looks and sound all around. The stillen pipes are extremely well built, perfect fits, maintain the factory dampeners.

As far as the drop, I dont really know what those guys at the shop were trying to talk you into but as personal preference I went with the Eibachs because I wanted the car to really stand off against the stock g's. The handling is excellent with the eibach kit and I would suggest getting the rear camber kit as well because it makes the alignment much easier for the rear. The eibachs are also cheap. If you arent interested in how much the eibachs drop the car, the impuls are a great option for a more mild look but you will pay a much higher price for the springs (exchange rates).

One more idea since you said you are interested in mods that wont break the bank, consider getting a grounding kit from Black Betty. The wires are well built and easy to install. The grounding kit will help out with the onboard electronics, throttle response, and gear shifts. Let us know what you decide to do next.

 

Guys thanks for all of the input and advice. I worked with Ryan at Forged Performance today (thank you for your patience Ryan). I ordered the Eibach Pro Kit springs and the Stillen Cat-Back Exhaust from him. Hopefully it will be in soon. I'll be sure to take pics of the before and after and post them.

 

congrats on the mods, it'll look and sounds awesome!