My S2000: my2000, 90,000 miles

My related mods: Greddy SE dual exhaust

Fit and finish: top notch, no complaints whatsoever.

Power: eh, maybe 2-3 ponies at certain RPMs... I think (difficult to detect and no dyno). It's an S2000 though, so no surprise. It does seem to rev just slightly less inhibited.

Sound: love it. I expected a difference, but not quite this much. The exhaust now sounds crisper, sharper and deeper... less hollow if that makes sense. It's also slightly louder at 4-5K RPM and in vtec. Exactly what I hoped for. You get used to it fast, but that's like many mods.

Drone: it actually did eliminate a good amount of the 3-4K cruising drone associated with my exhaust. I'd say at least 50% of the drone is gone, maybe more.

Weight: like many have said, it's about half the weight of the OEM cat. You obviously won't feel it, but nice to know.

Heat: there's no heat shield, and people have mentioned it getting hotter in the passenger footwell and around the transmission tunnel. I didn't notice this after some aggressive backroad driving. Literally no difference.

Smell: it's there, but it's not bad. Nothing to worry about. I only noticed it when I pulled in my parking garage and opened the door while the car was idling. I did not drive top down yet.

CEL: nothing, before and after resetting my ECU.

After 100 miles in 70 degree weather (FINALLY pleasant temps in Florida), I'm impressed. If you have an aftermarket exhaust, and it's in your budget, I recommend the proper size Berk HFC.

 

I'm running the 63.5mm Berk High Flow cat since last May and there was no smell I could detect. Had tabs welded on it to fit the OEM head shields. These came off when I ran over a chunk of concrete and it struck the front corner of the heat shields and broke them free from the tabs. Will probably have them re-welded this winter when the car is in storage.



Running without the clamshell heat shields at present. Concerned about possible heat damage inside the car I've measured the temperature under the carpet on the passenger side and it has never exceeded 100°F and is normally below 90°F.

-- Chuck

 

How much did this cost you to get the tabs welded? Looks nice and stock.

 

I think I paid less than $50 for the tabs and the welding at a local shop. A buddy of mine welded his on by himself, but he has skills I don't.

The front tabs broke off the muffler and the whole heatshield was rattling under the car when a chunk of concrete went under the car and struck it. Debating having it rewelded this winter when the car is out of service in my garage.

Looks completely stock under the car when the heatshields are there.



-- Chuck

 

Does look stock. Really nice job there. Like you and I observed, though, not sure the heat shields are THAT helpful.

 

I asked Magnaflow which makes these cats about heat wrapping them.
They advised me not to do it because "if it maintains too much heat it could damage the internal components"
Maybe heat wrap is more effective than those shields but it might be worth noting that you could affect the lifespan of the cat.

 

Have you driven top down with it yet?
You mentioned it sounds slightly louder between 4-5k. I thought the same until I put my top down and realised it has an increadibly loud build up from 5-6k. (although that is with a Q300 exhaust).

 

I actually just took a top down drive for the second time tonight. Seems to go like this (compared to the OEM cat with my Greddy exhaust) - same noise level at low RPMs, builds up at 3.5K, much louder from 4-4.5K (louder than I originally thought... more of a sharp, throaty note instead of drone, now), same again right before VTEC, just moderately louder throughout VTEC. I suppose it's different depending on which cat back you pair it with.