Guys, I had my downpipe made yesterday, and man has it made a HUGE difference.

Anyways, it took my exhaust guy a very short time to make it once we had a gameplan in place. I thought it necessary to pass it along to everyone here so they can have theirs made as well. It will literally take TWO pieces of pipe and a flex section to get it done and have it MANDREL bent, while including a very short part of the HRC "downpipe".

All you need is a longer mandrel bent 90 degree angled bend with approximately 2 foot legs, perhaps a tad shorter, but definitely get the longest you can acquire at 2.5". (I actually used stainless steel here.) That way, you will minimize the welding necessary. Anyways, you merely cut the HRC downpipe higher up so the 90 degree piece comes down at a slight 20-30 degree angle. That way, it still avoids the A/C lines and also very slightly misses the crossmember below. After that, you have your flex section and a straight piece welded on to finish the DP and meet the cat. I'd recommend having the flex section placed closest to the crossmember, so if something does touch there, it will be the "silent" touching flex portion. (mine was close, but didn't touch) If you ask and maybe your exhaust guy cooperates, you may be able to have the straight pipe go directly to the catback and avoid the car entirely. (however, that would only work for off-road and track purposes! ;-))

Here's a decent picture I just took of it detailed the key bend:


Again, notice how high the HRC piece was cut. Just make sure and have the ceramic surface of the HRC DP grinded down slightly at teh weldpoint to make the welding easier. Also notice that the bracket to the block was welded back in.

I can't believe the performance gains. At 14-15 psi, the power is crazy! The boost comes fast and once it begins, the boost gauge needle flies to the right like never before. I actually get full boost, that's 15 psi, before 3500 rpms, at least! Moreover, before, when I was at 2000rpm's in a high gear, the boost would not increasein some cases until above 3000rpms. Not any longer. Regardless of low rpm, the boost always rises, and does so quickly!

I recommend getting this mod done IMMEDIATELY for any HRC kit owner. We've made too big a deal about getting this done. Just go to any muffler shop and have it done this way. They might be a little arrogant or whatever about how to get it done, but trust me, this is the easiest and most painless way to go.

Someone's already paid the price due to my newest mod: http://forums.2gnt.com/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=18&topic_id=4604&mesg_id=4604#4604

how much did your exhaust shop charge for that? We only have one in town and I want to get a new downpipe made, but I don't want to get raped in the process.

Well, it cost me about $200, but I had a LOT more done with my catback. I think it could all be done in less than an hour really. Especially if you brought your own stuff.(flex section and 90-degree bend)

Sweet man! hell yeah it makes a big difference! I'll just take this opportunity to rub in how much it cost me to make my own DP hahah about 60 bucks :o All i used were 2 90 degree mandrel bends from JC whitney, 3 flanges, flex section, and an o2 bung. Got it welded for 20 bucks..yeah i kinda got the big hook up :) But 200 bucks is a pretty damn good deal from an exaust shop..

Sweet! Good to see you got the downpipe done finally! I wonder how much of a difference it makes on the dyno! :)

i think i have a 3 inch d/p with my kit. i got it from powereclipes. am i gonna have to any modding to my hi-flo cat and 2.5 exhaust?

It's amazing how such a simple mod can make such a large diifference. I just got my 3"ss turbo back exhaust today. Look out 12's here I come!

I wonder what happened to HRC making 3" dp's. The one I had on my Eclipse was awesome.

^^ the eclipse i so dearly wanted to purchase. ;( what ever happened to all the bits and pieces anyways? some guy in TX buy the motor?

I've got the exhaust flange to bolt up to the turbo, but no HRC pipe. How hard do you guys think it will be to make the pipe from the flange back. I just don't wanna have to buy the HRC pipe if I don't have to.

>I've got the exhaust flange to bolt up to the turbo, but no
>HRC pipe. How hard do you guys think it will be to make the
>pipe from the flange back. I just don't wanna have to buy the
>HRC pipe if I don't have to.

I'm in the same position. I need a COMPLEATE downpipe. I might be able to fab up my own flange but I dunno how i'm going to clear the AC compressor using mendral bends. I guess only time will tell.

My supplies should be here soon. 2 aluminized 2.5" 90* bends, 1 2.5" stainless steel flex section, 50ft of 1" header wrap. All i need now is a o2 bung, and a few flanges.

Well i tried to use a 2.5" mandrel U bend to make the turbo outlet J pipe, but the U bend's radius wasnt tight enough.. I noticed that JC Whitney sells SS mandrel bends too, which have a tighter U bend..that will most def work out for the J pipe. The only downfall, is that SS 2.5" U bend is like 40-50 bucks! damn..can't fuck that up when fitting it together :o