Borla Part 14855 Cat-back Exhaust Installaion

So here's the story regarding this installation. My 1995 Integra SE started sounding a little louder one day, and I was due for inspection anyway, so I took it in and I failed the inspection because there was a crack in the B-pipe. They said I had 60 days to fix or replace it and it was still safe to drive and everything. Later that day, I was navigating a rather high speed and scary traffic pattern when the car suddenly got a LOT louder. I was like holy crap. I had been in the middle of hard acceleration, and the additional high-end power was not a subtle thing. Nor was what sounded like a scream starting at 4000 RPM. But I had to pull over to investigate, and I noticed that part of my exhaust system was dragging on the ground! I took it back to Shell, and I said, look at it now! They said, yeah it's broken, a new B-pipe will be $180. I decided that this was a good time to install an aftermarket cat-back. In the meantime, I had the place (Shell) tie up the exhust for $18 (as opposed to having it removed which would have made a cop magnet because of the lack of a tailpipe). The car at this point basically had no cat-back, as the system was on hangers but not connected to the cat. I couldn't resist driving the car during this time, and the boost in high-end power was really nice. However, there was serious low-end lag, and I had to give extra gas to avoid stalling at stop signs. Also, this setup was loud as hell, and although entertaining for a while, it really gave one a headache on longer trips, though it was possible to tone it down by keeping the RPMs at about 3000 and using as little throttle as possible.

Anyhow, I did lots of research and found that it's really hard to find much solid information comparing various exhausts for the Integra, so I did the best I could given limited resources. I read a lot about exhaust system design in an attempt to determine which manufacturer made a system that would work well on my car. Unfortunately there was disagreement and ambiguity in that arena as well, so after a week of intense data gathering, I decided that I'd have to apply the rule that when in doubt, go with the established company. Borla recieved high praise from various trusted sources so I decided to go with their system, provided I could find it for much less than the MSRP of $739. I found Nopi which got the system to me for $408 shipped. This was only $100 more than the dealer would have charged me for a stock cat-back, so it seemed reasonable.

Now some of you may have noticed by now that Borla part 14855 is listed as being for 96-99 Integras, and I have a 1995. Well, I noticed this too and I asked Borla what was different about the 95s, and they said that it simply hadn't undergone testing/certification, but that that doesn't mean it won't work. So I called the Acura dealer and asked their parts department if there was any difference in the part numbers for 1995 and 1996 2-door SE Integras, and they said no. So, I concluded that I could use Borla part 14855 safely. And of course, I had no choice because Borla didn't offer a part specifically for my car, and I stubbornly decided that the runner-up Comptech exhaust system was too expensive at $575 (I hadn't managed to find that one for less at a reseller).

So Nopi sent the part and it came very quickly (thanks Nopi!) and then I decided that there wasn't really any good spot for me to do this installation myself because the streets around here are all jagged as hell, so I had to search for a good place to have it installed. I had three criteria: it had to be cheap, they had to let me watch the installaion, and they had to sound at least fairly normal over the phone. Using Yahoo Maps Business Search, I ran through a bunch of ornery gas stations that charged too much, didn't have an opening until next week, wouldn't let me watch, and needed me to drop off the car all day long. I decided just to do a search for Muffler shops, and the first thing that came up was Mufflers USA which was only 0.2 miles away! I called them, they sounded cool, said they'd only charge $50, and that I could bring it in and just wait for one of the bays to clear up, so I had found the place! My first impression of Mufflers USA was very positive. Everybody was very friendly and I felt at ease during the entire process. I also discovered that the shop has two other names, "Tat On Auto Service" and "Samos Auto Electric Service." Just different departments I guess.

So the installation seemed to be going smoothly, but then, despite my inability to comprehend Chinese, I knew something was wrong. I asked what the trouble was, and they showed me that the hangers for the midpipe were not in the correct position to allow the exhaust to be mounted to the car. The pipe was also too long. They said they could cut and weld the pipe to correct the problem, but the thought of cutting the nice Borla system bothered me enough that I decided to come back after making sure that it was really the best thing to do. I considered returning the Borla, and Nopi said they could exchange it, but on Monday I ended up saying to hell with it and I took it back and let them do their welding. It was sad seeing a band saw pass right through the midpipe, but after a small problem with their MIG welder was resolved, Tat On had the pipe welded back together with a few inches removed from the midsection. They fit it to the car, noted that the hanger for the muffler was also slightly misplaced, but that it wasn't critical, and then tightened down all the necessary bolts and fired it up. They noticed that the mounting hardware provided by Borla did not form a perfect seal between the muffler pipe and the pipe which connected to it (terminology unknown). They replaced it with one of their own pieces (at no charge) and that solved the problem. So the installation was complete.

After paying Tat On a mere $88 (it was supposed to be $50, but a gasket for the cat needed replacement, so that was $8, and they charged me a very reasonable $30 for the modifications to the piping), I took the car for a spin. I immediately noticed that the car was extremely quiet, and remember that I was not going from stock to the Borla, but more like from nothing to the Borla. I expelled a sigh of relief that the new exhaust system would give a fairly quiet ride. And it's almost hard to remember now what stock sounded like, but I can tell you that the Borla is a bit louder, by only by a tiny amount. Nothing to worry about. I also immediately noticed that my low-end power was back, and that although it had been a while since I'd driven the stock car, it seemed like it might have been better than stock by a bit (not that there's much power down there anyway). The high end was not as impressive as it had been with no cat-back, but it was a noticeable improvement over stock. At least those are my initial findings. I will do more extensive "testing" soon.

Overall, I'm a little ticked that Borla doesn't offer a system for my car, and that neither their website nor their over-the-phone people can give any information whatsoever as to which particular Integras part number 14855 is supposed to work with. The website just says 96-99 (and if you ask, they'll confirm that it's for the 2-door) but when I called them, the guy couldn't even confirm that it was for the LS/RS/GS as opposed to the GS-R. I had to learn that it was for the LS/RS/GS from other websites selling the Borla (and since the SE should be the same as the LS/RS/GS, that's why I thought part 14855 would work on my 95 SE). The exhaust itself seems nice, however, in that the power gain seems to be there, the sound is very subdued under normal driving conditions, it's made of T304 Stainless Steel (a must), and the 2.5 inch piping should be suitable for my future plans of forced induction. The tip is a bit larger than I'd like, but for a tip of its size, it looks pretty nice I guess.

Tat On Auto Service was very good all around and I spoke to other customers while there who said they'd been going there for years because of the great service and reasonable prices. I'm already planning to have future service, including my inspection (which I should now be able to pass) done at Tat On. Thanks guys!

Update: I didn't notice this at first, but the exhaust hangs too low, meaning that they didn't modify the system as well as they could have. They also didn't seem to be so interested in continuing to let me watch them work on my car, and since that was the original reason I chose them, there isn't much reason to go back to them, other than the fact that their prices are reasonable. I've already started doing more of the maintenence myself, so I like to think of Tat On as training wheels. So they weren't the knowledgeable and friendly vehicular Gods I made them out to be. Maybe someday I'll find the ideal mechanic...

Borla Installation Photos

This is what the cat would see if it could see anything at all. (Midpipe and resonator.)

Behind that is this piece. Call it what you will.

And lastly, here's the tip.

Now we're looking down the tip.

A side shot of the tip.

Tip dimensions: outer diameter, inner diameter, and length.

Here's everything in the box.

And this is the hardware and complimentary sticker that came with the exhaust.

The muffler is being installed.

The midpipe and resonator are being installed.

Where the midpipe flange meets the cat.

A helping hand.

A rear shot of the car giving a good indication as to how the tip actually looks after installation. And no, that's not really my plate number. :)

A little too close for comfort, perhaps.

That's the stock muffler.

And the old resonator and midpipe.

This Civic belongs to Guang Lin, owner of the garage that performed the installation

A side shot of the Civic.

And its exhuast tip belching a little puff of exhaust.

That's a racing stripe.

The Civic Type-R sticker. I have one for the 'teg, and trust me, it does make you go faster.

Another Chinese character. Yeah, it means "fast."

Here's Guang.

Guang makes eye contact with the camera.

Guang surprises us with the extensive underhood modifications, both functional and aesthetic.

Frontal shot of another employee vehicle. This is Jey's MR2.

Here are the fog lamps and modified turn signals on the MR2.

Here's the Naxos exhaust with dual tips on both sides of the car.

A rear shot of the MR2.

The engine bay of the MR2 (it's a rear-engine vehicle).

Here's most of the crew standing in front of the MR2.