Theredcortina
Club Guest
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2010
- Messages
- 7
- Points
- 0
I would like to share my personal experience. I have an 83' E30 325 Auto (M20) and when I first got the car, it was quite pleasurable to drive. Despite using an automatic transmission, the car had a good load of torque and power. However it came with one or two holes in the exhaust system.I decided to once and for all get the problem sorted by changing the exhaust system. I retained the manifold and the final box (since they are in very decent condition). I went to JFA Sunway and they installed stainless steel pipes and changed the centre box. I did ask if the specs are okay for my car and they said "no problem".Once I started driving again, I noticed sudden loss of power. The car felt like it was struggling. I even had to switch the air-cond off to go up a slope with passengers on board! I spoke to my mechanic, he said the centre box is the problem. I then went to another exhaust specialist and he straight away said the centre box is not right. It wasn't giving enough back pressure apparently. Plus he also showed me that JFA used large-diameter pipes which made my exhaust lose even more pressure. I have changed the centre box to a good one (still not original, as it was difficult to find a new one) and performance is slightly better. Plus I have yet to change the pipes to the correct diameter. Hopefully once I get that done, the car will get back its original performance.The work by JFA cost me 1.4k (which basically went down the drain). The new box is 500 and the new pipes will cost me about 800. The moral of the story is: Don't mess around with the exhaust and use original parts! If can't find, make sure check properly first.I learned the harder way 
