UNLEASHED!! This is what these cats do to the Pontiac G8. The exhaust note becomes “RAW” with a huge burble on decal. The best part is that there is still not even a hint of drone with any of our exhaust kits. The drivability is dramatically increased, as the car just keeps on pulling and pulling. These deliver raw performance as well as raw sound! We were surprised to see that Pontiac had decreased the internal size of their cats to 1 ¾” on the inlet side. We suspect that they did this for sound control. Our cats are a full 2 ½” all the way through. We use a heave duty flex pipe and laser cut stainless steel flanges along with our stainless steel pipes.

Thanks so much to NightWing, Zepcom, and JEC G8GT for the use of their cars during our initial test and design phase. Nightwing had to constantly give up his car during 3 different test manufacturers and multiple O2 bung placements. All of the initial testing is complete. We are very happy and proud to say that there is over 500 miles on each vehicle and no engine light has come on.

Gm’s OBDII design is very tricky and we are committed to some further testing before we can say that we have the engine light problem solved for sure. We would like to have up to 15 “Beta” test vehicles to further test these cats. If 15 more cars have the converters put on with no CEL (check engine light) issues we will be confidant in telling potential customers that they won’t have any trouble.

We have our manufacturer making a special run of these “200 cell” stainless steel wound cats for us. We have these cats far overrated for this car and this additional “spray” (the catalyst rare metals) is what helps to keep the engine light off. We also have to use an oxygen sensor extender in the two rear O2 ports. The extender is a Solo designed product and is the final puzzle piece to keep the engine light off.

Much testing was done to ensure that we were able to combat the engine light problem. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this phase. We know that many may not like the idea that only 15 will be released for further testing. This is being done to allow us the opportunity to “fix” any issues that may come up once they are on more peoples vehicles. We thank you in advance for your understanding.

Note: Works perfectly with most aftermarket tunes (VMS, Livernois, etc.) to date. The only tune that has had a few isolated issues is the Superchips/Cortex (same thing). A tune is NOT required to run these cats.

Price: $698 shipped (per pair)

To order, please call Steve at:
Steve Mariano
516-655-9002
(7 Days a Week, up until 12 midnight EST)

Mach Shorty with HF Cats
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Mach Shorty with HF Cats II
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Mach Shorty with HF Cats- Drive By
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Mach with HF Cats- In Cabin- NO DRONE
82-zGdMxRaQ

Mach with Cats- Undercar View
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Mach with HF Cats- Rev and Take-Off- In Cabin
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Mach with HF Cats- Start-Up and Take-Off- In Cabin
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Pictures:
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20AXLE%20BACK%20%20AND%20G8%20CATS/G8catsandaxlebackfullkit006.jpg

http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20AXLE%20BACK%20%20AND%20G8%20CATS/G8catsandaxlebackfullkit016.jpg

http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20AXLE%20BACK%20%20AND%20G8%20CATS/G8catsandaxlebackfullkit017.jpg

http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20AXLE%20BACK%20%20AND%20G8%20CATS/G8catsandaxlebackfullkit018.jpg

http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/g8finalversionjpipeandcatpics021STE.jpg

http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/g8finalversionjpipeandcatpics031STE.jpg

OEM Inside Diameter is Very Narrow
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/001STEVE.jpg

OEM Substrate- Notice how TINY the areas of flow are
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/004STEVE.jpg

Solo Performance 200 Cell Substrate
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/006STEVE.jpg

Inside Diameter Comparison
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/g8finalversionjpipeandcatpics029STE.jpg

Group Buy List:



1. jmh325- PAID
2. Virus- PAID
3. Morris- PAID
4. Nick M.- PAID
5. mi04se1- PAID
6. PaycheckG8- PAID
7. Ang- PAID
8. JackswhiteGXP- PAID
9. tchr49- PAID
10. Lazarus Man- PAID
11. Anonymous- PAID
12. wolfcountry- PAID
13. half arrow- PAID
14. igofast- PAID
15. 2 GTOS- PAID

Last 25 @ $593.30

16. TCorzett- PAID
17. dynasty- PAID
18. edtv24- PAID
19. criley- PAID
20. countryclub007- PAID
21. Tim S.- PAID
22. gtdrew- PAID
23. GTHappy- PAID
24. Darryn- PAID
25. Pro-GT- PAID
26. Anonymous- PAID
27. Skyman70- PAID
28. srm6- PAID
29. RealRedRocket- PAID
30. jab336- PAID
31. 96BBB- PAID
32. Techknow- PAID
33. Bob T.- PAID
34. totalblitz- PAID
35. Hemgesberg- PAID
36. M. Temnyk- PAID
37. D. Lowe- PAID
38. Esk93- PAID
39. G8GTSBM- PAID
40. Jam- PAID

Definitely want to jump on this. Just sent you a PM.

If there is a mod you want for your G8....This is it !!!!!

Yeah...Now I can finally say I have SOLO CATS !!

Steve,
That in cabin video says Mach exhaust. Is that the Mach shorty with the cats as in the exterior vids or just the Mach..

Thanks

Steve,
That in cabin video says Mach exhaust. Is that the Mach short with the cats as in the exterior vids or just the Mach..

Thanks

It is the Mach...the Mach Shorty is also no drone.

steve i'm in...do you still have my CC info

steve i'm in...do you still have my CC info

Give me a call tonight if you want at 516-655-9002. I don't keep CC numbers:)

Do you have any before and after dyno numbers? I'm comparing these to what I would get with DT headers with aftermarket cats, since the price is comparable.

I will be on my way to Buffalo and the 8+ hour drive as soon as I hear they are ready! You know I'm in!

Do you have any before and after dyno numbers? I'm comparing these to what I would get with DT headers with aftermarket cats, since the price is comparable.

With our Mach Shorty, they made 27whp and 25TQ. The car pulls hard in EVERY gear!

First order is IN! Thanks for the support jmh325!

Any idea how much quieter they will be with the V2-J catback? The mach shorty video sounds good but I already have the V2J on.

Steve,
What's the deal with the O2 extenders in the rear ports (the ports on the exhaust pipe and not the cats)? On my V2 system I simply had to swap the sensors and then reconnect without extenders. On the Mach system I just ordered, will I have to use extenders or are the extenders simply there to keep the CEL off. Confused on this issue. Thanks.

Steve,
What's the deal with the O2 extenders in the rear ports (the ports on the exhaust pipe and not the cats)? On my V2 system I simply had to swap the sensors and then reconnect without extenders. On the Mach system I just ordered, will I have to use extenders or are the extenders simply there to keep the CEL off. Confused on this issue. Thanks.

They are just there to keep the CEL off...we will supply the extenders when you purchase the cats.

Steve,
What's the deal with the O2 extenders in the rear ports (the ports on the exhaust pipe and not the cats)? On my V2 system I simply had to swap the sensors and then reconnect without extenders. On the Mach system I just ordered, will I have to use extenders or are the extenders simply there to keep the CEL off. Confused on this issue. Thanks.

Swim- Are you going to jump on the Cats as well?

Any idea how much quieter they will be with the V2-J catback? The mach shorty video sounds good but I already have the V2J on.

Probably about 10% quieter...the outside will still sound mean.

Swim- Are you going to jump on the Cats as well?

Thinking about it after hearing your car!! Price is a little more than I expected so I may consider Kooks middies that come with the cats. Time will tell. At least Solo will get the Mach system on the way to me tomorrow and maybe I'll have it installed by the time you hit RI next week!

Hey Steve, same deal at Zoro as with the Mach Shorty system - installation included with purchase and minus shipping charges?

Hey Steve, same deal at Zoro as with the Mach Shorty system - installation included with purchase and minus shipping charges?

That is correct buddy! Installation is free and $30 less than group buy price.

That is correct buddy! Installation is free and $30 less than group buy price.

I hope you remembered to take the $30 off when you billed my card :wink2:

Hey steve, are those HP increases a combination of the cat-back and the cats or is that jump in power from the cats alone?

Thinking about it after hearing your car!! Price is a little more than I expected so I may consider Kooks middies that come with the cats. Time will tell. At least Solo will get the Mach system on the way to me tomorrow and maybe I'll have it installed by the time you hit RI next week!

Same here. those videos sound good but the cost is a little higher than I was expecting.

What warranty do the cats have? How long should they last with no CELs?

Thinking about it after hearing your car!! Price is a little more than I expected so I may consider Kooks middies that come with the cats. Time will tell. At least Solo will get the Mach system on the way to me tomorrow and maybe I'll have it installed by the time you hit RI next week!

Im looking forward to hearing that Mach....Im planning on going to the G8 meet on LI

Hey steve, are those HP increases a combination of the cat-back and the cats or is that jump in power from the cats alone?

They are with the cats and our cat-back.

What warranty do the cats have? How long should they last with no CELs?

If something goes wrong with them, we will take care of it for you. We always do:)

They should not get a CEL at all...so far, the three cars with them installed have gone over 500 miles each and no CEL on any of them. These cats are rated for a higher HP motor, and we include two 02 extenders.

Steve, excuse my ignorance here, but will these high-flow cats replace the need for LT headers - 27 whp is a pretty big gain for exhaust alone, with OEM manifolds. Can you clarify if this is the case?

Steve, excuse my ignorance here, but will these high-flow cats replace the need for LT headers - 27 whp is a pretty big gain for exhaust alone, with OEM manifolds. Can you clarify if this is the case?

Our exhaust, with the HF cats, gained 27whp. This was without an aftermarket header.

Our exhaust, with the HF cats, gained 27whp. This was without an aftermarket header.

A supplier of long tube headers claims 38 hp with cats, pipes, and stock GT mufflers (no tune or other mods) so 27 for the Solo system seems to be very realistic. As far as I know the header system causes CEL issues and really should be used with a tune.

I would think most dealers would not hassle you over warranty work with the Solo system installed and a stock (never tuned) ECM.

I definitely like the durability and engine compartment thermal radiation protection offered by stock heat shielded exhaust manifolds.

So the V2 exhaust gained something like 15whp if i'm not mistaken. So the cats add about 12whp on top of that basically. Man that $600 price point is a little steep for about 12whp. That is not much less than the cost of the catback system during the group buy... Damn where are my tax returns when I need them...

Our converters are not your ordinary converter...we will write something up tomorrow explaining why they are priced where they are:)

Keep in mind also, these power numbers are without a tune. Further tuning will yield more power. The cats are the most restrictive part of the exhaust, and provide more than just HP and TQ. They improve throttle response as well, while making the car sound the way it should have from the beginning.

12 more spots in the first batch....thanks for the support!!!

So the V2 exhaust gained something like 15whp if i'm not mistaken. So the cats add about 12whp on top of that basically. Man that $600 price point is a little steep for about 12whp. That is not much less than the cost of the catback system during the group buy... Damn where are my tax returns when I need them...

That's also without a tune. If Solo wanted to pick up the cost for one dyno before, I would be happy to pay for the 2nd one. This would show the differences with a VMS tune that takes the HFC's into account. I sent Kirk the request for the tune tonight to have it ready. Kooks mids w/cats add 20-25hp WITH a TUNE and stock catback (according to Maryland Speed). With this in mind a catback will add 10-15hp (10 is the norm and more realistic number) putting it at 30-35hp. So you are roughly 3-8hp less than headers and that is without a tune. I would think a tune could bring a few more ponies back. This for around $100 less ($200 for Beta and full group buy) than headers isn't such a bad deal, especially since they are so easy to install in comparison to headers.

That's also without a tune. If Solo wanted to pick up the cost for one dyno before, I would be happy to pay for the 2nd one. This would show the differences with a VMS tune that takes the HFC's into account. I sent Kirk the request for the tune tonight to have it ready. Kooks mids w/cats add 20-25hp WITH a TUNE and stock catback (according to Maryland Speed). With this in mind a catback will add 10-15hp (10 is the norm and more realistic number) putting it at 30-35hp. So you are roughly 3-8hp less than headers and that is without a tune. I would think a tune could bring a few more ponies back. This for around $100 less than headers isn't such a bad deal, especially since they are so easy to install in comparison to headers.

True indeed. The Kooks mids also need to be coated which puts them at about 1000 bucks. I would love to see what VMS or Livernois can do with these cats. Does kirk have access to a car with these cats on or is just an educated guess tune?

True indeed. The Kooks mids also need to be coated which puts them at about 1000 bucks. I would love to see what VMS or Livernois can do with these cats. Does kirk have access to a car with these cats on or is just an educated guess tune?

When I talked to him a few weeks ago he said an educated guess. He didn't think the tune would be much different than the mid length headers w/cats if I remember correctly. It would be nice if he could get someone into the shop to try them. Actually, maybe Steve can offer to ship him a pair to do the tune with a refundable deposit :wink2:

I think people always get caught up in the numbers, more specifically they think the numbers are cumulative when in fact they are not. Especially with the exhaust.

Is it just me or do Steve's threads seem to always produce the highest post counts :D

I just ordered the cat's (should have pumped him for some clamps at a discount) and I'll put the vms tune on my car when it comes out and give you guys all the details.

Lazarus; You still thinking about those cables? I think we might have to set up another camera day.

Also of note, if the CEL becomes an issue, Kirk said he could fix it ;)

I just ordered the cat's (should have pumped him for some clamps at a discount) and I'll put the vms tune on my car when it comes out and give you guys all the details.

Lazarus; You still thinking about those cables? I think we might have to set up another camera day.

Yeah I'm down

Steve, I like the under car view video. It's good to know that your shop isn't in some alternate black and white universe. I don't think I've ever seen any shop pictures in color before. :)

Another very interesting development from you guys. A lot of my questions have been addressed. Here are some more if you don't mind...

1. I'd really like to mount a pair of wideband O2 sensors before the cats in addition to the factory front O2 sensors. Now that you guys are intimately familiar with that area of the car, do you think there would be room for an extra bung on your cats that would point the sensor out into some available space?

2. You said the rear O2 extenders are important for avoiding a CEL. I take it you added those after initially getting CEL's? Out of curiosity, do you know what it is about pulling the sensor back out of the exhaust flow that helps that situation? Not sniffing the exhaust at full strength? Sensor not getting as hot?

2.5 More curiosity since I don't know much about aftermarket, high flow cats. Is it commonly accepted that they really do clean up the exhaust gases? Do the manufacturers make any specific claims or go through any kind of emissions testing? If the aftermarket in general is OK with dealing with CEL's or work arounds, the cat makers could almost make plain pipe with some stuff thrown in just to look like something is going on inside. Capital "HIGH FLOW", lower case "catalytic converter". Not saying yours are anything but legit! Just wondering out loud.

3. Since the factory cats are the most restrictive part in the exhaust, would it make any sense to start out with just your high flow cats? Power gain, better throttle response, more sound, cheaper than cat-back, possible home for extra O2 bungs. Win-win-win-win-win. I'm almost embarrassed to ask, but do you have any idea what the cats would sound like in an otherwise stock exhaust system?

4. Is there anything tricky about installation? I'm imagining a future trip to the dealer and swapping back to factory parts to avoid any hint of a hassle from them.

If you got this far, thanks for reading!

As Steve from SOLO has announced, I was one of the initial testers. Although I'll be the first to admit I may have posted a few "pre-release" posts, I did my best to NOT show my excitement on these public forums until now. This was a very hard task, as I am thrilled at how much these cats complement the SOLO catback exhaust system on the G8, all without any drone whatsoever!

I am amazed at how awesome these cats are. For those who do not know, I have this system: Mach Balanced (with balance pipe in front of the muffler) complete catback, with J's, and these HF cats with O2 extenders.

The car now has a more visceral sound, both at startup & idle, as well as when you 'get on it'. You truely can feel the 'butt dyno' improvement, as it really wakes up the car in all conditions. Almost feels like they replaced the accelerator petal with one that is more responsive at all speeds, at all percentages to the floor, and in all conditions.

There is NO DRONE, even with the cats! The J's take care of that completely and perfectly.

When I say visceral, I'm trying to describe the more aggressive idle and power curve sounds, as well as the additional power that the car picks up as a result of installing these cats. I say that since I had the Mach catback on my car for a few months prior to installing the cats, and have gotten used to the feel of the car from the SOLO catback. Recently with the isntallation of the cats, I see a big bump in performance with JUST THE CATS as the variable, as compared to the SOLO exhaust system that I had on the car previously. Amazing!:driving:


To clear up some confusion about the O2 sensors (feel free to correct me if my understanding is incorrect, this is what I believe is correct with HF cats)



The O2 bung extenders purpose are perhaps not what you think.
The stock computer is programmed with the mindset that the stock (restrictive) cats are installed on the car, and the stock ECM tune knows the upper and lower limits of how much Oxygen and exhaust gasses *should* be flowing through, again with a stock setup and stock cats.
When you introduce more "high performance, better flowing, lower restriction" cats, a side effect of this is that now the computer sees a range "out of bounds" in that more exhaust gasses are passing through the (new HF cats) and sometimes a CEL is lit, again because the computer *thinks* that there's something wrong with the upper bound that it was programmed to observe.
The extenders pull the O2 sensor tip slightly out of the 'full flow' of the high flow cats exhaust gasses, NOT for the reason to "trick the computer" and NOT for the reason that "less exhaust gasses are being processed by the cats, resulting in more harmful emissions output" ... but it's to simulate about the same amount of flow (somewhat not in the direct path anymore, like stock) as the computer is programmed to understand. Thus, no CEL.
Custom tunes (i.e., not superchips, but HPTuners and custom tuning shops) can go into the O2 sensor tables and relax the tolerances a bit to compensate for the HF cats. In this scenario, you wouldn't need the extenders, and you would not have a CEL. Without a custom tune, the extenders are required.
Many states now will auto-fail your inspection if you have a CEL, (including NYS where I live). These O2 extenders will ensure "the best of both worlds... in that that the engine sees "all is well" as far as the o2 sensors, as well as no CEL and better performance due to the smaller restrictions on the HF cats, not to mention you are not breaking any emissions laws when it comes to inspection of your car.


I started on 2/8/2010 with 12305 miles on my g8 when I got the cats installed. Yesterday I filled up the car with the first "full tank" of gas (it was 3/4 full when I had the cats installed) as 12726, (no CEL's ever from the cats, btw) and I found a sweet side-effect of having the less restrictive cats:



I have a Cortex 87-octane tune that is everything "stock" except for DoD disabled, as my favorite winter tune. Thus, I'm not expecting to get the "wonderful gas mileage" as others on here that have DoD enabled. In the Buffalo winter, I've been letting the car warm up for ~ 10 minutes, and I have a 50-mile-a-day mostly-highway commute, again with all 8 cylinders active when the car is running.


Since the car was just a few months old, I've kept very detailed fuel mileage tabs, and have all the data stored online (at mpgtune.com) (http://www.g8board.com/forums/www.mpgtune.com)to prove it.



What I was averaging prior to the install of the cats in the wintertime was between 16-17mpg on 87-octane (10% ethenol, winter blend, blah gas!) ...
this most recent "actually calculated fill up" with the new cats installed posted 19.5mpg, again, with me NOT babying the car (these cats are kinda like a bad habit for the right foot, lol!) on 87-octane winter-blend gas, AND letting it warm up every morning for ~8-10 minutes, AND DoD completely disabled!




If I had DoD enabled, I would expect several MPG more, but I like DoD disabled on my car as a personal preference. I'm also running 87-grade gas, which on average tends to not get as good of a gas mileage as if I were to have a 93-octane superchips tune and 93-grade gas.




Be aware: I keep very detailed records of my fuel mileage. This is not simply a "read the DIC average fuel mileage screen" --- I get a printout at each fillup which details the exact gallons, price per gallon, and total price, and I write the cars odometer mileage on the reciept. Then I log into the MPGTUNE.COM website and input my data, which compares the odometer reading that is on the reciept to the previously-recorded entry, and voila, the exact fuel mileage is calculated.


I back up my numbers with REAL DATA:

http://mpgtune.com/vehicleDetails.php?carId=4200

http://mpgtune.com/fillupHistory.php?carId=4200&printVersion=1

I've been keeping detailed fillup records since July 3, 2009 when the car had ~4k miles on it. I also keep notes of when the tune changes or when something on the car changes. There's also a handy graph for seeing how these calculations relate to one another.

If the link above does not work, please let me know.

In Summary:

I'm VERY IMPRESSED with the increase in fuel mileage / engine efficiency / raw power / visceral sound with the SOLO Mach Balanced kit mated to these awesome High Flow cats. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

If anyone has any questions, feel free to reply on this thread or shoot me a PM, as I'd like to clear up any confusion. I'm a very happy customer.

--zepcom

Hey all,

You have no idea how long I have been waiting to chime in on these cats.

Simply put. Its bolt on testosterone! I love them. Again I’m not one for showing off to anyone. But damn that sound is like crack.

POWER!!! OMG. It’s instant throttle response. First thing I noticed was the instant response at pretty much any speed.

As for price………

Before I start. Background check..

I’m from Canada. Been modding cars for 16 + years. And we get jacked on price of car parts. A $189 US strut bar is over $400+ CAN over the counter plus our taxes. If you want product names PM me. There are many other products that are the same. Why do you think many in Canada don’t have Maggies??????

Not on every product, but serious that’s +100%!!!!

You guys would go nuts if someone charged 100% to bring it over the border. And if you paid to bring it over the border its, border fees, taxes, shipping on top of an inflated exchange rate.

Plus us Canadians don’t get free shipping from most companies like the US guys do. And as you know some can or don’t have the facilities to do installs either.

So an intake at $300 is a cheap mod for you guys. For us Canadians it isn’t.

The reason I went to SOLO years ago,

1) Is that I found a Canadian company that would not jack the price up 100% for us Canadians, and FYI doesn’t do it for the US guys either.
2) Free shipping
3) Free install if you’re willing to drive in.
4) The only shop that I have had a tour and anyone else could have of there shop. This was important cause they showed me that this wasn’t a simple create a product and ship it out without testing.
5) No hidden fees to make the product user friendly. Example, a tune.
6) Quality of work is well known in the community. SOLO exhausts is even on proto-type GM cars. Nuff said.

They are a company that doesn’t leave you hanging. If you have issues or are not completely happy they will ensure you are happy at the end of it. Not many companies are that driven in customer service.

That alone is worth every penny.

Never mind the fact that you are getting approx the same power without a tune. No worries about voiding warranties. No worries about trying to de-tune your car if there is any issues on the way back to the dealership.

NO ECU Cel’s
NO Wifey Cel’s

Remember this is a family 4 door. At least for me it is. And yeah most of us love the fact that is has a huge V8. But at the heart of it was bought for the family function. There for I want power without a complex tune thats easy for me to change when needed.

Now if you have the programmes or tuners. Go nuts and you get even more power.

I don’t work for SOLO. I’m just a car crazy guy. Who looks for the best value vs power I can get.

If you disagree with what I say by all means tell me. But I think I have been around enough to know where there is value for me in the long term.

In the long run everyone has choices. SOLO is another choice. For me it was the best choice for exhaust. To others they might want something else. So be it.

But for power and performance and value these cats are top notch.

Steve, I like the under car view video. It's good to know that your shop isn't in some alternate black and white universe. I don't think I've ever seen any shop pictures in color before. :)

Another very interesting development from you guys. A lot of my questions have been addressed. Here are some more if you don't mind...

1. I'd really like to mount a pair of wideband O2 sensors before the cats in addition to the factory front O2 sensors. Now that you guys are intimately familiar with that area of the car, do you think there would be room for an extra bung on your cats that would point the sensor out into some available space?

2. You said the rear O2 extenders are important for avoiding a CEL. I take it you added those after initially getting CEL's? Out of curiosity, do you know what it is about pulling the sensor back out of the exhaust flow that helps that situation? Not sniffing the exhaust at full strength? Sensor not getting as hot?

2.5 More curiosity since I don't know much about aftermarket, high flow cats. Is it commonly accepted that they really do clean up the exhaust gases? Do the manufacturers make any specific claims or go through any kind of emissions testing? If the aftermarket in general is OK with dealing with CEL's or work arounds, the cat makers could almost make plain pipe with some stuff thrown in just to look like something is going on inside. Capital "HIGH FLOW", lower case "catalytic converter". Not saying yours are anything but legit! Just wondering out loud.

3. Since the factory cats are the most restrictive part in the exhaust, would it make any sense to start out with just your high flow cats? Power gain, better throttle response, more sound, cheaper than cat-back, possible home for extra O2 bungs. Win-win-win-win-win. I'm almost embarrassed to ask, but do you have any idea what the cats would sound like in an otherwise stock exhaust system?

4. Is there anything tricky about installation? I'm imagining a future trip to the dealer and swapping back to factory parts to avoid any hint of a hassle from them.

If you got this far, thanks for reading!

1. It is very tight up there. There is not a lot of room. As you can judge by the pictures, there is little room by that flex pipe. The available room is very tight. We do not want to move our current 02 sensor position, because we know that in our current position, the CEL stays off. We know its tight, but may not be impossible. We will take a better look on Friday when we get another car in the shop. We don't think it looks good, but we'll check.

2. This style of converter does an amazing job with the NOX gases, and all of the other harmful hydrocarbons that the engine puts out. Since the gases flow so quickly through this converter, it has a hard time reducing 02. Oxygen, as we all know, is not harmful to the environment, but this is what the rear 02 sensro reads. The rear 02 sensor is only an indicator of the 02 differential from the front 02 to the rear 02 sensor. If it is not within spec, it will trigger an engine light. With regular converters (ceramic), the exhaust gases slow down and the extreme heat that's created by the converter burns off the required amount of 02. With our design, the required amount of 02 is not burned off because of how fast it is traveling through, therefore the rear 02 sensor needs to be taken further out of the flow of the exhaust. It's not even that simple, but that is it in a nutshell.

3. Our guess is that it will increase the noise volume. Our guess it that it will increase the HP and TQ, but an exhaust system functions as a single unit. Many of the gains that you would be seeing at the front would be negated by the restrictive nature at the rear. You certainly will see some gains, but not the full potential. We recommend a full exhaust kit, and not the axle-back with our converters for this very reason.

4. In our experience, the dealers are very receptive to an aftermarket cat, as long as it keeps the engine light off and no significant changes are made to the design (eliminating a flex pipe, etc.). We do not anticipate people having to swap them out for the dealers. We have made converters for many other GM vehicles over the last 3 years, and many dealerships have bought our converters to put on new cars. The design center in Warren, MI has also bought some from us as well.

so lets be clear, for someone with a solo exhaust the gain from the converters is about 12hp without touching the tune?

We have been selling this style of catalytic converter for over 3 years. In the Solstice community, one style is $375, and the NA converter is $290. These stainless 200 cell, stainless wound converter in the Solstice applications are rated for a 3 liter engine and below. The 200 cell stainless wound converters that we ended up using after much trial and error, for the G8, are rated up to 6.0L. That is 6.0L per side. These are far overrated for this vehicle.

Converters are very tricky to get right, and just as the converter body is overrated for the car, we overrated all of the other components as well. Most stainless steel flanges are quarter inch thickness or less. We do not know of any supplier out there that makes flanges 3/8" thick. We had these specially made for us, and the extra thickness will combat warp problems from extreme heat, and therefore eliminate leaks in the future. These flanges, and we have them on both ends, are very expensive. The style of the converter that we use is over 3 times the price, our raw cost, of your standard ceramic converter. When you introduce flex pipes as close to 02 sensors as we have on the G8, the flex pipes have to be the highest quality. With low or medium quality flex pipes, the main problem is not longevity, but the fact that the end caps are not sealed as properly or consistently as they should be, causing outside air to be sucked in which triggers engine lights. The flex pipe that we use does not have this issue, and again is very expensive. Many companies skimp on the 02 bung, and do not use a stainless steel one. Our 02 bung is stainless steel.

02 extenders...back in 2006 when we started experimenting with 02 extenders, we bought them from an aftermarket supplier. There are many types of 02 extenders. The good quality ones range about $30-$40 per piece. We had trouble with even the best quality 02 extenders, and the fact that they did not work with every 02 sensor out there. We have designed and fabricated our own 02 extender, which has inherent qualities, which make it more expensive.

This style converter was originally manufactured for turbocharged and supercharged cars. The manufacturer that we use built this internal substrate different than many other manufacturers. With each wind of the coil, it is braised with a high heat resistant braise. This keeps it from coming unwound. The price of the material inside (ours is stainless, not ceramic) and the labor intensive way it is made, caused this to be the highest priced style of converter on the market.

I hope this addresses why these converters are priced where they are. In each area where we have decided to go with higher quality, the offsetting positives far outweigh the negatives. The gas mileage gains that are seen are another evident piece supporting that. Ceramic converters do not typically improve gas mileage, so over time, our converters will pay for themselves.

From the thicker flange to the high quality flex pipe, the stainless steel 02 bung, and the magic of this style cat, we hope that you agree with us that these extras are definitely worthwhile and necessary.

so lets be clear, for someone with a solo exhaust the gain from the converters is about 12hp without touching the tune?

Yes that would be accurate to say. We actually think it is closer to 18-20. If you ask Zepcom, Nightwing or JEC_G8GT, they will tell you that the drive ability is immensely improved, and the gains are night and day.

10 spots left in first group! Thanks for the support!!

Steve,

How much louder would the stock exhaust be with the cats? I have a limited budget and have to make piece by piece improvements. This might help the decision in the future. Also when the oportunity presents itself might i suggest that you do a db rating for the axleback's just as you did for the other 5 systems this might help a few people determine which route would be best for them volume/performance wise.

Steve,

How much louder would the stock exhaust be with the cats? I have a limited budget and have to make piece by piece improvements. This might help the decision in the future. Also when the oportunity presents itself might i suggest that you do a db rating for the axleback's just as you did for the other 5 systems this might help a few people determine which route would be best for them volume/performance wise.

The cats would probably make the stock system about 15-25% louder. Keep in mind, with the stock exhaust, you might run into a drone issue with the cats and no J pipes. Some people have complained about drone with the stock cats and stock exhaust.

In terms of db ratings, it's very comparable in volume to the Mach kit. We did not take db ratings with the axle-back, but can confidently say that the volume is similar to the Mach kit. The tone is a bit different, but the volume is comparable.

Yes that would be accurate to say. We actually think it is closer to 18-20. If you ask Zepcom and Nightwing, they will tell you that the drivability is immensely improved, and the gains are night and day.

The driveablity is amazing. :driving:

Simply put she is nimble and hard to tame at the same time.

As for sound. I think I said to Jeff. It was like a banshee got kicked in the nuts. If they had them. Again when you want that sound.

If anyone in my area wanted a taste of whats it like. Send me a PM.

Here are some more pictures comparing our cat to the OEM one. You can clearly see the differences in quality and composition. This will also give you a good look at the top quality 3/8" flanges we use, along with how the core substrate is wound. I added these to the first post also:) Enjoy!

OEM Inside Diameter
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/001STEVE.jpg

OEM Tiny Substrate Holes
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/004STEVE.jpg

Solo Performance 200 Cell Substrate
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/006STEVE.jpg

Solo Performance 200 Cell Substrate Close-Up
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/008STEVE.jpg

Inside Diameter Comparison
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/g8finalversionjpipeandcatpics029STE.jpg

Thanks Steve, I cant wait until you ship them.

Thanks Steve, I cant wait until you ship them.

Anytime...thanks for the support...the more info I can provide, the better:)

Inside Diameter Comparison
http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss343/goingsolo2/G8%20FINAL%20VERSION%20WITH%20J-PIPE%20AND%20CAT/g8finalversionjpipeandcatpics029STE.jpg

I was personally awestruck when Jeff pulled my stock cats and put them side by side with the new SOLO HF cats. Keep in mind, this was before this thread or pics even existed, what an amazing difference between the two "internals".

This picture doesn't even do it justice. It's almost like GM put a restriction in there on purpose. Vibration? Noise? Only GM knows for sure.

The performance difference with less restriction is amazing. I will echo what Nightwing-III said, if anyone in the Buffalo NY area wants to sample what these cats feel like installed on my car, hit me up with a PM. Magesticx is going to do this with my car, early next month when he's in the area.

--zepcom

If I can wait that long hahaha. I actually would love to take a full kit over to New Era and have Mike dyno tune this sucker to see what gains we see from a full kit with hi-flowing cats. If Solo could demonstrate a 20rwhp gain with the full system or more with a dyno sheet, I think you would see a lot of business. I know New Era is typically only seeing 3-4 rwhp increases with a catback system, and that is on a cammed car.

The sounds though is definitely improved and I am most excited about that. If Solo has any interest in working with me on getting a kit with hi-flowing cats (perhaps discounting a $100 for the re-tune cost), I would be more than glad to bring my car over to Mike @ New Era again to get another dyno tune to really see what the gains can be and post the dyno sheet. Just an idea.

If I can wait that long hahaha. I actually would love to take a full kit over to New Era and have Mike dyno tune this sucker to see what gains we see from a full kit with hi-flowing cats. If Solo could demonstrate a 20rwhp gain with the full system or more with a dyno sheet, I think you would see a lot of business. I know New Era is typically only seeing 3-4 rwhp increases with a catback system, and that is on a cammed car.

The sounds though is definitely improved and I am most excited about that. If Solo has any interest in working with me on getting a kit with hi-flowing cats (perhaps discounting a $100 for the re-tune cost), I would be more than glad to bring my car over to Mike @ New Era again to get another dyno tune to really see what the gains can be and post the dyno sheet. Just an idea.

Hello! That is not something I can approve, BUT...give Jeff a call at 905-703-1557 and let him know what you want to do, and he can make that decision for you:) Thanks so much.

We have a dyno sheet, but the runs were taken 3 weeks apart. We had incredibly impressive dyno numbers, but we don't want to start getting into debates over whether or not its accurate. It literally unleashes the G8. The way the car pulls is just night and day difference with the cats. Nightwing, Zepcom or JEC_G8GT will tell you first hand. Jeff and Ray (our lead designer) rode in both cars and the difference was incredible..NIGHT AND DAY! If you don't believe me, then wait on ordering and drive in a SOLO cat and exhaust equipped G8. We are that confident in this product!

Steve

Hello! That is not something I can approve, BUT...give Jeff a call at 905-703-1557 and let him know what you want to do, and he can make that decision for you:) Thanks so much.

We have a dyno sheet, but the runs were taken 3 weeks apart. We had incredibly impressive dyno numbers, but we don't want to start getting into debates over whether or not its accurate. It literally unleashes the G8. The way the car pulls is just night and day difference with the cats. Nightwing and Zepcom will tell you first hand. Jeff and Ray (our fabricator) rode in both cars and the difference was incredible..NIGHT AND DAY! If you don't believe me, then wait on ordering and drive in a SOLO cat and exhaust equipped G8. We are that confident in this product!

Steve

Sounds good! Yes the dyno sheet always stirs controversy. Having an independent tester perform 3 runs would definitely be credible since I already have my baseline dyno numbers from Mike, I can compare stock - tuned - tuned with Solo Kit. Should put any naysayers to rest anyways.

I'll give Jeff a call and see what he thinks. In any case, you have a real unique kit for those people who want to stay fairly stock and not void their warranty with a header kit.

Here are two more videos, in cabin with acceleration, of the HF cats and our Mach exhaust (middle of the line). Kinda sounds like a pissed off lion, don't you think? Enjoy:)

Rev and Take-Off- In Cabin
NGwckLHbJyk

Start-Up and Take-Off- In Cabin
YoOan1fSZ8s

Appointment made, I rescheduled my two meetings for Friday and I will be driving the 8+ hours Friday! I can't wait!

Ordered. Now I gotta figure out what to do with the V2 I still haven't installed!
You guys are drivin me to :drink:!!

Thanks for the support everyone! 9 spots left in the first group!

Ordered. Now I gotta figure out what to do with the V2 I still haven't installed!
You guys are drivin me to :drink:!!
Install it! Im still on the fence about the cats. I want them, but funds are a problem unfortunately.

Well pay day is tomorrow so I guess you can count me in on the Cats... hope the wifey doesn't find out...

Appointment made, I rescheduled my two meetings for Friday and I will be driving the 8+ hours Friday! I can't wait!

Make sure you take a laptop so you can report back friday night. Can't wait to hear it.

Make sure you take a laptop so you can report back friday night. Can't wait to hear it.

Laptop is going so I can install the new VMS tune. Hopefully that is. I sent VMS an email last night with no response today. I just sent Kirk an email tonight.

Being that these High Flow Cats are currently only installed on 3 G8's I wanted to add to everything Nightwing and Zepcom already stated.

These Cats are worth the investment your car will be completely different, being Im the only one with the unbalanced Mach shorty it's pretty safe to say that I have the loudest exhaust. There is no drone, my wife actually likes it, anyone that knows muscle cars loves it and it is not offensive. It was very tastefully done.

My gas mileage coming back from Toronto with the cruise set at 74 and AFM off ended up at 20.2.....My drive up to Toronto cruise set at 74 AFM on was 17.9.

Solo offers a great product at a fair price and unheard of customer support....Steve takes calls til midnight try calling Corsa and get this kind of support. These guys continue to raise the bar and always step up when something isn't right.

Appointment made, I rescheduled my two meetings for Friday and I will be driving the 8+ hours Friday! I can't wait!

Your gonna love your drive back !!

Steve takes calls til midnight try calling Corsa and get this kind of support. These guys continue to raise the bar and always step up when something isn't right.

Steve...where are you...pick up the phone...I'm waiting with CC in hand. :)

Steve...where are you...pick up the phone...I'm waiting with CC in hand. :)


LOL....Figures :slap:

Steve...where are you...pick up the phone...I'm waiting with CC in hand. :)

Thanks for calling back Steve and happily taking my order - I'm number 7 on the GB - woot woot!!

Well pay day is tomorrow so I guess you can count me in on the Cats... hope the wifey doesn't find out...


You might as well send them here and then we can install them together on a week end and do the re-tune. I would hate to have to go to your funeral. Ring on the finger, noose around the neck........what comes first? I thought you might cave, but I'll never tell!

1. It is very tight up there. There is not a lot of room. As you can judge by the pictures, there is little room by that flex pipe. The available room is very tight. We do not want to move our current 02 sensor position, because we know that in our current position, the CEL stays off. We know its tight, but may not be impossible. We will take a better look on Friday when we get another car in the shop. We don't think it looks good, but we'll check.

Very good, I appreciate your looking into it.

If a second set of sensors isn't feasible, when you have the other car to look at, could you give your opinion on how easy/difficult it would be to swap out the front sensors with your cats installed? They definitely look a lot less bulky than the stock cats. Maybe easier to get tools around them.

2. This style of converter does an amazing job with the NOX gases, and all of the other harmful hydrocarbons that the engine puts out. Since the gases flow so quickly through this converter, it has a hard time reducing 02. Oxygen, as we all know, is not harmful to the environment, but this is what the rear 02 sensro reads. The rear 02 sensor is only an indicator of the 02 differential from the front 02 to the rear 02 sensor. If it is not within spec, it will trigger an engine light. With regular converters (ceramic), the exhaust gases slow down and the extreme heat that's created by the converter burns off the required amount of 02. With our design, the required amount of 02 is not burned off because of how fast it is traveling through, therefore the rear 02 sensor needs to be taken further out of the flow of the exhaust. It's not even that simple, but that is it in a nutshell.

Fair enough. I suspect that part of the story that doesn't fit in the nutshell is what happens that decreases the oxygen content in the exhaust more after the factory cats. For it to "burn off", I think it would have to be combining with other (presumably bad) stuff in the exhaust. Pardon my use of the highly technical term "stuff". :) So if there is more oxygen left in the exhaust with the HF cats, there may be more of other less wonderful gases.

Or not. Either way, this is not a deal breaker for me. Just interesting.

You might as well send them here and then we can install them together on a week end and do the re-tune. I would hate to have to go to your funeral. Ring on the finger, noose around the neck........what comes first? I thought you might cave, but I'll never tell!

Well looks like I am going to be number ten on the list. I'm going to have to send some flowers to the wifey's job today. I have to keep her off balance. Complement her hair and nails, walk the dog more often to make up for my latest mod

Now only if Solo made a shorty header to go along with this...

Well looks like I am going to be number ten on the list. I'm going to have to send some flowers to the wifey's job today. I have to keep her off balance. Complement her hair and nails, walk the dog more often to make up for my latest mod

Now only if Solo made a shorty header to go along with this...

Well goo dluck with that if you need nay advise I will try my best to help.

Well looks like I am going to be number ten on the list. I'm going to have to send some flowers to the wifey's job today.

lol -- I hear ya!

I didn't exactly tell my wife that I was going to do the initial v1 group buy way back around Thanksgiving, and I think I've been paying for it ever since! :slap:

I read somewhere that it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission -- but I am not sure if I agree with that. doh! :huh::ohsnap1:

Hopefully she's cool about it though, Lazurus Man! Don't forget to add to that list "take her out to a nice dinner" too!

-zepcom

im starting to lose some respect for the men of the board, you work hard you buy what you want.

im starting to lose some respect for the men of the board, you work hard you buy what you want.

Have you ever heard the saying, "I can't make you, but I can make you wish you had"? Women have a very powerful tool at their disposal. I like the tool. I use it often. I don't want the tool taken away :wink2:

Have you ever heard the saying, "I can't make you, but I can make you wish you had"? Women have a very powerful tool at their disposal. I like the tool. I use it often. I don't want the tool taken away :wink2:

Strange, my wife says she likes using my tool!

I just received my VMS tune for the Solo Cats :fawkdance:

Have you ever heard the saying, "I can't make you, but I can make you wish you had"? Women have a very powerful tool at their disposal. I like the tool. I use it often. I don't want the tool taken away :wink2:

Amen lol

If it wasn't for the fact that we have a wedding in 80 days and all the expenses that go along with it this would be a non issue. Unfortunately the old lady is starting to freak out over ever detail so you know how it goes...

It is hard to justify scaling the honey moon back a little when you drop a bunch of your disposable income into something that is not tangible in the wifes mind.

I just received my VMS tune for the Solo Cats :fawkdance:

What did you tell Kirk. Did you just say hi-flow cats or solo cats?

What did you tell Kirk. Did you just say hi-flow cats or solo cats?

I spoke to Kirk about the Solo 2.5" cats when I first ordered the VMS tune, which was about 3 weeks ago. He told me at the time that he didn't really need the Solo cats in the shop to do another tune because it should be very similar to the mid headers w/hfc's.

just buy them and dont say anything.

"what is this on the credit card bill for Solo?"................. "something for my car"

im sure your wife buys pocketbooks and gets $100 haircuts and burns $10 candels in the house so all is fair

I spoke to Kirk about the Solo 2.5" cats when I first ordered the VMS tune, which was about 3 weeks ago. He told me at the time that he didn't really need the Solo cats in the shop to do another tune because it should be very similar to the mid headers w/hfc's.

I just spoke to Rick at Livernois and he said the same thing. He said they could squeeze a more out of it if I slapped a shorty on there as well. Seems to me like this car is going to have to be dyno tuned. Yeah the car will breath easier but our stock manifold is shaped nothing like the Kooks mids and with out that ability to scavenge that has to throw the tune off some I would think.

Have you ever heard the saying, "I can't make you, but I can make you wish you had"? Women have a very powerful tool at their disposal. I like the tool. I use it often. I don't want the tool taken away :wink2:
LOL:slap::bs:the BS here stands for B*i*t*C*H Slaped.

5 spots left in the first batch! Give me a call at 516-655-9002 to get your order in. Thanks for the support!!

I still can't decide if I want my V2 turned into a Mach balanced or unbalanced with the cats.

I still can't decide if I want my V2 turned into a Mach balanced or unbalanced with the cats.

why would you want to change the V2?

why would you want to change the V2?

Personal preference, given SOLO's new "5 offerings" spread, now the V2 is one of the 'quietest', relatively speaking ... so if you're opening it up to be louder with cats, why not make the rest of the SOLO exhaust system mirror that philosophy, for added "oomph".

imho for my daily driver g8, I love where mach balanced + J's is at. Not too tame, not too loud for my tastes: with the cats, purely awesome.

Virus will know soon enough which system is best for him. Soon enough as in tomorrow if all goes well. :judge:

--zepcom

do the frist 15 people get 15% more off the already discounted group buy price?

the first 40 all pay the same price

I met up with Virus today at the shop and he seemed impressed with the SOLO system on my car. He did have to "one up me" of course, and buy my GXP diffuser from me to support his need for 3.5" tips. DOH! :slap:

That's okay, I bought another GXP diffuser to replace the one I sold him, about 10 minutes ago. :driving:

I'll let him tell the rest, as I had to leave for dinner. Hope his ride back home was totally different than the ride to! (Drone was a problem from his house to the shop!)

--zepcom

The cat setup is sick. I had the pleasure to hear Zepcom's today as well. I went with the Axleback, but the choice had more to do with $$$ than sound. Zep's system is one mean sounding car on the exterior, but very, very tame on the interior compared to what I heard growling outside. Quite surprising indeed.

The cat's are also very nice. Talk about over-engineering. These things sound like they could survive a nuclear holocaust after talking with Jeff.

You will be very pleased with this system.

Why wasn't this thread started in the "Sponsor Sales and GP" section?

Would those 02 extenders work with a Corsa? Not sayin I would ever do such a thing..

Would those 02 extenders work with a Corsa? Not sayin I would ever do such a thing..

I don't see why they wouldn't unless Corsa moved the stock location. Solos extenders are of very high quality and will not rust.

I don't see why they wouldn't unless Corsa moved the stock location. Solos extenders are of very high quality and will not rust.

Virus did you get the system?

He did, i got a pm from him last night, but he didn't give much detail, he just said that "you can have your cake and eat it too" i expect he is driving back right now and we should hear from him later this evening.

why would you want to change the V2?

To get what I thought I was buying and promised for my original purchase.

JAM

Thats awesome....Im glad Im not the only nut that drove hours to get their system installed.

Do you know what he ended up with?

Just to clarify - I'm not knocking SOLO. In fact I remain highly impressed with their response to customer feedback and customer service. It is just somewhat ironic the way things turned out for me personally - ending up soo close to where I started regardless of the cost - and whomever equated this to computer beta-testing hit the nail on the head IMHO.

I originally purchased the V1 ($623 - seemed like a great price) for more/better sound which I definetely got, along with drone even though it was advertised as "drone free".
I removed the V1, installed the V2 which was quieter - and it still had drone.

I did not use the car for close to 2 weeks to remove and return the axle backs to have the J's installed (Added total cost of $140, SOLO's $85 cost was very reasonable). Re-installed the back pipes which fixed the V8 mode drone, but the V2 is way tooo quiet.

So now after 2 complete cat-back removals & installations, 2 weeks w/o the car, plus another axle back installation - I've got what I had to begin with - a drone free quiet car! The tone is better, but not louder than the washer mod I had originally, but that is not worth anywhere near the $763 cost.

As it turns out, the original V1 with the J's appears to be exactly the system/sound that I thought I was buying and promised originally. The most efficient means to achieve that now would be to buy the new system ($795 minus SOLO $175 discount) resulting in a total cost near $1,400 for the originally promised drone free system. I wish I knew that adding the new HF cats to the V2 would fix my problem as that would be a less expensive alternative.

In retrospect I should have been leery of the original "drone free" advertisement, waited until the beta-testing was done, then purchased the system I wanted - I would have saved much removal/re-install time, effort and money, and would have received precisely what was promised and expected. Hey - hindsight is 20 20 - and I regret that I can't do the washer mod on my SOLO V2 system!

JAM

To get what I thought I was buying and promised for my original purchase.

JAM

When you got sent the free v2 upgrade kit from SOLO, did you keep your old v1 kit by chance?

Are you able to mount that old v1 kit on the car along with the new rear J's? Then you'll have the equivalent to the "Mach + J's" system (is that #3 of the 5 current offerings?) and you can set aside your v2 kit.

I agree that there was some learning curve with the original group buy, but sometimes that happens. As many people are finding out when it comes to the various "rear main seal oil leaks", "toe ends, tie rods, suspension issues", "driveshaft boom", "steering wheel shake", and "AFM vibration" .... there is a wide range of "quality control variances" within the G8 community .... and THAT is a fault of GM/Holden/Pontiac, and not the vendors that try to provide mods to the community to enhance our products.

Also don't forget that there is a number of G8's out there who's cars had zero drone on the V1 and V2 kits. That is including their initial test car, namely NightWing-III.

If you still have your V1 kit, then you can easily switch over to that, add your J's, and not have the problem of your v2+J being too quiet for your needs.

You could also give Jeff or Steve a call on the telephone and discuss your concerns directly with them, as they've been very good at customer service to many other people; perhaps you just haven't given them the opportunity to see what, if anything, can be done to resolve your situation to your satisfaction.

--zepcom

I agree with Zep....Jeff and Steve will both listen and help you out.

When you got sent the free v2 upgrade kit from SOLO, did you keep your old v1 kit by chance?

Are you able to mount that old v1 kit on the car along with the new rear J's? Then you'll have the equivalent to the "Mach + J's" system (is that #3 of the 5 current offerings?) and you can set aside your v2 kit.

I agree that there was some learning curve with the original group buy, but sometimes that happens. As many people are finding out when it comes to the various "rear main seal oil leaks", "toe ends, tie rods, suspension issues", "driveshaft boom", "steering wheel shake", and "AFM vibration" .... there is a wide range of "quality control variances" within the G8 community .... and THAT is a fault of GM/Holden/Pontiac, and not the vendors that try to provide mods to the community to enhance our products.

Also don't forget that there is a number of G8's out there who's cars had zero drone on the V1 and V2 kits. That is including their initial test car, namely NightWing-III.

If you still have your V1 kit, then you can easily switch over to that, add your J's, and not have the problem of your v2+J being too quiet for your needs.

You could also give Jeff or Steve a call on the telephone and discuss your concerns directly with them, as they've been very good at customer service to many other people; perhaps you just haven't given them the opportunity to see what, if anything, can be done to resolve your situation to your satisfaction.

--zepcom

Well said. I personally like the sound of my V2. One day I might add the J's but i guess that just depends on how the cats change the sound. The car is still crazy loud when you get on it, but there is more of a sleeper effect when just cruising around and babying it. I think it is awesome that Solo offers 5 different choices in terms of volume control and personally i think that the level of support for the G8 community and early adopters has been nothing short of amazing.

my idea was to add the j's to the V1, I just did not want to broadcast it publicly.

I have not driven the car in almost 3 weeks so I have paid it no mind lately.

Hey All...11 of the first 15 are sold! 4 spots left in the first batch. Call me at 516-655-9002 with questions or to place your order.

I bought another GXP diffuser to replace the one I sold him, about 10 minutes ago.

--zepcom

Let me know if you want to sell that one too! :-) I just called am going to get the same system you are running installed on my car. I would love to get the 3.5" tips!

why would you want to change the V2?

My V2's drone was so terribly bad it was deafening. The 7+ hour drive to Buffalo was shear pain! After the J's, it becomes the quietest system and I didn't want that.

Let me know if you want to sell that one too! :-) I just called am going to get the same system you are running installed on my car. I would love to get the 3.5" tips!

You have a PM! I have a better idea, Wolfcountry. Hint: P A C E

:wink2:

--zepcom

Well, I made the trip from Gainesville, VA to Buffalo NY yesterday. 7 hours up and around 8 on the way back. First off, I would like to thank Zepcom. He spent a great deal of his personal time with me yesterday taking me for a long test drive. Zepcom also sold me his GXP rear valance after unsuccessfully finding one locally. I can't think of too many people that would have done this for someone they have never met before. He did so without reservation and it shows his true kindness. This allowed me to get the 3.5" tips and allowed me to leave Buffalo without any regrets whatsoever. Once I saw the 3.5" tips on Majesticix's car, I wanted nothing else! To say they are beautiful is an understatement. I made mention in the exhaust forum several times that the Borla tips looked the best. I was wrong. I like the 3.5" tips better. It was a true pleasure meeting everyone.

I would like to thank Jeff, Steve and all the crew at Solo. It was a very difficult decision to drive that far. Jeff assured me it would be worth my while and he promised I would leave a happy customer. Mission accomplished Jeff! You and your crew went above and beyond any of my expectations. That is a difficult thing to accomplish with me :) I am a perfectionist and I consider it a disease. I normally notice right away if something is out of place or things aren't aligned properly and then it bothers me to no end. Jason aligned the tips absolutely perfect! Something my local shop could not do in 3 attempts. Jeff and Zepcom even switched our rear valances. I highly recommend anyone that wants their system done perfectly and treated with "world class customer service" to visit the Buffalo shop. As soon as I parked the car, I was immediately greeted by everyone (Zepcom included). They took my car into the shop immediately and started working on it like a NASCAR pit crew! The guys even stayed an hour after closing time to make sure I was good to go.

Whoever created the phrase, "you can't have your cake and eat it too" was plain wrong! I had my V2 turned into a Mach Balanced along with the new HFC's. The car sounds like a beast. It is considerably louder outside the car while remaining quiet inside the cabin. The added cats create an entirely different tone to the Mach Balanced exhaust making it sound louder, more full and extremely muscular. The posted videos just do not do any of these systems justice. AFM was easy to hear because of the totally different tonal quality with the V2. This transition in each direction is almost unnoticeable with the Mach Balanced w/cats. It's extremely smooth.

Cats Performance: The new cats along with the VMS "HFC" tune provide an incredible increase in performance especially above 3,000 rpms. When I took off from a dead stop today, I was immediately thrown back in my seat. This was with the VMS Stage 1 trans tune. When it get's warmer, I will try the stage 2 trans tune, but I'm sure it's going to be difficult to keep the rubber tacked down to the pavement. I had my two sons 6 and 2 in the car. Both of them giggled non stop every time I went WOT and threw them into the back of their seats. Simply put, amazing!

Cats mpg: The first 3 beta testers reported tremendous gains in mpg after the install of their cats. I did not see the same results. However, there were too many variables that were different with my trip up and back. First off, my gps took me home a completely different way. Roughly the same time to get home, but 75 additional miles on the way home. I installed the VMS "HFC" tune before coming home and I changed from the Stage II to Stage I VMS trans tune. Going up, my mileage was 20.68 and 21.19 on two tanks. Coming home it was 20.95 and 22.81. All were calculated and not taken off the cars reported mileage. Although the car was extremely accurate reporting within a .20mpg difference. Only time will tell.

The only thing to note: Towards the end of my drive home, I encountered some "drone". It was very specific in nature and nowhere near what it was before. It happened between 45-50mph and 1200-1400rpms only when it was in 4cylinder mode and going up a steep incline. What was strange is the car did not switch from 4cyl to 8cyl during this incline. This leads me to believe that the VMS Stage I trans tune may hold 4cyl mode longer than stock. **Update: I received responses from several board members regarding this. The VMS ECM tune does hold AFM for longer periods of time compared to stock. This can be great for mileage, but it seems to inhibit performance as it seems to require longer throttle tip in to change gears. I used the non AFM tune and have no issues. The J pipes can also help tune this out further. I have no doubt this is possible and just to reiterate it is not bad at all.

Sounds to me like your vms hfc tune just makes the afm a little more agressive than the tune you had before. I don't think the tcm tune has anything to do with it, it's the ecm (I think).

Did you drive the car at all after the hfc installation and before the tune? What I would like to know is if the new tune made a jump in power after the cats went on that you could feel.

virus thanks for the update, sounds like this will be the way i go eventually, cant wait to hear it in person

I also have the VMS 93 ecm/tcm tune. The afm is not part of the tcm tune. Kirk moddified the tables for the afm in the ecm tune to be more aggressive.

I also have the VMS 93 ecm/tcm tune. The afm is not part of the tcm tune. Kirk moddified the tables for the afm in the ecm tune to be more aggressive.

Can you explain this more? I would think with it delaying the 4cyl shifts to allow it to stay in that mode longer that would be less aggressive.

Sounds to me like your vms hfc tune just makes the afm a little more agressive than the tune you had before. I don't think the tcm tune has anything to do with it, it's the ecm (I think).

Did you drive the car at all after the hfc installation and before the tune? What I would like to know is if the new tune made a jump in power after the cats went on that you could feel.

I installed the new tune immediately so I wasn't able to compare. I wish I could have done some dyno's before and after, but we couldn't schedule it in. The shop they use up there doesn't do dyno testing on Saturday's.

Can you explain this more? I would think with it delaying the 4cyl shifts to allow it to stay in that mode longer that would be less aggressive.


Virus, the issue with the holding of 4cyl mode longer is with the new tune you have for the cats not the one for the transmission.

I'm sure if you ask Kirk to make the afm not so aggressive he could hook you up with another tune for the ecm.

Eventually I'll be trying this tune as well. Though I'm wondering how much it's even needed. Might be worth while to stop by a mod friendly shop and see what's coming out those pipes. It would be interesting to see if it's a little rich. I thought for sure you would see better mpg as well.

Virus, the issue with the holding of 4cyl mode longer is with the new tune you have for the cats not the one for the transmission.

I'm sure if you ask Kirk to make the afm not so aggressive he could hook you up with another tune for the ecm.

Eventually I'll be trying this tune as well. Though I'm wondering how much it's even needed. Might be worth while to stop by a mod friendly shop and see what's coming out those pipes. It would be interesting to see if it's a little rich. I thought for sure you would see better mpg as well.

How do I find out if I'm running rich?

There were too many variables to really get a good indication on the mpg's. If you take the highest going to and the highest coming back there was still a 5-6% increase in mileage. 2mpg is slightly less than a 10% gain.

So I have a question. The cats are supposed to ship in three weeks. Is that three weeks from 2/16 when the thread started, or three weeks after the first fifteen are ordered?

I would hope the 15 have already been ordered.

got an email from Michelle that my HFC's shipped on the 19th and will deliver on the 24th :driving:

So I have a question. The cats are supposed to ship in three weeks. Is that three weeks from 2/16 when the thread started, or three weeks after the first fifteen are ordered?

I am wondering the same thing - very little communication or clarity on this subject. Maybe Steve can chime in and clarify. I was told that they have switched suppliers which has caused a delay on production, however, this was never explained when I first ordered...I hope this doesn't cause a problem. Solo has such a great customer service rep to uphold.

By using the 02 extenders, is it just curing a symptom and does it mean that you really need a tune to prevent some type of future damage?

How do I find out if I'm running rich?

There were too many variables to really get a good indication on the mpg's. If you take the highest going to and the highest coming back there was still a 5-6% increase in mileage. 2mpg is slightly less than a 10% gain.

If you have the VMS powerflash cable, you can do a datalog of your car and send it to Kirk. I did a datalog on my old G6 and when Chris seen it he knew right away I was running rich or lean.

By using the 02 extenders, is it just curing a symptom and does it mean that you really need a tune to prevent some type of future damage?

Zepcoms post:

To clear up some confusion about the O2 sensors (feel free to correct me if my understanding is incorrect, this is what I believe is correct with HF cats)

"The O2 bung extenders purpose are perhaps not what you think.
The stock computer is programmed with the mindset that the stock (restrictive) cats are installed on the car, and the stock ECM tune knows the upper and lower limits of how much Oxygen and exhaust gasses *should* be flowing through, again with a stock setup and stock cats.
When you introduce more "high performance, better flowing, lower restriction" cats, a side effect of this is that now the computer sees a range "out of bounds" in that more exhaust gasses are passing through the (new HF cats) and sometimes a CEL is lit, again because the computer *thinks* that there's something wrong with the upper bound that it was programmed to observe.
The extenders pull the O2 sensor tip slightly out of the 'full flow' of the high flow cats exhaust gasses, NOT for the reason to "trick the computer" and NOT for the reason that "less exhaust gasses are being processed by the cats, resulting in more harmful emissions output" ... but it's to simulate about the same amount of flow (somewhat not in the direct path anymore, like stock) as the computer is programmed to understand. Thus, no CEL.
Custom tunes (i.e., not superchips, but HPTuners and custom tuning shops) can go into the O2 sensor tables and relax the tolerances a bit to compensate for the HF cats. In this scenario, you wouldn't need the extenders, and you would not have a CEL. Without a custom tune, the extenders are required.
Many states now will auto-fail your inspection if you have a CEL, (including NYS where I live). These O2 extenders will ensure "the best of both worlds... in that that the engine sees "all is well" as far as the o2 sensors, as well as no CEL and better performance due to the smaller restrictions on the HF cats, not to mention you are not breaking any emissions laws when it comes to inspection of your car."

I sent Kirk at VMS an email and he said he had been following the thread and didn't change the tune. Meaning, the 02 extenders are doing the work without Kirk having to change the tune.

By using the 02 extenders, is it just curing a symptom and does it mean that you really need a tune to prevent some type of future damage?

You have 4 O2 sensors on your car. The extenders are used on the two sensors after the cats. The sole purpose of these two sensors are to detect if your cats are functioning correctly. That's all they do. So no you wouldn't be looking at any kind of damage.

What I'm curious to know is if one of the cats ever get clogged, will the sensors with the extenders successfully detect it? I'm guessing the answer is yes, but my guesses have known to be wrong from time to time. :wink2:

You have 4 O2 sensors on your car. The extenders are used on the two sensors after the cats. The sole purpose of these two sensors are to detect if your cats are functioning correctly. That's all they do. So no you wouldn't be looking at any kind of damage.

What I'm curious to know is if one of the cats ever get clogged, will the sensors with the extenders successfully detect it? I'm guessing the answer is yes, but my guesses have known to be wrong from time to time. :wink2:

I doubt these will ever get clogged. Maybe shoot stuff out the tail pipes like a rocket launcher out the rear.......:wink2:

So I have a question. The cats are supposed to ship in three weeks. Is that three weeks from 2/16 when the thread started, or three weeks after the first fifteen are ordered?

Three weeks from when I started the thread:)

By using the 02 extenders, is it just curing a symptom and does it mean that you really need a tune to prevent some type of future damage?

The extenders keep the 02 sensors farther out of the exhaust flow...preventing a CEL. These wont break apart because of the special way they are made.

Only 3 more pairs of cats left in the initial group of 15 that will be shipping out first. Give me a call to get in on the first batch...516-655-9002:)

Steve

So they will ship in about 2 weeks or less?

So they will ship in about 2 weeks or less?

Yes, approximately 2 weeks...we are doing everything we can to stay right on schedule!

Cool, thanks Steve cant wait.

Hey All...2 more sets of cats left in the first batch...if you would like a set, please call me at 516-655-9002.

Has anybody tried the cats with a stock cat back system? How does it sound? sound clips anybody.

Has anybody tried the cats with a stock cat back system? How does it sound? sound clips anybody.

I do not believe anyone without a kit has bought the HF cats yet. With the stock exhaust, you run the risk of drone, considering some have complained of drone on the stock exhaust right from the dealer. The J pipes on our kits handle that, and as you know, the stock exhaust does not have J pipes. I can not confirm drone with our HF cats and stock exhaust, but I am saying that the risk is there. The volume of the stock exhaust would increase about 15% with the HF cats.

Hey All...one spot left for the first batch of HF cats!! Call me at 516-655-9002 to get your order in!

After the initial 15 are sold, I will start taking orders for the last batch of 25 at the group buy price.

Thanks 2 GTOS! You got the15th set of cats. I am now taking orders for the second batch...call to be one of the first shipped out in the second batch.

Please do not bite my head-off for asking this, but has anyone installed the High Flow Cats on a Corsa cat-back exhaust? I have JBA shorty headers and the Corsa cat-back installed, and know the stock cats are the bottleneck of my exhaust. If I could bolt these in and free-up the air flow I could keep the shorties (and not have to deal with California cops).

-Todd...

Please do not bite my head-off for asking this, but has anyone installed the High Flow Cats on a Corsa cat-back exhaust? I have JBA shorty headers and the Corsa cat-back installed, and know the stock cats are the bottleneck of my exhaust. If I could bolt these in and free-up the air flow I could keep the shorties (and not have to deal with California cops).

-Todd...

Haven't heard of these being on a corsa yet. Seems the corsa guys don't typically come into the solo threads. All the solo threads have huge post counts so sometimes it is hard to find info.

Haven't heard of these being on a corsa yet. Seems the corsa guys don't typically come into the solo threads. All the solo threads have huge post counts so sometimes it is hard to find info.

I read through this entire thread and only saw one mention of putting it on a Corsa, but no response. I'd could be a guinea pig to see if they work on a Corsa, but I prefer to buy something that I know will work.

-Todd...

Has anybody tried the cats with a stock cat back system? How does it sound? sound clips anybody.
This is what I would like to know as well. What I was wanting originally when Solo first mentioned working on these was these high flow cats, deleted middle section replaced with X-pipe and straight pipes, then to the factory mufflers or better yet GXP mufflers if I could find some that were not gold plated. Of course in planning that I was expecting the cats to be in the $400.00 range maybe less with a group buy. However, with the cost being as high as it is (not saying they are not worth it), it has me reconsidering the Kooks long tubes and Kooks catted midsection to stock or GXP mufflers,

I read through this entire thread and only saw one mention of putting it on a Corsa, but no response. I'd could be a guinea pig to see if they work on a Corsa, but I prefer to buy something that I know will work.

-Todd...

They will certainly work with the Corsa as it's a direct OEM replacement part. I would imagine if mid length headers do not create drone, these wouldn't either.

just do it Todd, I'm sure it would sound good.

They will certainly work with the Corsa as it's a direct OEM replacement part. I would imagine if mid length headers do not create drone, these wouldn't either.

That was my thought... I really want to keep with the shorties, and I'm not really wanting to drop $1400 on LTs (especially with what I have into the shorties). I'm thinking the high flow cats are the way to go...


Group Buy List:
3. Morris- PAID
10. Lazarus Man- PAID


If for some reason either of you decides you no longer want yours, I'll buy them off you :)

If not, it looks like I'll have to get on the list for the next round.

-Todd...

That was my thought... I really want to keep with the shorties, and I'm not really wanting to drop $1400 on LTs (especially with what I have into the shorties). I'm thinking the high flow cats are the way to go...



If for some reason either of you decides you no longer want yours, I'll buy them off you :)

If not, it looks like I'll have to get on the list for the next round.

-Todd...

LT's are great but you are right they are mad expensive for the well known brands. Plus unless you have hook up when it is time to smog then it is all bad here in cali. I'd be curious to see what someone dynos with shorties and the high flows.

That was my thought... I really want to keep with the shorties, and I'm not really wanting to drop $1400 on LTs (especially with what I have into the shorties). I'm thinking the high flow cats are the way to go...



If for some reason either of you decides you no longer want yours, I'll buy them off you :)

If not, it looks like I'll have to get on the list for the next round.

-Todd...

You'll have to pry them from my dead hands :wink2: These cats really opened up some untapped power in my car along with the VMS "HFC" tune.

Please do not bite my head-off for asking this, but has anyone installed the High Flow Cats on a Corsa cat-back exhaust? I have JBA shorty headers and the Corsa cat-back installed, and know the stock cats are the bottleneck of my exhaust. If I could bolt these in and free-up the air flow I could keep the shorties (and not have to deal with California cops).

-Todd...

I'm gonna try it.

steve,
about how much louder does the v2 with j's sound with the cat's is it about 15% as in the other versions? If one wanted would it be possible to make it quieter with the cats on? I know that's contrary to just about everone else here.

If anyone installs the high flow cats with a stock exhaust I would like to see a post about it.

I have seen dyno tests with long tube headers and the stock GT mufflers compared to straight pipes with virtually no difference (2 HP). So, as has been mentioned, the cats may be most of the problem with the stock exhaust.

Also, stock GT mufflers with headers and high flow cats are reported to sound good, so high flow cats only may be a good performing system.

steve,
about how much louder does the v2 with j's sound with the cat's is it about 15% as in the other versions? If one wanted would it be possible to make it quieter with the cats on? I know that's contrary to just about everone else here.

Zepcom reported the V2 + J's was way too quiet and he had the same concerns as you. When we went for a drive in his car, his mach balanced w/cats was almost stock quiet inside unless you were driving aggressively and even then it wasn't very loud inside. Outside it has a wonderful muscular V8 note that was quite a bit louder than the V2 system which you heard during our test drive. While we have a similar setup, I have the Roto-Fab where he is stock. Mine is definitely louder inside and out. However, I do have a slight hum/drone in the 1200-1400 range which hits at 30-35 and 45-50 in different gears. This should be able to be almost totally tuned out by moving the J pipes in 1/2 to 1 inch. I'm sure this will also quiet it down some. It's very quiet at highway speeds with zero drone! I love the setup and the power increase is really amazing!

If anyone installs the high flow cats with a stock exhaust I would like to see a post about it.

I have seen dyno tests with long tube headers and the stock GT mufflers compared to straight pipes with virtually no difference (2 HP). So, as has been mentioned, the cats may be most of the problem with the stock exhaust.

Also, stock GT mufflers with headers and high flow cats are reported to sound good, so high flow cats only may be a good performing system.

After seeing the stock cats off the car, I was amazed at how poorly they are designed. First off, they are at a 90 degree angle. Secondly, while it looks like 2.5" outside, it's only about 1.5 - 1.75 in reality. I was unable to obtain before and after dyno's, but someone on the board will be doing this shortly. He lives close to VMS so he will be getting Kirk to do a specific tune for the cats. That's if it provides any benefit over the Kooks mids w/cats tune. Both VMS and Livernois thought it would be about the same.

steve,
about how much louder does the v2 with j's sound with the cat's is it about 15% as in the other versions? If one wanted would it be possible to make it quieter with the cats on? I know that's contrary to just about everone else here.

Yes, it is about 15% louder than each kit respectively. You can't really make it quieter with the cats on there unless you add resonators. Most of the kits, even with the cats, are tame inside. The Mach Shorty would be most aggressive in and out, but not drive you crazy.

Yes, it is about 15% louder than each kit respectively. You can't really make it quieter with the cats on there unless you add resonators. Most of the kits, even with the cats, are tame inside. The Mach Shorty would be most aggressive in and out, but not drive you crazy.

Just for curiousity's sake how much to add the resonators to the v2?

Just for curiousity's sake how much to add the resonators to the v2?

Oh stop it Mary Alice. Man up and grow some balls. Buy a Prius if you want quiet :D

Just got my 3.5" tips from y'all and holy jeez i wanted to lick em!! Too late to put them on tonite, but as soon as i do, i'll throw some pics up here.

they are gorgeous, aren't they?

Just for curiousity's sake how much to add the resonators to the v2?

Sent you a PM

... While we have a similar setup, I have the Roto-Fab where he is stock. Mine is definitely louder inside and out. ...

I think you answered what I was wondering about right there. But let me double check. You and zepcom have the same exhaust (except I think zepcom said he has prototype, non-adjustable J's), right? And you think the intake is what makes your car significantly louder?

I've read all of these threads and its all starting to run together in my head.

Thanks.

Sent you a PM


Steve,

Can you show the resonators you are talking about? Do you happen to have any sound clips? I thinking my car MIGHT be a bit too loud when I put the cats on there with the straight pipes. It would be nice to have a back up plan. I would need something short, maybe 10 to 12 inches as I don't have a bunch of room with out moving things around (previous Magnaflow cat back puts the x kind of in the middle). Not sure what would be better the mach shorty (if it fits) or the resonators. In the past I have not been a big fan of just resonators as they didn't seem to cut down on volume much just sort of made the tone a bit deeper and made drone more pronounced. I'm hoping that I don't have to add anything but I'm interested in what you think would be my best option should I need to. I know the price on for the muffler, please PM the price as well for the resonators if you can't post it here. Thanks a bunch.

If anyone installs the high flow cats with a stock exhaust I would like to see a post about it.

I have seen dyno tests with long tube headers and the stock GT mufflers compared to straight pipes with virtually no difference (2 HP). So, as has been mentioned, the cats may be most of the problem with the stock exhaust.

Also, stock GT mufflers with headers and high flow cats are reported to sound good, so high flow cats only may be a good performing system.

Amen, Brother. That is exactly my train of thought.

Originally, I was looking very seriously at long tube headers. But $1400ish is a lot of jack. Plus the installation - even though we're lucky compared to some other cars - still looked like a big enough pain that it would be stressful to get it done over a weekend in time to commute on Monday.

So then a Solo cat back looked good. Half the price. Plenty of sound. Some performance gain. Then the cats made it look even better. More header-like sounding to my ear based on the videos. Plus a significant power gain, better throttle response, possibly better mileage, etc. But now I've crept back up to the $1400ish neighborhood. Which invites headers and Corsa back into the discussion. LTH's are just plain cool. The Solo cat and back looks way easier to install and easier to remove if needed. Plus I'd really like to see Solo do well after all their effort. Corsa is a more mature, proven product. But at around the same price, I don't think it can compete with the power and sound of the other two options.

But Solo cats alone... that is interesting. Half the price again. Some sort of sound increase. (Maybe if I never hear a Solo cat back in person, I'll never know what I'm missing. Blissfully ignorant.) Probably more power gain vs. just cat-back. Less fiddly install? No messing around with clamps and alignment issues. If I did one, I'd like to do them both. But the cats seem like a good first step.

I agree, take advantage of the group buy and get the cat's now. Down the road pick one of the Solo cat back's. Even if it did drone running just the cat's, a little drone won't hurt me. I'm just looking for the best sound,price, performance from the best company. I think Solo is wining.

they are gorgeous, aren't they?

After seeing your 3.5" tips I had to have them. I am so thankful Zepcom was generous enough to sell me his GXP rear diffuser so i could get them while I was up there.

I think you answered what I was wondering about right there. But let me double check. You and zepcom have the same exhaust (except I think zepcom said he has prototype, non-adjustable J's), right? And you think the intake is what makes your car significantly louder?

I've read all of these threads and its all starting to run together in my head.

Thanks.

You are correct. I think mine being louder is a combination of the CAI and I need to adjust my J's in 1/2 - 1". Adjusting them in should quiet it down some and get rid of the hum I have between 1200-1300rpms. This helped Majesticix who was having a similar issue with his axle-back. Even at it's current volume it is not loud on the inside. At highway speeds it sounds close to stock. Zepcoms car does sound almost stock inside when driving normal. When he lays his foot into it, there is a nice growl inside. On the outside our cars are nice and muscular sounding. The sound is louder and more full sounding when comparing to the original V2.

Oh stop it Mary Alice. Man up and grow some balls. Buy a Prius if you want quiet :D


Stop it Virus your gonna make me cry:whine: LOL

JEC_GT posted this video on YouTube of our HF cats with our Mach Shorty kit. It sounds fantastic on the drive-by. What do you all think? You gotta love the little chuckle at the end LOL.

C2hzoJ15qu8

Steve it sounds Friggn' awsome. Maybe Virus is right and i'm being a Mary alice. LOL

I think you answered what I was wondering about right there. But let me double check. You and zepcom have the same exhaust (except I think zepcom said he has prototype, non-adjustable J's), right? And you think the intake is what makes your car significantly louder?

I've read all of these threads and its all starting to run together in my head.

Thanks.


Sorry I'm late to the party here, lots of discussion on this thread that I missed until now.

Yes; Correct. My current config is stock intake and Mach Balanced + HFC and prototype non-adjustable J's (that are perfectly aligned, btw!) and the standard kit 3" tips.

Then virus goes and "one ups me" and gets my GXP diffuser (I downgraded back to the stock GT diffuser for now, but a new GXP one should be delivered shortly) and the 3.5" tips, along with his CAI. But Virus's car is bada$$ now with the GXP Diffuser and the 3.5" tips... :driving:

He has a different CAI than Majesticx has and different than I wanted to get. I have my eyes on the Volant, where Majesticx has the NEP OTR. I know from my last car that putting on a CAI puts a new "whoosh" type of sound from under the hood (not exhaust sound, not drone) that makes the car somewhat 'louder' since there is more air flowing inwards.

It's a natural match, with a CAI you have the engine breathing better, and with the SOLO Cats + Mach (or any derivitive of such) + J's you have the engine exhaling much better, which is a win win situation.

My personal reasons for still having STOCK intake are simply when I started researching CAI's it was already fall and my bday is in April so I targetted it as a bday list item from the wife. We'll see... :wink2: We all know how she is as pertains to things that "make my car louder" .... hmmmm :(

(Maybe if I never hear a Solo cat back in person, I'll never know what I'm missing. Blissfully ignorant.)

Ask VIRUS about that! :judge:

I was trying to describe to him over the phone while he was driving up to Buffalo... using comparative language. There really is no substitute (home videos included) for hearing and experiencing it in person.

While he was standing next to me behind the car when I remote started it, I could tell he 'got it' just then.

"Words cannot describe".

If you're on the fence, have a listen to a car with a config that you think you might go for. I know there's compeditors out there, but do you see Corsa supporting this board? Do you see them answering their customers questions, or fine-tuning their products to meet the needs of the g8 community? That's why I put my money into SOLO. The cats are nothing short of amazing... please do find someone with a solo car and you will never go back.

I concur. The videos while entertaining, just don't correctly display what is heard in person. Hearing Zepcom's car in person brought a huge smile to my face. I was concerned at first because we got into the car and it was too quiet. I was concerned the exhaust wouldn't be loud enough. When I heard it on the outside I was astonished in a good way!

Zepcom, I just got off the phone with Jeff and he told me to just push the J's in about an inch and that should solve my issue in the 1200-1400rpm range. I don't want to work anymore. I just want to drive:gears:

Order has been placed, it will be interesting to see what these do with the JBA shorties and Corsa cat-back.

-Todd...

15% louder. So a V2 with J-pipes and cats would be the equivalent of a Mach Balanced without cats? One step up so to speak?

15% louder. So a V2 with J-pipes and cats would be the equivalent of a Mach Balanced without cats? One step up so to speak?

I'm pretty sure it would be louder than the Mach Balanced. With cats your in Mach Shorty territory.

15% louder. So a V2 with J-pipes and cats would be the equivalent of a Mach Balanced without cats? One step up so to speak?

The cats on a V2 with J pipes would be equivalent in volume to a Mach Shorty Balanced. The cats would sound fantastic with the V2 and J. The cats will make the exhaust note even more full and rich. You will get the decelation burble and rawness comes back when you add the cats, but it will not ever get out of hand.

TCorzett....you have been added to the list of HF Cat orders as #16. There are only 24 more sets of cats being sold at the GB price...call me at 516-655-9002 to get your order in. The second batch will ship in approximately 30 days.

The cats on a V2 with J pipes would be equivalent in volume to a Mach Shorty Balanced. The cats would sound fantastic with the V2 and J. The cats will make the exhaust note even more full and rich. You will get the decelation burble and rawness comes back when you add the cats, but it will not ever get out of hand.

My biggest concerns then are interior noise level and the AFM changeover. I want to minimize those as much as possible. I currently run the MF Street system. I am fortunate to have a car that doesn't drone and I run with AFM off, but it would be nice to activate it on road trips. My V2 is still in the box, so I'm thinking that adding the J-pipes and cats would do the trick. Is there a difference between the "T" on the V2 and the balance pipe on the later edition sound-wise?

Can a stock tune or SuperCortex tunes be safely used with high flow cats? How much power would be lost by using a non-optimal tune? Wild guesses are welcome.

Can a stock tune or SuperCortex tunes be safely used with high flow cats? How much power would be lost by using a non-optimal tune? Wild guesses are welcome.

No worries bro. The car will be fine. If it is okay on a stock car then it will be fine for a car that is tuned for more power.

My biggest concerns then are interior noise level and the AFM changeover. I want to minimize those as much as possible. I currently run the MF Street system. I am fortunate to have a car that doesn't drone and I run with AFM off, but it would be nice to activate it on road trips. My V2 is still in the box, so I'm thinking that adding the J-pipes and cats would do the trick. Is there a difference between the "T" on the V2 and the balance pipe on the later edition sound wise?

The T makes it a little quieter as does the second X pipe on the V2. I had my V2 changed to the Mach balanced last Friday and added the cats. I have no drone and the AFM switchover is almost inaudible.

Can a stock tune or SuperCortex tunes be safely used with high flow cats? How much power would be lost by using a non-optimal tune? Wild guesses are welcome.

I have a cortex... as Lazerous said, it's all good.

What do you define as a "non-optimal tune"?

My biggest concerns then are interior noise level and the AFM changeover. I want to minimize those as much as possible. I currently run the MF Street system. I am fortunate to have a car that doesn't drone and I run with AFM off, but it would be nice to activate it on road trips. My V2 is still in the box, so I'm thinking that adding the J-pipes and cats would do the trick. Is there a difference between the "T" on the V2 and the balance pipe on the later edition sound wise?

If you have the AFM off then don't worry about any "Noise". You'll enjoy every minute.

Can a stock tune or SuperCortex tunes be safely used with high flow cats? How much power would be lost by using a non-optimal tune? Wild guesses are welcome.

I have the Cortex tune as well. You will not have any issues what so ever. No damage done.

If by "Stock" tune you mean a dyno tune. Then you will be just fine as well. In fact you should get even better numbers.

What do you define as a "non-optimal tune"?
An optimal tune would tweak the engine controller to safely maximize power for a specific engine and mod configuration. My current tune is designed to be safe for the average GT with a Roto-Fab CAI and 93 octane gas. I was worried that high flow cats might alter the air-fuel ratio, etc. in a direction that in the long term would be bad for the engine.

An optimal tune would tweak the engine controller to safely maximize power for a specific engine and mod configuration. My current tune is designed to be safe for the average GT with a Roto-Fab CAI and 93 octane gas. I was worried that high flow cats might alter the air-fuel ratio, etc. in a direction that in the long term would be bad for the engine.

It will and the Cortex will not offer the optimal tune. However, it does a decent job.

Can any of the tunes be tweaked in order to accommodate more air flow? On my car, the HP Tuners software that I use can be modified anytime in order to accommodate more flow. I would think that the A/F trim tables would be the ones needing adjustment to optimize power. You do not NEED to tune it though, as they will work fine on their own. Tuning will only help further the gains, but not tuning it should not be harmful.

I think VMS does.

Will be watching on how these fit with JBA Shorty's and a Corsa Cat back...

I have the mach exhaust with HF cats on the way and the volant CAI waiting to be installed. I want to get a tune that will be undetectable by the dealership and was originally looking at the cortex as it allows you to flash back to stock, its reasonably priced and people seem fairly pleased with it for the most part. Since they don't have any tunes that take the cats into account, is it still "worth it" to get the cortex or would I be better off paying more for something like a VMS or livernois stealth tune? Anyone who has either want to chime in?

I have the mach exhaust with HF cats on the way and the volant CAI waiting to be installed. I want to get a tune that will be undetectable by the dealership and was originally looking at the cortex as it allows you to flash back to stock, its reasonably priced and people seem fairly pleased with it for the most part. Since they don't have any tunes that take the cats into account, is it still "worth it" to get the cortex or would I be better off paying more for something like a VMS stealth tune? Anyone who has either want to chime in?

Virus has had both and would probably tell you that he prefers the vms, but you should pm him and ask. You can go back to stock with VMS or livernois as well. Both also sell a "stealth" option that should be undectectable if you take it to the shop tuned by accident. But i would still advise putting it back to stock before you go just in case.

I have the mach exhaust with HF cats on the way and the volant CAI waiting to be installed. I want to get a tune that will be undetectable by the dealership and was originally looking at the cortex as it allows you to flash back to stock, its reasonably priced and people seem fairly pleased with it for the most part. Since they don't have any tunes that take the cats into account, is it still "worth it" to get the cortex or would I be better off paying more for something like a VMS stealth tune? Anyone who has either want to chime in?


I'm running the Mach system with a Rotofab and VMS tune and it's been great. I bought the Powerflash cable to flash the tune whenever I desire so if and when it goes to the dealer for service I'll flash back to stock although the tune is supposed to be undetectable. You will pay more but I think it's worth it especially if you want to further upgrades down the road.

I have the mach exhaust with HF cats on the way and the volant CAI waiting to be installed. I want to get a tune that will be undetectable by the dealership and was originally looking at the cortex as it allows you to flash back to stock, its reasonably priced and people seem fairly pleased with it for the most part. Since they don't have any tunes that take the cats into account, is it still "worth it" to get the cortex or would I be better off paying more for something like a VMS stealth tune? Anyone who has either want to chime in?

A couple people on here have said the Cortex will not be an issue with CAI, Catback, and HFC but I don't think anybody can answer for any long term issues. Is it safe to assume that if there is no CEL, that all is well??

I have the V2+J, CAI, Cortex and now want the HFC's so I am pondering the same as I just got the Cortex last week but the mod bug keeps biting me. Don't feel like spending another $1200 on HFC's and tune though. If I can save $600 and not get a custom tune, that makes by decision easier:wink2:

I would like to get in on this group buy please. Thank you.

I would like to get in on this group buy please. Thank you.

I think you might want to call them?

Hey, anyone here got an appointment to take there car to vms for a tune with the cats? I know Kirk needs a car in the shop, not just data logging to get it to the nats azz. I know some guys are going to run the Kooks mid tune but I'm holding out for a tune specific to the cats. On the plus side this will at least give me a good idea how the car feels with the cats added to the 91 tune that I have then how if feels with a tune for the exact set up. Ideally I will put it up on a dyno, we will see.

I'm running the Mach system with a Rotofab and VMS tune and it's been great. I bought the Powerflash cable to flash the tune whenever I desire so if and when it goes to the dealer for service I'll flash back to stock although the tune is supposed to be undetectable. You will pay more but I think it's worth it especially if you want to further upgrades down the road.

That's the tune I use. Flash cable is a great tool!

I would like to get in on this group buy please. Thank you.

Give me a call at 516-655-9002 and I would be happy to take your order and add you to the list:)

Steve

I have the mach exhaust with HF cats on the way and the volant CAI waiting to be installed. I want to get a tune that will be undetectable by the dealership and was originally looking at the cortex as it allows you to flash back to stock, its reasonably priced and people seem fairly pleased with it for the most part. Since they don't have any tunes that take the cats into account, is it still "worth it" to get the cortex or would I be better off paying more for something like a VMS or livernois stealth tune? Anyone who has either want to chime in?

The Cortex, Livernois and VMS tunes are all stealth. Just flash back to stock and you will be fine. Your the only person who can decide it's worth it. The Cortex is the best price/performance tune available. The VMS and Livernois are better tunes and allow greater versatility. Feel free to PM me and I will tell you my thoughts offline. I don't want to hijack the thread.

Steve, as far as I can tell the Livernois and VMS tunes are locked. If you want them changed, you have to call them and have the new tunes emailed to you.

I was worried that high flow cats might alter the air-fuel ratio, etc. in a direction that in the long term would be bad for the engine.

The second part of the first post will help you monitor this ;) http://www.g8board.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29560

Thanks for the input, everyone. Just sent you a PM, virus.

Here are two more videos, in cabin with acceleration, of the HF cats and our Mach exhaust (middle of the line). Kinda sounds like a pissed off lion, don't you think? Enjoy:)


Start-Up and Take-Off- In Cabin
YoOan1fSZ8s

Whose car is in this video and what mods are done? It ran 0-60 in about 3.5 seconds. If the car in that video only has the Solo cats, the Solo exhaust, and maybe a CAI and a tune; then holy crap, I might jump on this list.

Any reason why these wouldn't work with a Borla catback? Man, I am getting excited now about these. I'm thinking the Solo cats, plus my Borla, plus a JBA or Doug Thorley shorty and this baby will finally breathe and finish waking up!!!!!!!!!!!

Watching this thread closely now.

Whose car is in this video and what mods are done? It ran 0-60 in about 3.5 seconds. If the car in that video only has the Solo cats, the Solo exhaust, and maybe a CAI and a tune; then holy crap, I might jump on this list.

Any reason why these wouldn't work with a Borla catback? Man, I am getting excited now about these. I'm thinking the Solo cats, plus my Borla, plus a JBA or Doug Thorley shorty and this baby will finally breathe and finish waking up!!!!!!!!!!!

Watching this thread closely now.

They will bolt right up to the Borla, however your drone area between 70-74 will most likely be louder and possibly expand it to lower and/or higher mph. If the Borla drone area doesn't bother you then of course there would be no issues. The power increase is simply amazing with these cats!

Whose car is in this video and what mods are done? It ran 0-60 in about 3.5 seconds. If the car in that video only has the Solo cats, the Solo exhaust, and maybe a CAI and a tune; then holy crap, I might jump on this list.

Any reason why these wouldn't work with a Borla catback? Man, I am getting excited now about these. I'm thinking the Solo cats, plus my Borla, plus a JBA or Doug Thorley shorty and this baby will finally breathe and finish waking up!!!!!!!!!!!

Watching this thread closely now.

That's funny, I never noticed that. It hits 60 in no time :)

They will match right up, no issues. You could even add the J's to get rid of any drone.

They will match right up, no issues. You could even add the J's to get rid of any drone.

The J's might be tricky with the Borla rear mufflers. I would love to see pics of the first car with the Borla + J's.

That's probably Nightwing's car. You can tell by the flashing tire pressure indicator. I'm not sure what's going on with that, but I see it in every video with his car. I'm going to have to ask about that when I meet him in person this spring. :driving:

Keep in mind that the speedo is in km/h, not mph. 60 km/h is 37.3 mph.

They will match right up, no issues. You could even add the J's to get rid of any drone.

I'd rather not start this debate again. I love my exhaust and I'm hoping the Solo cats make it even louder. I have ZERO annoying drone.

That's probably Nightwing's car. You can tell by the flashing tire pressure indicator. I'm not sure what's going on with that, but I see it in every video with his car. I'm going to have to ask about that when I meet him in person this spring. :driving:

Keep in mind that the speedo is in km/h, not mph. 60 km/h is 37.3 mph.

OK, I'm an idiot. I was gonna say - that's fast for very few mods.

I'd rather not start this debate again. I love my exhaust and I'm hoping the Solo cats make it even louder. I have ZERO annoying drone.



OK, I'm an idiot. I was gonna say - that's fast for very few mods.

The cats will make your Borla approximately 15% louder. It's not so much the added volume as it is the overall sound that's improved.

The cats will make your Borla approximately 15% louder. It's not so much the added volume as it is the overall sound that's improved.

Beautiful. Perfect. Thx.

Let's try to put the cats into some sort of perspective for those who might be considering these.

For those of you who have the cats AND also have a tune, are you able to say that the performance improvement "feel" and "pull" is similar to when you first tuned your car?

A lot of people can associate with how their car felt when 20-30 hp was added with a tune.

Do the cats feel the same way? More? Less? This would be a good, relative gauge to what several of you are saying about the "feel" of these cats.

Let's try to put the cats into some sort of perspective for those who might be considering these.

For those of you who have the cats AND also have a tune, are you able to say that the performance improvement "feel" and "pull" is similar to when you first tuned your car?

A lot of people can associate with how their car felt when 20-30 hp was added with a tune.

Do the cats feel the same way? More? Less? This would be a good, relative gauge to what several of you are saying about the "feel" of these cats.

Comparison: MBVette and I road in each others cars today. He has Livernois tune, Volant CAI and Borla Catback. I have VMS tune Roto-Fab CAI, Mach balanced w/Solo cats. My car pulls significantly harder. I would not say it's the same night and day difference a tune makes, but it's definitely a noticeable difference. It's hard to compare the tune with the cats simply because the transmission tune was the biggest part of the entire tunes improvement. Kirk gave me the VMS tune for the Kooks headers w/cats. Another board member should be receiving his Solo cats w/Mach Shorty's within the next two weeks and is taking it in for Kirk to tune. This may or may not provide a slightly better tune specifically for the Solo Cats. I tried to schedule a before and after dyno through Jeff when I drove the 7+ hours to Buffalo to have the work done, but the shop close to Solo doesn't do dyno's on Saturdays. The board member that is going to see Kirk said he will be doing before and after dyno's. This should provide conclusive results. (hopefully)

To answer your second post directly though, the cats have less of an impact than the tune did for me. Mostly because of the transmission portion of the tune.

Comparison: MBVette and I road in each others cars today. He has Livernois tune, Volant CAI and Borla Catback. I have VMS tune Roto-Fab CAI, Mach balanced w/Solo cats. My car pulls significantly harder. I would not say it's the same night and day difference a tune makes, but it's definitely a noticeable difference. It's hard to compare the tune with the cats simply because the transmission tune was the biggest part of the entire tunes improvement. Kirk gave me the VMS tune for the Kooks headers w/cats. Another board member should be receiving his Solo cats w/Mach Shorty's within the next two weeks and is taking it in for Kirk to tune. This may or may not provide a slightly better tune specifically for the Solo Cats. I tried to schedule a before and after dyno through Jeff when I drove the 7+ hours to Buffalo to have the work done, but the shop close to Solo doesn't do dyno's on Saturdays. The board member that is going to see Kirk said he will be doing before and after dyno's. This should provide conclusive results. (hopefully)

To answer your second post directly though, the cats have less of an impact than the tune did for me. Mostly because of the transmission portion of the tune.

Interesting. Good description, thank you.

These just got bumped up my mod list.

I have hated the stock cats from the first time I looked at them.

One thing I noticed right away was the stock cats entrance is at a 90 degree angle. The 2.5" inlet is only about 1.5 -1.75" as it has a stepped inner portion. They are very restrictive and extremely heavy.

The 200 cell stainless wound converters that we ended up using after much trial and error, for the G8, are rated up to 6.0L. That is 6.0L per side. These are far overrated for this vehicle.

This style converter was originally manufactured for turbocharged and supercharged cars. The manufacturer that we use built this internal substrate different than many other manufacturers. With each wind of the coil, it is braised with a high heat resistant braise. This keeps it from coming unwound.

Sorry for all the posts. I never looked at any of the Solo threads because of my existing investment in a catback. Now that I saw this about the cats, I am curious.

Based on the above, for those of us out here who are considering the Vector single turbo kit, would these cats be able to handle a turbocharged or even supercharged application??

I have the Cats and a Cortex tune....where I saw the gain was in the upper end 70-90 is a blink. Hard to say on take off since I have summer tires and the snow keeps coming. I also installed a complete mach shorty so there is a whole lot going on that I need to sort out.

Well, I am in. To a faster future!

Sorry for all the posts. I never looked at any of the Solo threads because of my existing investment in a catback. Now that I saw this about the cats, I am curious.

Based on the above, for those of us out here who are considering the Vector single turbo kit, would these cats be able to handle a turbocharged or even supercharged application??

I would call Steve or Jeff on this one as it would be purely conjecture by us. Considering how over engineered these are I'm fairly certain they will be fine. They are rated for a 12 Liter engine :D

Whose car is in this video and what mods are done? It ran 0-60 in about 3.5 seconds. If the car in that video only has the Solo cats, the Solo exhaust, and maybe a CAI and a tune; then holy crap, I might jump on this list.

Any reason why these wouldn't work with a Borla catback? Man, I am getting excited now about these. I'm thinking the Solo cats, plus my Borla, plus a JBA or Doug Thorley shorty and this baby will finally breathe and finish waking up!!!!!!!!!!!

Watching this thread closely now.

His car has a tune, along with only our catback and cats, BUT he always de-tunes to stock before he comes and tests with us.

Whose car is in this video and what mods are done? It ran 0-60 in about 3.5 seconds. If the car in that video only has the Solo cats, the Solo exhaust, and maybe a CAI and a tune; then holy crap, I might jump on this list.

Any reason why these wouldn't work with a Borla catback? Man, I am getting excited now about these. I'm thinking the Solo cats, plus my Borla, plus a JBA or Doug Thorley shorty and this baby will finally breathe and finish waking up!!!!!!!!!!!

Watching this thread closely now.

I would call Steve or Jeff on this one as it would be purely conjecture by us. Considering how over engineered these are I'm fairly certain they will be fine. They are rated for a 12 Liter engine :D

They will handle a SC or TC application very well. We run a similar type of HF cat in the turbo Solstice and Sky, and these are rated far more than those cats are.

23 pairs of cats left in the group buy! Thanks dynasty and Tcorzett for your orders and support! Give me a call at 516-655-9002 to get in on the second batch.

Steve

Hey Steve,

I'm very interested but a bit concerned about making the car much louder....
Currently I'm running the Magnaflow 16795 cat back which deletes the mid-pipe cats and resonator and I get quite a bit of popping on decel (which i like) but concerned about making the car louder.

How do you think these will work with my set up....

Thanks!

-Ed

I WANT MY CATS!!! The wait is agonizing...

Hey Steve,

I'm very interested but a bit concerned about making the car much louder....
Currently I'm running the Magnaflow 16795 cat back which deletes the mid-pipe cats and resonator and I get quite a bit of popping on decel (which i like) but concerned about making the car louder.

How do you think these will work with my set up....

Thanks!

-Ed

Ed,
Great question. Usually the cats will add about 10-15% volume. Without J pipes, you risk having some drone, although i can not confirm that for sure. Does your setup have mufflers on the rear section? If not, we have J pipes that you could weld into your rear section that would solve that issue before it starts.

Steve

I WANT MY CATS!!! The wait is agonizing...

Take lots of Advil PM to keep you in a fog until they arrive :thumbsup:

The wait is worth it !!!

Take lots of Advil PM to keep you in a fog until they arrive :thumbsup:

I also want my VMS tune until they get here. My car succckkksss with a stock tune. The RotoFab CAI really bogs the car down when untuned on my car. It even did it with my Superchips until the CAI tune came out. I emailed my files to VMS on friday so I hope to get them back monday.

I also want my VMS tune until they get here. My car succckkksss with a stock tune. The RotoFab CAI really bogs the car down when untuned on my car. It even did it with my Superchips until the CAI tune came out. I emailed my files to VMS on friday so I hope to get them back monday.


Did you get your files yet? :)

thx steve. just got the tune from kirk today. Can't wait to get off work and slap this tune on the car.

22 spots left in the group buy for the HF cats! Call me at 516-655-9002 to get in on the group buy pricing! Thanks for the support:)

21 pairs of cats left on group buy! Thanks for the support. Call Steve at 516-655-9002 to order or with questions.

Im getting alittle antsi.....j/k

HA HA...an update for group 1 (orders 1-15). We have the first delivery of cats in Buffalo and are currently modifying them to fit the G8. It looks like they will be ready by Friday!!

that means I wont get these joints until the following thursday or friday here in cali... oh well.

that means I wont get these joints until the following thursday or friday here in cali... oh well.

Just be thankful you will not have them by this weekend's GTG... I'd have your car in the air (pulling them out to go on my car) in the parking lot!

-Todd...

Just got me a set of the cats. Looking forward to putting them on.

Just be thankful you will not have them by this weekend's GTG... I'd have your car in the air (pulling them out to go on my car) in the parking lot!

-Todd...

lol. I just want to keep up with the 40 plus Goats in attendance. Looks like we may get rained on this weekend though. Between the rain and my old lady being bored on the ride down it could make for a crappy day. In any event I can't wait to hit the road for another GTG and hopefully a chance at some spirited driving with the NorCal Goats.

Where is the GTG this time? If you say boring ride then I'm guessing it's a ways out? I wonder if you were to oder some DT headers today if they would show up about the same time as those cats?

^please don't tempt me. The GTG is in Modesto. Some are hooking up in Concord to meet up with everyone else in Dublin.

HA HA...an update for group 1 (orders 1-15). We have the first delivery of cats in Buffalo and are currently modifying them to fit the G8. It looks like they will be ready by Friday!!

Got the call from Jeff today and getting them installed @ Zoro this Friday - then straight to Westport Auto for a few dynoruns. I will post up the results. I have the Cortex tuner and currently running the Roto-fab 87 tune. I might start with the stock tune and then re-flash to the Roto-fab 87 tune to see what differences, if any, there are.

Got the call from Jeff today and getting them installed @ Zoro this Friday - then straight to Westport Auto for a few dynoruns. I will post up the results. I have the Cortex tuner and currently running the Roto-fab 87 tune. I might start with the stock tune and then re-flash to the Roto-fab 87 tune to see what differences, if any, there are.

Will you be able to do "before cats" and "after cats" dyno runs or do you already know what your car is making right now??

Will you be able to do "before cats" and "after cats" dyno runs or do you already know what your car is making right now??


You beat me too it, I was going to ask the same thing. This is an opportunity to find out what the cats alone do as well as if a new tune with the cats will help out much. If you can time those runs right it would sure help to answer those questions.

Will you be able to do "before cats" and "after cats" dyno runs or do you already know what your car is making right now??

That's the real key. Before and after dynos of no cats/cats as there is no definitive information regarding the gains of the cats. At this point I'm not willing to spend $600 for more sound. I have the perfect sound from my Mach system now and if I am going to spend money on cats it needs to increase the power a good amount.

Will you be able to do "before cats" and "after cats" dyno runs or do you already know what your car is making right now??

I have no idea what my car is making to the wheels as I have never put the car on a dyno. If Solo is willing to help out with the "after" dyno costs, I have no problem paying for the "before" costs. Hey who knows, if the gains are impressive enough, maybe that little cost up front can result in a few more sales for them. Hopefully Steve can chime in on this one...:)

I have no idea what my car is making to the wheels as I have never put the car on a dyno. If Solo is willing to help out with the "after" dyno costs, I have no problem paying for the "before" costs. Hey who knows, if the gains are impressive enough, maybe that little cost up front can result in a few more sales for them. Hopefully Steve can chime in on this one...:)

That would be a decision for Jeff, as he is the owner. I am sure it will be talked about when he goes in for the install.

Only 18 sets of HF cats left in the group buy. Thanks again for the support:) Give me a buzz to get in on the last 18 sets.

Steve

HA HA...an update for group 1 (orders 1-15). We have the first delivery of cats in Buffalo and are currently modifying them to fit the G8. It looks like they will be ready by Friday!!

Patiently waiting. :wink2:

That's the real key. Before and after dynos of no cats/cats as there is no definitive information regarding the gains of the cats. At this point I'm not willing to spend $600 for more sound. I have the perfect sound from my Mach system now and if I am going to spend money on cats it needs to increase the power a good amount.


I'm patiently waiting as well for the 'dyno' proof -- as anyone on this board with HF cats will tell you, the car is instantly more responsive, "gets up out of the hole" faster, barks from a dig quicker, and has more instantaneous throttle response throughout the torque range, than compared to the stock cats. All the above "feelings" I describe are after I had had my SOLO catback exhaust system on for several months... so the "placebo effect" of the already higher performance my car had due to the catback exhaust was something that I was already used to and "normalized" to. The only variable here was adding the cats to my setup.

Having the dyno numbers will put it in 'writing' for those who doubt it due to pre-purchase jitters. Trust me, those 'jitters' are just that.

What's difficult to quantify is the 'before and after' tests... are they done with a SOLO catback and a CAI? Which CAI? Or Stock intake? Which SOLO catback? What about comparing to stock catback with solo cats but SOLO axelbacks? It's hard to do/justify dyno runs (especially at ~100 a pop per dyno run!) with so many combinations of performance mods out there on various G8's.

For example, my setup of cats + mach balanced + J's with stock intake and stock tune may be a bit off from Virus, who has the VMS tune, CAI, and otherwise the identical SOLO setup including cats. Dare I say I assume that his car is inherently faster / has more HP unleashed through the cats than I do. Not that I'm complaining... I love the performance and non-official "butt dyno" feel that adding the cats give to the car. NOT JUST A SOUND MOD, a definate performance boost mod, for sure!

Quantification of this is relative to the person who has a before and after dyno session with certain mods, trying to keep everything else almost "constant" --- but full disclosure of exact mods and tunes is IMPORTANT ... kept constant during the stock cats verses SOLO cats dyno comparison on the same day --- so others can compare / contrast those dyno results with what mods are specifically on their car for a more focused idea of what their gains will be.

The SOLO Cats truly unleash the potential of the 6.0 or 6.2L that this car has in it! :driving:

And I'm still running the stock intake too! Others who already have CAI's and a custom tune that can take advantage of more air in, and more air out, will have even more performance unleashed by the cats.

This is so much more than a sound mod, some people have to experience it (even from someone else's car at a local GTG who has the cats installed) to believe it.

--zepcom

Dyno numbers aside, In my opinion, if it makes the car feel better and more responsive, that is enough for me. Looking at the stock and the high flow cats, I can't imagine there is no change.

I plan to add a maggie and want to stay as close to CARB legal as possible. Seems like this is the only alternative. Not sure if it is even worth adding JBAs as it seems like they don't add any gains and it will pronbably just bring more attention to the cats. If needed, should not be to hard to replace cats for the inspection. Still not LTs, I know....

If this CA move does not happen for me, then I might be selling some high flow cats and looking for LTs. ;)

Ok Pulled the trigger and can't wait to get the cats!
My plan is to dyno the car before and after and then do a proper tune at Haddad Motorsports....

One question i forgot to ask... is this a direct bolt in replacement without any mods to the existing exhaust? I'm currently running the Magnaflow 16795 cat back.

Thanks,
-Ed

Ok Pulled the trigger and can't wait to get the cats!
My plan is to dyno the car before and after and then do a proper tune at Haddad Motorsports....

One question i forgot to ask... is this a direct bolt in replacement without any mods to the existing exhaust? I'm currently running the Magnaflow 16795 cat back.

Thanks,
-Ed

If the MF bolts to the stock converter without modification, then ours will bolt on also.

If the MF bolts to the stock converter without modification, then ours will bolt on also.


Great!

Thanks Steve!

17 spots left fo HF cats on group buy! Give me a call at 516-655-9002 to get in on the group buy pricing.

Steve

I'm patiently waiting as well for the 'dyno' proof -- as anyone on this board with HF cats will tell you, the car is instantly more responsive, "gets up out of the hole" faster, barks from a dig quicker, and has more instantaneous throttle response throughout the torque range, than compared to the stock cats. All the above "feelings" I describe are after I had had my SOLO catback exhaust system on for several months... so the "placebo effect" of the already higher performance my car had due to the catback exhaust was something that I was already used to and "normalized" to. The only variable here was adding the cats to my setup.

Having the dyno numbers will put it in 'writing' for those who doubt it due to pre-purchase jitters. Trust me, those 'jitters' are just that.

What's difficult to quantify is the 'before and after' tests... are they done with a SOLO catback and a CAI? Which CAI? Or Stock intake? Which SOLO catback? What about comparing to stock catback with solo cats but SOLO axelbacks? It's hard to do/justify dyno runs (especially at ~100 a pop per dyno run!) with so many combinations of performance mods out there on various G8's.

For example, my setup of cats + mach balanced + J's with stock intake and stock tune may be a bit off from Virus, who has the VMS tune, CAI, and otherwise the identical SOLO setup including cats. Dare I say I assume that his car is inherently faster / has more HP unleashed through the cats than I do. Not that I'm complaining... I love the performance and non-official "butt dyno" feel that adding the cats give to the car. NOT JUST A SOUND MOD, a definate performance boost mod, for sure!

Quantification of this is relative to the person who has a before and after dyno session with certain mods, trying to keep everything else almost "constant" --- but full disclosure of exact mods and tunes is IMPORTANT ... kept constant during the stock cats verses SOLO cats dyno comparison on the same day --- so others can compare / contrast those dyno results with what mods are specifically on their car for a more focused idea of what their gains will be.

The SOLO Cats truly unleash the potential of the 6.0 or 6.2L that this car has in it! :driving:

And I'm still running the stock intake too! Others who already have CAI's and a custom tune that can take advantage of more air in, and more air out, will have even more performance unleashed by the cats.

This is so much more than a sound mod, some people have to experience it (even from someone else's car at a local GTG who has the cats installed) to believe it.

--zepcom

All excellent points, and a great post!! I'm off to Westport Auto tomorrow morning for a pre-cat install dyno. I am currently running with a Solo Mach-Shorty Balanced cat-back, Roto-fab CAI, and Superchips Cortex 87 Roto-fac CAI tune. Any suggestions for the pre-cat install dyno run? My thought is to bring the car to a complete stock tune, then running again with the Superchips 87 tune.

I plan to go back after the cats are installed (approx. 3 hours later) and dyno again (on the same dyno). However, this is costing me $130 per hook-up (ouch!). I don't mind paying for R&D but if it makes someone else's pockets fatter because of it, I think there should be somewhat of a compromise. Hopefully Jeff will be there when I get the cats installed.

I will keep everyone posted.