Review: A'PEXi GT Spec cat-back exhaust
02-15-2016, 07:50 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Review: A'PEXi GT Spec cat-back exhaust
HeelToe Automotive has a few of these things on Clearance for stupid cheap, and i decided to give one a shot. Full disclosure- I work there. I decided to make a video to try to give potential buyers an idea of what this exhaust is really like, because there is not a whole lot of experience with it on the net, for S2K applications anyway. For what it's worth, i've had my S for 3 years now, and this is the first piece of aftermarket hardware it has seen in its 10 years and 28k miles on this planet. I have been staunchly opposed to modifying this car mostly because it is quite pristine and original, but after staring at these things in the warehouse for the last year i finally succumbed to curiosity.
Video is below. Following that is some additional information and pictures of this exhaust system.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WczH0Z3m92E
Who is A'PEXi?
Apex Integration (A'PEXi) has been around forever, and we probably all have varying degrees of familiarity with them. Apex is a pretty underrated company. It was started by former employees of HKS about 25 years ago (Those of you older than 25-30 years may recall HKS as being the grand old godfather of our modern Japanese tuning industry). Apex has focused on quality from day one and you can see it in their products. Even Apex packaging is head and shoulders above the competition. The names HKS, Greddy, and Apex mean less today than they used to. But remember that they all come from Japan and embrace the same principles that less conventional companies hold true!
What is GT Spec?
For many years, this was Apex' flagship exhaust system. When this exhaust system was designed, cost took a backseat to performance. I remember wanting one over a decade ago, but it being way out of my price range. They call it their "benchmark of power, craftsmanship, and design". MSRP for the S2000 system was around $900-$1000.00. You can still find many online retailers listing these in the $900 range.
Price
Heeltoe has what are likely to be the last 4 (well, now 3) of these in existence. They are currently priced at $399 each. Again, this is stupid cheap for this exhaust. If you've been around the tuning scene a while, you know this statement is not an exaggeration.
Features/Specs:
Full 304 SS construction
Hand made in Japan
60mm piping from cat to tip
Thick, laser-cut flanges
Highly effective intermediate muffler (it's quiet on the freeway/cruising)
Hollow hangers
Robotic TIG welded muffler
Removable silencer (supposed to be good for -7db)
This thing weighs about 17 lbs. IIRC, stock exhaust is ~60 lbs, so there is a nice savings there.
Sound
This was the wildcard for me, i totally didn't know what to expect on the "Can I Live With This Scale". Like i said, this car was stock beforehand, and after screwing around with cars for the last 15 years and working in the industry for 7, i've gained a great deal of appreciation for the incredible balance of performance and refinement that Honda achieved here. I've heard too many S2K exhausts that sound really cool at WOT near the upper reaches of the engine speed stratosphere, but are way too loud and impractical on a street car. And then there are other exhausts which sound buzzy/raspy/farty, and really just aren't doing the car, the driver, or the community any favors.
I was willing to take the gamble though, as i've always had great experience with Apexi products. This ended up being no different, and in fact, my favorite Apex exhaust ever in terms of sound. It sounds SO clean, and yet simultaneously ferocious. And that is just when you are smashing on it. When you are just milling about, taking it easy, the exhaust is mostly unobtrusive. On the freeway it is damn near silent while cruising. I tend to cruise around 65-70 mph, but i found this to remain true at all engine speeds. This was very important to me, as i like to drive this car on road trips all over the place and don't want my music, silence, or conversation to be tainted by farty exhaust. When you load the engine up, you will hear this exhaust more, and the degree to which is very dependent on engine speed and of course throttle position.
The video i think does an adequate job representing this exhaust, but like all internet exhaust videos it is not perfect. I can honestly say it sounds even better in person, and for those who are in Socal you are more than welcome to come check it out in person.
Styling
I like the styling, mostly from a nostalgic standpoint. Again, i really wanted one back in the day and these were the bees knees. For the fashion minded, this may not flip your cookie or get your race car max car show points. I realize that big tips and canisters are not as widely loved as they once were. Well, i can tell you that after installation, it actually looks pretty dang alright on the old S2K. While it might look more at home on an R33 GTR or other Japanese Muscle Car, it doesn't look too big to me, and with the Fastline bumper cap, i actually really think it compliments the car pretty well overall.
Performance
I'd like to think the car feels faster, but it totally could be psychosomatic. It certainly doesn't feel any slower, i can tell you that. I really REALLY wish i could afford to do some back to back dyno testing here, as i'm fairly confident that the car feels a bit stronger, but i cannot qualify or quantify this claim. And besides, it's only a 60mm. Great for reducing volume and obnoxiousness, but not ideal for maximum power. About that though...the car already makes great power. At the track, i find that the biggest limitations to my lap times are my own driving skills. A few horsepower more may shave a tenth or two, but my lap times don't currently have any impact on my paycheck. If i really need to go sick with power, forced induction here i come!
Installation
Very simple and straightforward. The front-mid engine placement makes for one of the shortest cat-back systems i've worked with. This system offers excellent fitment, and Apexi's installation kit is very comprehensive with high quality gaskets and fasteners, a detailed diagram, and torque specifications. This system was designed on the AP1, so i ended up having to move the rubber hanger bushings around and experiment with "a triangle bushing here and an oval bushing there" to position everything to my satisfaction.
And, in closing...
Well, somewhat to my surprise, i probably won't be putting the stocker back on anytime soon. I have since found a nice spot in the garage for the stock piece, and wrapped the mufflers up carefully for safe keeping. The car is just too fun to drive around now- the exhaust sounds delicious, and seems to encourage heeltoe downshifting, rev matching, and full throttle pulls whenever appropriate. On the contrary, when i'm going from A-B on the highway and i just want to chill, the exhaust chills. So with these excellent characteristics and clearance pricing, this system offers what seems to be an unbeatable value, and i'll be keeping it on the car for the foreseeable future.
Video is below. Following that is some additional information and pictures of this exhaust system.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WczH0Z3m92E
Who is A'PEXi?
Apex Integration (A'PEXi) has been around forever, and we probably all have varying degrees of familiarity with them. Apex is a pretty underrated company. It was started by former employees of HKS about 25 years ago (Those of you older than 25-30 years may recall HKS as being the grand old godfather of our modern Japanese tuning industry). Apex has focused on quality from day one and you can see it in their products. Even Apex packaging is head and shoulders above the competition. The names HKS, Greddy, and Apex mean less today than they used to. But remember that they all come from Japan and embrace the same principles that less conventional companies hold true!
What is GT Spec?
For many years, this was Apex' flagship exhaust system. When this exhaust system was designed, cost took a backseat to performance. I remember wanting one over a decade ago, but it being way out of my price range. They call it their "benchmark of power, craftsmanship, and design". MSRP for the S2000 system was around $900-$1000.00. You can still find many online retailers listing these in the $900 range.
Price
Heeltoe has what are likely to be the last 4 (well, now 3) of these in existence. They are currently priced at $399 each. Again, this is stupid cheap for this exhaust. If you've been around the tuning scene a while, you know this statement is not an exaggeration.
Features/Specs:
Full 304 SS construction
Hand made in Japan
60mm piping from cat to tip
Thick, laser-cut flanges
Highly effective intermediate muffler (it's quiet on the freeway/cruising)
Hollow hangers
Robotic TIG welded muffler
Removable silencer (supposed to be good for -7db)
This thing weighs about 17 lbs. IIRC, stock exhaust is ~60 lbs, so there is a nice savings there.
Sound
This was the wildcard for me, i totally didn't know what to expect on the "Can I Live With This Scale". Like i said, this car was stock beforehand, and after screwing around with cars for the last 15 years and working in the industry for 7, i've gained a great deal of appreciation for the incredible balance of performance and refinement that Honda achieved here. I've heard too many S2K exhausts that sound really cool at WOT near the upper reaches of the engine speed stratosphere, but are way too loud and impractical on a street car. And then there are other exhausts which sound buzzy/raspy/farty, and really just aren't doing the car, the driver, or the community any favors.
I was willing to take the gamble though, as i've always had great experience with Apexi products. This ended up being no different, and in fact, my favorite Apex exhaust ever in terms of sound. It sounds SO clean, and yet simultaneously ferocious. And that is just when you are smashing on it. When you are just milling about, taking it easy, the exhaust is mostly unobtrusive. On the freeway it is damn near silent while cruising. I tend to cruise around 65-70 mph, but i found this to remain true at all engine speeds. This was very important to me, as i like to drive this car on road trips all over the place and don't want my music, silence, or conversation to be tainted by farty exhaust. When you load the engine up, you will hear this exhaust more, and the degree to which is very dependent on engine speed and of course throttle position.
The video i think does an adequate job representing this exhaust, but like all internet exhaust videos it is not perfect. I can honestly say it sounds even better in person, and for those who are in Socal you are more than welcome to come check it out in person.
Styling
I like the styling, mostly from a nostalgic standpoint. Again, i really wanted one back in the day and these were the bees knees. For the fashion minded, this may not flip your cookie or get your race car max car show points. I realize that big tips and canisters are not as widely loved as they once were. Well, i can tell you that after installation, it actually looks pretty dang alright on the old S2K. While it might look more at home on an R33 GTR or other Japanese Muscle Car, it doesn't look too big to me, and with the Fastline bumper cap, i actually really think it compliments the car pretty well overall.
Performance
I'd like to think the car feels faster, but it totally could be psychosomatic. It certainly doesn't feel any slower, i can tell you that. I really REALLY wish i could afford to do some back to back dyno testing here, as i'm fairly confident that the car feels a bit stronger, but i cannot qualify or quantify this claim. And besides, it's only a 60mm. Great for reducing volume and obnoxiousness, but not ideal for maximum power. About that though...the car already makes great power. At the track, i find that the biggest limitations to my lap times are my own driving skills. A few horsepower more may shave a tenth or two, but my lap times don't currently have any impact on my paycheck. If i really need to go sick with power, forced induction here i come!
Installation
Very simple and straightforward. The front-mid engine placement makes for one of the shortest cat-back systems i've worked with. This system offers excellent fitment, and Apexi's installation kit is very comprehensive with high quality gaskets and fasteners, a detailed diagram, and torque specifications. This system was designed on the AP1, so i ended up having to move the rubber hanger bushings around and experiment with "a triangle bushing here and an oval bushing there" to position everything to my satisfaction.
And, in closing...
Well, somewhat to my surprise, i probably won't be putting the stocker back on anytime soon. I have since found a nice spot in the garage for the stock piece, and wrapped the mufflers up carefully for safe keeping. The car is just too fun to drive around now- the exhaust sounds delicious, and seems to encourage heeltoe downshifting, rev matching, and full throttle pulls whenever appropriate. On the contrary, when i'm going from A-B on the highway and i just want to chill, the exhaust chills. So with these excellent characteristics and clearance pricing, this system offers what seems to be an unbeatable value, and i'll be keeping it on the car for the foreseeable future.
02-16-2016, 05:52 AM
#3
I ran this exhaust on my AP1 and really liked it. $399 is a steal for this system, those should go quick. 60mm piping might be a turn off for some people, but it is a quality single exhaust with a fairly mellow tone when using a stock cat or HFC. It got a little loud for my taste with a SC and test pipe but still sounded good. 
03-03-2016, 09:44 PM
#6
Thread Starter
Thanks for the positive feedback!
So over one month with this system on now, and still loving it. Can't wait to get out to the track with it so i can really rip on it for a while.
Drove the car up to the Petersen Museum in LA a bit ago and was again really impressed by how mellow this exhaust can be. I went up there with someone who doesn't really tolerate loud cars so well, and they had no complaints
So over one month with this system on now, and still loving it. Can't wait to get out to the track with it so i can really rip on it for a while.
Drove the car up to the Petersen Museum in LA a bit ago and was again really impressed by how mellow this exhaust can be. I went up there with someone who doesn't really tolerate loud cars so well, and they had no complaints
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