New HFC's or Resonated Test Pipes - Need Feedback
 

05 5AT G Coupe 27K miles.

N/A mods - UR pulley set, Z-Tube/Popcharger, Crawford V5 plenum, DC headers, Crawford cats, JIC Y-pipe, Fuji exhaust, AAM re-flash, U-Tech tune, Grounding Gear.

Crawford cats may be done after 5 years, two cars and over 50K miles. car tripped PO420 code...cat failure, is running rich on banks 1 & 2. will reset and check if a low voltage problem due to battery going bad or may have to have idle air volume adjusted or ECU re-flash to see if cats are culprit. not sure. don't know this computer stuff to well.

if they are gone, was thinking of replacing with Berk HFC's then a friend suggested test pipes. have read test pipes tend to be raspy or too loud. if I decide to go with test pipes, think resonated would be the way to go from what I have read here. what is needed to keep SES light from coming on...non-foulers? also live in MD and don't want any trouble with emissions.

could anyone provide some insight on experience with resonated test pipes? gains, SES light, emissions issues, how does car feel? can you also recommend any brands?

or, should I avoid the issues and extra HP and go with the Berk HFC's or another brand HFC?

thanks in advance.

wow, no one has these? use to be able to count on this forum for great information.

Fast Intention HFC's seem to be the choice around here. I bought some from a trusted member on here and received the, last week. Went to my local muffler shop to get them installed only to find out that they were worthless. Wish our driver member had actually sent me cats that I could have installed onmhy car and that way have good advise to give you. Test pipes seem to provide you with the smell of gas and not much more h.p. gains. And a louder drone.

I/m getting the Berk HFC's in three weeks from import parts in Texas. The reason u shouldn't get the test pipes is just for the reason of rasp..dont let police hear u coming regardless of state regulations almost every state has noise pollution laws..

^whats made you choose the Berks HFC over the FI HFC???

If I were to go with HFC, I would choose them in this order: Fast Intentions, Berks, Crawfords. All three are great, but the quality on the F.I's are top notch. The Berks in the other hand, are an amazing value and seem to get the job done well. Crawfords have been around for a while and I haven't really heard of any issues with them. A lot of this is based on personal preferences, so you can't go wrong with either of them.

But, of course, I didn't go with HFC. I have not looked back ever since I installed my Fast Intentions resonated test pipes. Half the price, twice the rewards :D

^ hahaha i leaning toward the HFC's cause i need to pass emissions and im pretty sure TP is not gonna pass it and i hear bout the rasp for TP, isnt TP so much more louder then HFC's???

Berk uses the factory tranny mounts and FI does not. Berk and FI both use the same Magnaflow metallic substrate cat...from what I have read. Berk is for sale to members on this site for a lot less than the FI's...check marketplace. you could buy the Berk's and have them installed for the price of the FI's alone.

thanks for the feedback guys, please keep it coming! test pipes sound like another headache...rasp, too loud exhaust, drone, CEL's and emissions issues for little return. think I will be going with the Berk HFC's from Kyle. would get Crawford's again, but they are more expensive.

^so would i see the same gains if i was to use Berks over FI??

pretty sure most metallic HFC's give about the same 6-10 RWHP gains.

like people have said on this site, FI, Berk and Crawford all good choices. for me it comes down to which one of those I can get a deal on. had Crawford for 3+ years and over 50K miles with no issues until now. will give the Berk a run. check the marketplace as one of our vendors has these for a great price right now.

any rasp? is exhaust louder? any drone? throw a CEL? did you have to use non-foulers? sorry for all the questions. need feedback. would love to have these for the added HP and lower cost, but don't want any issues. thanks.

^+1 would it pass emission?

no...

I have test pipes, I don't have rasp or drone, however I do have the gas smell, how do I get rid of the gas smell, would a tune help that...

air freshener.