Question on Exhaust

[mortzzen]

Picked up a Megan Racing NA type catback exhaust Honda 98-02 Accord V6 4.5" tips with removable double-layer silencers, 2.5" piping.5 pieces, connection with the catalytic converter will narrow to 2.25".
When buying the Header what measurements in piping should I look for is it 2.5" piping? and 2.25" if I decide to put on a high flow cat??

Which header should I go with Megan Racing,OBX, or DC sports? Ceramic coated or stainless steel? Thanks

 

[SSMNVCG3]

The headers are all going to do the same thing so it doesn't really matter. SS looks nice for about a week then it turns a nasty brown color so that's something to think about but the dc are also known for cracking but easily repairable(also the most expensive header) I personal am running the dc header now and its by far the best one I've had. I've also used the obx and k2 header which are basically the same. The downside to the cheaper headers is they tend to sit lower and scrape more. I destroyed the flexpipe on both sets. On the dc it hugs the oil pan and I've never hit it since installing. So Its a matter of how low you are and if you need smog legal parts.

Also the brown color can be removed from the ss but will need to be redone periodically. Another option you could do on the ss is to paint the header with high heat paint. I did that on one set and it looked much better. I used a flat silver so it looked like it had been ceramic coated.

 

[RedRyder]

Some people have been okay with ceramic, personally I'd go with SS.

My Comptech headers didn't turn brown, the steel just blued a little.

 

[mortzzen]

Found a video on youtube that kinda sums it up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDwahD0Fk4w

If I go with the DC ceramic header,then the highflow cat will have to be 2.25" along with the header (confused here) correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[SSMNVCG3]

Some people have been okay with ceramic, personally I'd go with SS.

My Comptech headers didn't turn brown, the steel just blued a little.

I think that may have something to do with the quality of the steel..most of the cheap ss headers I've seen have all turned brown. But all the higher end ones have just blued. And comptech would definitely be in the higher quality category unlike obx,k2 ect.

 

[sonni_kuba]

Picked up a Megan Racing NA type catback exhaust Honda 98-02 Accord V6 4.5" tips with removable double-layer silencers, 2.5" piping.5 pieces, connection with the catalytic converter will narrow to 2.25".
When buying the Header what measurements in piping should I look for is it 2.5" piping? and 2.25" if I decide to put on a high flow cat??

Which header should I go with Megan Racing,OBX, or DC sports? Ceramic coated or stainless steel? Thanks

From what I've seen, the collector pipe diameter for aftermarket headers varies between 2" and 2.5." Since you've bought a 2.5" exhaust, I would look for a pair of headers with a 2.5" collector.

The stock catalytic converter inlet and outlet is 2". High flow catalytic converters range in inlet/outlet diameters from 2" to 4." Ideally (I'm biased since that will be my setup), you would run headers with a 2.5" collector pipe to 2.5" inlet/outlet high flow cat to your 2.5" exhaust; so that there is no bottleneck.

That being said, on our cars the difference between 2.50" and 2.25" is not going to be very noticeable. Either way, don't worry too much about matching up 2.25" to 2.50", any muffler shop has 2.50" to 2.25" adapters.

 

[mortzzen]

Any universal high flow cat will fit as long as it's the diameter I'm looking for correct? Thanks for the replies!

 

[SykVSyx]

Any universal high flow cat will fit as long as it's the diameter I'm looking for correct? Thanks for the replies!

You can either get one that needs to be welded on, or bolts on.

The diameter won't matter if you get one that is welded on, because an exhaust shop would have an adaptor that would work.

 

[sonni_kuba]

You can either get one that needs to be welded on, or bolts on.

The diameter won't matter if you get one that is welded on, because an exhaust shop would have an adaptor that would work.

Exactly ... Just a couple more things you should watch out for.

1) Try to get one with a port for a midbody 02 sensor, otherwise, one will have to be made for you, no 02 sensor, and you're asking for check engine lights (#18 in diagram below)

2) Shouldn't be wider than 5 1/8", otherwise you're gonna have to do some cutting of the heat shield and other components (#7 in diagram below)

 

[RedRyder]

My Magnaflow cat came with two o2 ports, but I plugged the middle one and used the one at the back since that's how the OEM was set up.