Header, Intake, & Exhaust - D16Y7 Exhaust conversion

I have read the FAQs and I just need a few things clarified as well as some opinion on what parts to buy.

I have a '97 Canadian EX sedan so I have a D16Y7. there are 245000 KM on it, I bought it used when it had 210,000KM. Overall I like it but it has developed a terrible rattle which I have figured is in the resonator. The cat back system was replaced by the previous owner but the manifold/cat and down pipe are still stock and it is showing via plenty of rust.

I have decided to replace the whole system when I get the money and in order to let the engine breath better I would like to switch it over to a D16Y8 exhaust system. Ideally I would like 2.5" piping all the way through.

If someone here has done this swap and could share how the experience was I would appreciate it greatly.


Header and Downpipe:

As far as this goes, I like the Megan racing one, it is a 4-2-1 which I want as well as 2 different placement points for the O2 sensor. It is also relatively cheap and yet people often claim a well designed piece of hardware. My questions are

1. Everywhere says teh Megan header and downpipe has a 2.5" diameter, I would like this verified?

2. Any positive or negative experiences with this item?

3. Alternatives?


Catalytic Converter:

So after the downpipe I bolt on the cat. I will most likely buy a Magnaflow high flow cat so as to make as little back pressure possible.

4. Alternatives?

5. Will this bolt right up or will I need to to make an extension from the downpipe so its not right under the engine?

6. Which one is the right one, their website (magnaflow) is a bit vauge.

O2 Sensors:

Ok now the part that has me most confused. The first OS sensor should not be a problem to mount as I can just unsure the plug in either teh header or downpipe and install it. However the second O2 sensor must be placed behind the cat and with teh stock wire it will not reach. I read in the FAQ about a wire extender and have yet to find one, however I did find a Bosch sensor with what looked like a much longer wire.

7. What would be better? an extender or the new Bosch part. If extender can someone please provide a link?

8 Any other solutions that work? (and keep in mind, I have to stay emissions friendly because Ontario is dumb)


Cat-back Exhaust:

Now the part with the most choices. There are a ton of systems and I have come up with a few solutions. I have also read that in doing this conversion you end up some inch short of connecting the pipes.

1. Buy a pre-made system and hope it fits, of not find a way to make it fit.

2. Buy a muffler then go to a shop and have them bend me a pipe from teh cat, weld the muffler on the end and hang it.

Obviously the second one would be guaranteed to fit but how much MORE expensive would it end up being?


OK, sorry for the wall of text I just want to make sure if I do this I do it right as I need my car almost daily and can't afford to have it out of commission for too long.

Any need for clairification will be answered ASAP, and don't ask about a budget I am unsure, I am just looking at prices right now. So if you have 3 parts in mind of different ranges just post all 3 and how much they cost, Thanks.

Header: megan is a great piece, i have one and it works great. most headers though don't go to 2.5", max is prolly about 2, that's what mine is.

Cat: magnaflow is good, if you want it to directly bolt on, go with the direct fit.

Exhaust: go with ws2 or rsr, they're quiet enough to not attract to much attention from the wrong people, plus it doesn't sound ricey. i would go with custom piping, it's actually generally cheaper and you know it will fit well.

o2 sensors: this is definitely the hardest part. if you can find a secondary sensor for an american ex trim (canadian si) you are golden cuz that's exactly what you need. whatever you do DON'T CUT THE WIRES, i did and i shorted out the heater circuit, which i can't seem to fix. stay with OEM stuff if you can.

Header: megan is a great piece, i have one and it works great. most headers though don't go to 2.5", max is prolly about 2, that's what mine is.

Cat: magnaflow is good, if you want it to directly bolt on, go with the direct fit.

Exhaust: go with ws2 or rsr, they're quiet enough to not attract to much attention from the wrong people, plus it doesn't sound ricey. i would go with custom piping, it's actually generally cheaper and you know it will fit well.

go with exactly what he said, except i'd get the full catback and not custom piping. full catback has rust-resistant coating and a nice resonator, and is less hassle and only about $100 more expensive.

on the megan header, just make sure you torque the midway flange's bolts down nice and tight like they should be. Then drive some, let it cool down, and retorque them. Check them once a day for the next 2-3 days to make sure they stay snug. After that you're good to go. Also, you might put some copper RTV sealant on the midway gasket to extend its life.
I didn't torque my bolts good enough and they came loose eventually and I spent a long time fighting with it trying to keep a new gasket from blowing.

true i forgot about the rust resistant pipes.

also just to be safe, put the copper RTV sealant on every pipe connection except for the head to the header. i did an i haven't had a single leak

true i forgot about the rust resistant pipes.

also just to be safe, put the copper RTV sealant on every pipe connection except for the head to the header. i did an i haven't had a single leak
yea the stuff works great. i was blowing my midway gasket like 4 times, and then the last time i replaced it i put on the copper RTV... hasn't blown since.

oh, and, for a 2 piece header like the Megan one, follow the instructions below exactly and the installation will be much much easier and hassle free. I found these methods to work good:
1. Unplug the O2 sensor on the exhaust manifold from its wire harness (you must slide the harness off its bracket, then unplug it)
2. Remove the 2 bolts holding the bottom of the manifold to the exhaust piping.
3. Remove the bolts on the brackets that reinforce the exhaust manifold.
4. Remove the 9 bolts at the head
5. remove the exhaust manifold by lowering it underneath the car, not lifting it out of the engine bay. (this allows you to not have to take apart the two pieces of the stock manifold)
6. Take an open-end wrench and now remove the O2 sensor from the old manifold. Use a big adjustable wrench for better results and ease of removal. Set it aside. (the reason you are doing this so late in the procedure is so that you can use an open end wrench and have more leverage.)
7. Take your new header, and bolt the middle portion together. Make sure the flanges are clean first. Don't forget to use the gasket, and coat the gasket with copper RTV sealant for better durability/seal. Torque the bolts down (torque specs are in the header install DIY in the DIY section).
8. Install the O2 sensor onto the new header.
9. Now install the header by putting it underneath the car and lifting it up to its position. Bolt it all in. You may need to bend the stock brackets out of the way, as they will no longer be utilized. Bolt the header to the head first, then to the catalytic converter (since you'll be doing the EX exhaust swap and will have a cat directly after the entire header). You may want to use locktite on the nuts on the midway flange and the 9 bolts at the head.
10. Clean off the header with degreaser before starting the engine. If you don't do this, your nice shiny header will tarnish, like mine did, and you will regret not doing this last step as it will look like ish.
11. Take it for a quick little spin.
12. Let the engine cool down, then retorque the midway flange bolts and the bolts holding the header to the head.
13. To be safe, check those bolts you retorqued, once a day for like 3-4 days. You don't want them coming loose, you'll be dealing with a mess of trouble with blowing gaskets.

There's a huge difference between aluminized steel pipes and all-stainless-steel (300-series) that a good cat-back (like Magnaflow) is made of. This especially important if you drive on roads that were salted during the Winter.

Thanks for the advice so far guys. I have even more questions now so bear with me.

Cat Back-System

Resonator

Do I need one? I see them mentioned a lot on the boards here but what do they do to a car's sound exactly? I don't want to have a fart cannon car (I loath those people); I don't even want it to be very bass-y. Would a resonator help or hurt me in this quest?


Rest of the system

It seems that either way I go, custom or premade, both have their advantages.

I read somewhere and have heard you can get that anti rust coating put on a pipe you get custom made, is this true?
Could I not just get the custom pipe made from stainless steel?


I keep reading on Store websites that if you have a DX/LX you need an extra length of pipe to fit the aftermarket systems. Dose this only apply if you have the stock D16Y7 exhaust and therefore I can just ignore it because I am converting?

Or is this in reference to the placement of the engine? [I don't think it would be this one as the coupe and sedan have the same wheelbase]


And finally for my muffler. Since most performance mufflers work the same it mostly comes down to style and choice. I personally like the look of dual tip and am inclined to buy the one linked below from Megan racing. Dose anyone know what this sounds like or have other suggestions . Keep in mind my criteria.
1. Not farty or really bass-y
2. dual tip
3. at least 2" inlet

This is of course if I go with custom and don't get a premade.

muffler
http://www.meganracing.com/products/product_detail.asp?prodid=65&catid=45


Again thanks for all the help.

Cat Back-System
Resonator
Do I need one? I see them mentioned a lot on the boards here but what do they do to a car's sound exactly? I don't want to have a fart cannon car (I loath those people); I don't even want it to be very bass-y. Would a resonator help or hurt me in this quest?
They help with reducing raspiness. They improve exhaust tone, and muffle it a little.


Rest of the system
It seems that either way I go, custom or premade, both have their advantages.
I read somewhere and have heard you can get that anti rust coating put on a pipe you get custom made, is this true?
Could I not just get the custom pipe made from stainless steel?

Not sure.
In my experiences, stainless steel still rusts even though it's not supposed to.


I keep reading on Store websites that if you have a DX/LX you need an extra length of pipe to fit the aftermarket systems. Dose this only apply if you have the stock D16Y7 exhaust and therefore I can just ignore it because I am converting?
Or is this in reference to the placement of the engine? (I don't think it would be this one as the coupe and sedan have the same wheelbase)

Yea, ignore that information.
The reason for that is because on the DX/LX stock full exhaust, the cat is part of the exhaust manifold. Since you'll be replacing it all, just remember that you'll need a header, an EX fitment cat, and an EX fitment exhaust (also same as any 92-95 exhaust. If you have a coupe/sedan, you want to make sure it's for coupe/sedan. Hatchback is different.)


And finally for my muffler. Since most performance mufflers work the same it mostly comes down to style and choice. I personally like the look of dual tip and am inclined to buy the one linked below from Megan racing. Dose anyone know what this sounds like or have other suggestions . Keep in mind my criteria.
1. Not farty or really bass-y
2. dual tip
3. at least 2" inlet

This is of course if I go with custom and don't get a premade.

muffler
http://www.meganracing.com/products/product_detail.asp?prodid=65&catid=45

Truthfully, I hate the sound of megan racing exhausts. Any coffee can shaped muffler will most likely sound like crap (raspy, too loud). If you want to hear a clip of how bad megan exhausts sound, look on youtube.
Dual exhausts is a bit overdoing it IMO.

For non-raspy performance exhaust, look into GReddy SP2, Apex-i WS2, and RS*R Exmag. They sound way better and aren't raspy.

www.passwordjdm.com sells extentension wires

extention wires

Heres what you need:

- Megan header for and 96-00 EX
- Cat from 96-00 EX
- Either a 96-00 EX sedan cat-back exhaust or custom piping either 2.25 or 2.5 w/ a Magnaflow resonator and muffler (there's more options, but Magnaflow is cheap and sounds good)
- Password JDM o2 extension: http://passwordjdm.com/PasswordJDM-O2-Sensor-Extension-Kit-P1767C0.aspx

It will line up perfect, you won't have to splice any wires, you'll stay emissions safe, and it will sound good.

Thanks for all the help guys. The O2 sensor problem was really the only issue I had and now that that has been fixed I just need to decide on a cat back then horde enough money to do it.

Again thanks, I have asked on a few other forums and usually it was a case of "Do an engine swap" or "just get headers and run a straight pipe"

I'll try and post pics and/or video when I get around to this project.


*UPDATE*

So after Discussing with some friends and such it is down to either a Megan or an RS*R EX-Mag cat back.

Megan
I like the sound of the Megan better in the higher RPMs, but its idle sound and that ugly 4" tip can are not so nice. But its cheap and that's a real good selling point.

RS*R Ex-Mag
This exhaust is nice and subtle and not overly loud at idle however when you stomp on it it opens up. However this part is more expensive. Also, every web page with an RS&R EX-Mag has it list for 96-00 EX coupe only. Now I know the 4dr and 2dr have the same size body so I take it this will fit my 4dr and they just have some odd wording in there. if this can be cleared up that would be great.

haha those are two very different prices. Megan will be good, and i think Forty04 used the Megan Drift Spec for both N/A and boosted, which leaves your options open for the future. The Ex-Mag is truly one of the best sounding catbacks i have ever heard. If you have the money GET IT. You won't be disappointed, and also:

http://www.meganracing.com/products/product_page.asp?catid=90

they sell the same cat-back for 96-00 2 and 4 door. I think it should fit, probably just worded weird like you said.

Well my exhaust had a rattle there for a while. Turns out it was where the downpipe attacked to the cat-back. Well I can say that the rattle is gone, as they flange broke and the pipes are separated.

here are two videos of what my car sound like right now

Normal shifting (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZyKXXDWRfY)
power shifting (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcuBwCdcFo0)

And since I have to get an emission test done I have only afew options.

Option 1) Replace downpipe. I need to acquire and replace exhaust pipe A in the picture below. This can TECHNICALLY be the cheapest. But if I run into problems, I may end up spending a lot more.


http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a11/darktiran/exhaust.png



Option 2) Convert to d16y8 style exhaust now, and hope I don't get any CELs


Option 3) since number 2 and potentially number 1 can run problems and cost upwards of 1000, I buy my neighbors Nissan Atima he is selling for 1k, park civic at a buddies and turn it into a project car.



Advice? opinions? all welcome.

mmm, if you're really worried about it, chop off the flanges and have the header and catback welded together. Yeah, its kinda permanent, but are you really swapping exhaust/headers everyday?

have you tried taking it to an exhaust shop? similar thing happen to me a while back and they just welded in a flex pipe into the down pipe and charged me $90

have you tried taking it to an exhaust shop? similar thing happen to me a while back and they just welded in a flex pipe into the down pipe and charged me $90



+1 for flexpipe