Hi all!
Just recently got myself into a 2007 G35x sedan. I was noticing symptoms of an exhaust leak, and upon a closer inspection, I found my drivers side cat was the culprit.
I'm looking to replace both cats with either HFCs or test pipes, but looking for some input.
Im looking to keep cost down as much as possible and that is the reason I'm mainly looking at test pipes. My question is, with a completely stock sedan exhaust would a resonated test pipe be too raspy? I'm aware of the test pipe smell and don't believe it would bother me as I'm not in gridlock traffic and theres no emmission tests where I'm located. My other budget friendly option would be a pair of ebay HFCs, maybe thats a better way to go? Any input including videos would help. I've watched just about every video on YT of sedans with test pipes but its hard to tell.
Thanks!

 

Short answer is PROBABLY, if it's just straight pipe test pipes then yes, resonated ones aren't quite as bad. HFC or test pipes won't matter, the biggest issue has to do with higher potential airflow across an uneven surface creates the unwanted higher frequency noise on a less restrictive system, manufacturers use a sound tuning process by matching resonators in key parts of the system so it sounds nice when it comes out the other end.

Mismatching various manufacturer test pipes or hfc with different cat back systems can create the same problem. Typically it's best to use pieces from the same manufacturer to ensure the best sounding results, in the case of the G other folks have mismatched just about every combination of exhaust equipment imaginable so you can google search to get OPINION on how it sounds.

Where is the leak? Is it cracked on the housing or just leaking from a flange? You might try a muffler shop first because if it's just a damaged housing it might be repairable.