Hello all - I'm looking to do the next big performance/sound upgrade - Long tubes. I currently have the Pypes offroad X Pipe that steps down from 3" to 2.75" to match the OTA pipes. I'm pretty much set on the ceramic JBA 1 7/8" LTH (desire the wider heads because I will be going Supercharger in the near future). My question is - would my shop be able to cut my current x pipe in order to allow the LTH's to fit? Or would that lead to fitment/leak issues?

Would I be better off purchasing the JBA shorty x pipe ? My only issue with this is....it doesn't step down to 2.75"...so I'd need to buy 3" OTA pipes as well...and IF I decided to go this route - would my Corsa quad sport axleback fit right up (AM states it's 3", just want to make sure the OEM OTA pipes are 2.75" and step up to 3")...someone please help me regain my sanity!

 

I would buy the jba x pipe that goes with those headers and you should be able to bolt up your stock cat back exhaust to that. I wouldn't want to weld the exhaust together if I had a choice

 

If i were you i would stay away from JBA stuff.

I had nothing but fitment issues with their cat-delete/H pipe.

 

It says on AM that the x pipe is 3" from end to end, so it wont fit with my 2.75" OEM OTA's.

That may be the case, but I'm reading on AM that the fitment is average 4/5. If anything, it has to be better fitment than my bottom of the barrel quality Pypes offroad X. Besides the 4/5 fitment, I really have yet to come across a con, especially when compared to the Stainless works or kooks 1 7/8" ceramic headers (nearly twice as much).

 

Kooks and stainless works are double the price because of the quality. But hey do what you want, im just giving you fair warning. JBA is cheap for a reason. POOR quality.

 

The BBK stuff I have worked out great and bolted to my stock cat back pipes... if I remember correctly. May be a different story on your car. How much do you think the reduction in pipe size will hurt your gains?

 

After calling AM with my questions, chatting with my local exhaust guy, and doing some more research, I believe I'm just going to go with the BBK ceramic 1 3/4" LTH/X pipe. This midpipe in particular steps down to 2.75", so it will bolt up to my factory OTA pipes (just as yours did; the JBA doesn't step down to 2.75").

From my research, 1 7/8" headers and full 3" exhaust really aren't beneficial unless you're pushing an average of 900+whp....which this car will never even come close to seeing.

 

You're correct about 3" exhaust. No one needs it unless the engine is significantly modified and the blower is pushing 18-20+ psi. I'm at 720rwhp and the AR long tube headers at 2 7/8 do the job.

 

if you find a decent shop, they should be able to prefab your existing exhaust to work with your bolt-ons.

I have a mid-muffler setup going from stock to 2.5" piping and there was no welding required. just cutting.

what you're doing sounds good, goodluck!

 

Couldn't agree with you more. Based on my research, and discussions with several performance shops, both locally and elsewhere, Kooks is heads above JBA. JBA is one of the bottoms.

That being said, that's why I'm going all Kooks this spring/summer.

 

Aside from fitment issues, what else is wrong with JBA? I'm about to have a set of their ceramic long tubes and catted H pipe installed, now I'm curious what I'm in for

 

Where do I begin?

Flimsy build quality...
cheap gaskets...
obviously fitment issues...
bad welds... and also LACK of specific welds around certain flanges...
all that leads to: you guessed it, leakage all around.

And to top it off? JBA customer service is terrible... might as well have bought something from AM.

Any of those products will never touch my car/s.

Just search "JBA issues/problems" on google. Research is your friend, friend.

 

Sorry friend, I've been nose deep in cams, springs, and phasers for the last several weeks. Can't say I've ever heard of these rampant issues w/ JBA and was surprised. Just a simple question.

Edit: Besides, I'm a little wary of quick Google searches. People are a lot more likely to post negative reviews than positive ones, and it might not be totally representative. That's part of why I asked -- I like to talk to people who have 1st hand experience with the product in the event it really is a case of the only time you hear about it is when its bad.