Alright, what everyone has been waiting for. Apexi WS.. the real story.
I bought my Apexi WS from a groupbuycenter.com buy for $375 shipped. That was the main reason I bought it over a Thermal R&D catback, along with its promised look and sound.
Just some basic information about the exhaust: The piping is 2.25" diameter compared to 1.75" stock. The tip on the end is 4inches in diameter, but really doesn't look it at all. "Apexi" is etched into both sides of the tip. The kit comes in 3 pieces as opposed to the stock 2 piece exhaust. The muffler and tip are the only pieces of the exhaust are stainless, the rest is heat treated with an excellent coating of something. But it's not gonna rust, I can tell.
Install was about as straightforward as you're gonna get. Unbolt and rebolt. The rubber hangers can be a pain at times, but once you get them off the stock exhaust (hangers will probably be rusted), putting them back on is a snap. A weird thing during install: the exhaust gives 2 hangers right after the catalytic converter while the car only supplies 1 mount. That really beats me. To get around that, we just tied the other hanger to the subframe with some heavy wire. Rigged it? nah.
Ok.. time for the fun part. Actually driving the car w/ it. Upon starting it up, don't be alarmed of the massive amount of white smoke pouring out of the tailpipe, its just the interior of the exhaust burning itself out. The sound at idle is awesome; deep, yet quiet. It gives a hint that it means business, but doesnt scream it like an N1 persay. Pulling out of the driveway with windows down and a temperature of about 35 degrees, it sounds sweet from take off up until about 4500-5000rpm. At that point, it tapers away and lets the intake have its turn to make some music. If you want an exhaust that's gonna turn heads when driving through town at low rpms (2500-3500), this is what you want. Power gain? oh yeah. The car feels like its been loosened up so much more now. The engine just keeps revving faster with every new mod and this one kept the trend going. I'm confident with i/h/e that i can run extremely low 15's or better, the car just feels that good.
Overall, hell of a part to buy. Cheap, sleeper looks, awesome sound. 9 out of 10.
[IMG]http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0NQAZG2ASIQGI0l9fva1Muehr4*wWiG*kl7V5rx5deZtQvpcah od8tQ9cs0cO2p7P0fORY*AjqYZa52haxEgjJg/exhaust_rear.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0NAD7BQMSde2I0l9fva1Muaj*hhIXM0nK0ts67BtX9dGZdwq9W lNPWJ1WNZfh5tYskfiCvF7FCZFBxovLhgtlJQ/exhaust_tip.jpg[/IMG]
(yes my car is filthy)