Thanks all -

GT_NFR,
I didn't look into the test pipe B/C of the risk of local and federal fines. You can get away with replacing the OEM CAT with an aftermarket CAT due to the fact the law has to prove there was nothing wrong with the original CAT to press the issue - and if no one smells a problem (the test pipe smell that is) - there's no reason to check. The Berk high flow CAT smells about the same as the OEM CAT. The only downside relating to the Berk CAT that I can think of at this point is it's not supposed to last as long as the OEM CAT. Nevertheless - I'm impressed with its performance so far.
I believe the Berk Header is a 4 into 1 design, and I don't know anything about its performance. I don't think there's a considerable weight savings either. I'd get with Brian at Berk and he'll give you all the particulars.

thischarmingman,
There's no law against aftermarket header(s) in Florida.
There are Federal and State laws against removing or tampering with a CAT. Technically, you aren't supposed to replace a CAT unless there's something wrong with it. Deleting a catalyst completely is illegal in all states - and against Federal law. You can get away with it during race events (off road), but not on the streets - and it's not worth the hefty fines to risk it. I can imagine that laws will only tighten up with respect to that in the very near future.

 

that's what i was wondering. here in CA it's illegal to mess with anything before the CAT, including the CAT. i just thought it was funny that you can't mess with the cat but you can mess with the header. i don't think our oem headers are stamped from the factory anyways, so i would imagine with the heat shields that the rick's header would probably pass visual inspection. but i could still get busted for having a header.

 

I don't know - Rick's header uses the OEM heat shield mounting points and an untrained eye wouldn't know the difference once the shields are in place - as long as you didn't have it coated with the shiny Sterling or Extreme Sterling coating. So running it without any coating or with HPC's black ceramic coating would most likely pass muster. Frankly speaking - you really have to look fairly hard to notice it under the hood. The only way you can tell from the engine bay is the gap between the OEM heat shield and the head. However, the shiny coating does stand out underneath the car.
I'll post some pictures of it installed from the engine bay and from below... once I find my camera charger.

 

my one tip for cat bolts...use pb blaster. wd 40 sucks.

 

I agree - I use either PB or Sea Foam's spray lube/penetrant.

 

One other benefit that I've noted over the last 4 tanks - slightly better mpg.
It's not a huge increase, but my usual average is around 23.5-24.5 mpg, and I've had 4 tanks averaging at or slightly under 25 mpg. Maybe it's the change in the weather - I don't know. It sure isn't my driving though... my car's been getting a pretty good workout since the mods.

 

damn slipstream, like always, nice writeup!

once I get all the other stuff I want... I'll pop for headers as well

 

Top-notch review! Thanks for the well-written insight. Saves me a lot of time and money.

 

Very good review!

Thank you for taking the time to do all of this & share. I too am debating which header to get & the Rick's was on my top 5 list. I want to make sure that the header I get can pass an actual smog test (with OEM cat) as I believe it will pass a visual.

 

Thanks again for the positive press. I've taken away a lot from so many of the other contributions provided by other members and guests - it's only right to give back every once and a while.
Hopefully the moderator will find the write-up DIY worthy for easy access.

slightly2ned - I think the Mugen, Amuse, and Rick's are close enough to OEM in their fundamental designs that they won't affect the emissions. I didn't even look at J's or some of the other more race oriented (peak HP) headers due to the fact I don't "race" my car.
Rick's header provides enough of a boost right where you need it - in the midrange to upper midrange (and you can feel it) - and it cost so much less than the competition. I wasn't looking for peak HP dyno graph bragging rights - only power I can use every day. You can't touch the quality of build in Rick's header at that price either.