I got my Stage IV done a few weeks ago with Imagine and got my Fabspeed Loud installed last night. What a great combo, the car rips and the sound a WOT is addictive. It pulls and holds 1.2 bar all the way up to redline. Thanks to Stephen @ Imagine, Joe @ Fabspeed, and Ryan for the convincing me to do it part.

 

Tony - I heard you had the Upsolute before the level 4 GIAC...Did you have K24s running with the Upsolute as well??
How is the difference between the two programs?? I currently have the Upsolute but am unhappy and am switching to GIAC level 4 and wanted some input from someone whos been in the same situation...
thanx,

 

msindi, I had the Upsolute on a completely stock TT w/K-16's. For the money the Upsolute isn't a bad deal, however the Stage IV and the K-24's is night and day. The programming that Stephen has is great and the car really comes alive, it pulls 1.2 bar all the way up and holds it!!!!

 

Finally, someone who has the fabspeed loud! How bad is the interior resonance. Do you feel that there is more power down low and mid-range or are there losses?

-Lou

 

Lou, I drove the car for two weeks on a StageIV on a stock exhaust before I finally went w/Fabspeed. The car was fast on the stock exhaust but felt a little sluggish on the lower RPM's. Now with the Fabspeed you definately feel the difference, you honestly feel a stronger pull from 2000 to 6700 rpm's. Resonance is felt from 2000 to 3500 rpm's but once you hit the 3600 mark the sound is addictive. I find myself accelerating harder just to get the exotic sound it produces. People definately look twice to see what's coming and I believe it makes the quiet TT come alive and makes more exciting to drive. I don't know the noise tolerance for everyone but I think you can deal with the resonance considering the exotic sound at WOT. If it wasn't for the rev limiter the car feels as if it just wants to keep going from how much better it's breathing.

 

Thanks for insight. Couple additional questions. I live in Chicago, do a ton of city driving, now I know this is subjective but, am I going to pull all my hair out with the interior sound. Will I be able to hold a conversation if I am doing city driving which is usually between the 2000-3500 rpm range?

-Lou

 

It's all pretty subjective... But, I have some of the same concerns that you have. I currently have the loud version and have had difficulty dealing with it at times. When you are at WOT, it sounds absolutely heavenly. I have never heard a better sound at WOT. But, at 2500-3500 it can be a bit nerve wracking - to me at least . Others probably like it just fine. (Strangely, at 3K even, it is extremely quiet...)

I am going to try the quiet version (aka "Sport") tomorrow. I'll be dyno testing the car with the loud version and quiet version. Then driving both to see which I like better from an interior resonance perspective. If the quiet version is truly quieter, and the HP loss is minimal (as it was in Stephen's exhaust test), then I'll switch to the quiet.

 

Lou, racer63 probably explained it the best. It seems like the Loud version is definately not for you. I also live 5 minutes from NYC and have to deal with stop and go traffic but for me it's too soon to know if I am gonna hate it. There is definately resonance but its very different from a hot rod type of resonance (not as annoying). I think the perfect exhaust for you is the Quiet Version which I heard sounds great at WOT. I got a phone call yesterday from one of my friends in town and asked what the hell had I done to my car!! He said I passed him on the highway and that the car sounded nuts. I guess the sound being produced outside is really nice.

 

RACER 36....I will be very interested to hear what the differences are between the loud & quiet system's. As I have posted elsewhere I had a Cargraphic system on a previous Porker & this got very tiresome in the mid-range, it also sounded rather rough outside whilst you were on part throttle. TonyNJ I was like you initially as the exhaust sounded fantastic at WOT, you may change your mind after a few months or when you get someone else to drive past on part & midrange throttle.
Racer 36, please post your findings...Cheers chaps.

 

can you guys/stephen explain to me how you can run 1.2 bar without damaging your engine's longevity?

 

Tony,

I have never really considered the quiet version as it barely sounds louder than stock. The thing is, I want a loud exhaust and like how they sound outside, my only concern is resonance inside. I love the europipe stage 2 loud. It is loud outside but, produces little if any resonance. My only problem is the huge price tag for the europipe.

-Lou

 

Lou, with the Fabspeed Loud you will definately hear resonance but the sound at WOT compensates (at least for me) the resonance. I can't tell you that I won't get tired of it but for now I am liking it more and more everyday.

 

Thanks for info, you have been very helpful. I think I will go with the fabspeed loud and see how that goes.

-Lou

 

Lou - Stephen is now a Fabspeed dealer so give him a shot first since he put so much time, money and effort into preparing the exhaust test....

 

Lou/Grant -

We installed the quiet version today and found pretty minimal power loss compared to the loud version. Peak HP was down about 7 and peak torque around 11 - pretty consistent with Stephen's results. That said, the HP and torque curves were slightly fatter with the quiet system. So, the area under the curve (and performance) should be very similar.

Sound levels are definitely reduced. There is still some resonance in the 2000-2800 range. But, above 2800 there is no resonance at all. The car still sounds exotic in the higher RPMs, but the sound level is much, much quieter. For me I think this will prove to be the right compromise. Although, if at some point I get my hands on a used Ruf system, I may give it a run on the dyno and on the street (figuring that Stephen's results might have been anomalous). But, I can't see paying 6K for an experiment.