I purchased a 2006 C2S cab and it came with the factory upgrade option Sport Exhaust System. Is there a big difference between this exhaust and the regular one they put on. Has anyone upgraded from the Sport Exhaust System to the FABSPEED, tubi etc or does the Sport Exhaust System work just fine.

 

The factory sport option is a nice, yet very subtle, upgrade from the standard system. However, I think any of the aftermarket options you mentioned in your post will "work" better then the factory sport system in the sense that they will provide bigger gains in performance and even more in sound.

But then again, it's different strokes for different folks when it comes to exhaust systems. Some people have a high tolerance for sound and want a nice loud exhaust, while others prefer the stock sound. It really comes down to your personal taste and what you're looking to achieve. Personally, I don't think you can beat the satisfaction of hearing a nicely tuned Tubi system roaring out of the rear.

 

The general consensus on this forum appears to be that changing exhaust systems mainly affects the noise level, not power. However, high-flow cats (200 cell) seem to give some power boost. I like the PSE as it allows me to select the noise level at will.

 

PSE is a good compromise. Many aftermarket systems are quite loud.

also, if you want more power, X51 headers and AWE 200 Cell cats seem to be the way to go ( along with a ECU flash)

 

I loved my PSE on my 997.

and moved up to (or changed to) fabspeed, even more lovely!

 

For those who can't get enough of listening to low-fi clips of aftermarket exhaust notes, here are SEVEN short clips from a German producer I've never heard of:

http://www.sportwagen-herrmann.de/in...porsche-tuning

Which begs the question, I guess, when will someone start making stereo mp3 recordings of some of these systems with better equipment than a hand-held video cam? It seems the only way to really get an idea of real-life sound is to hear the system in real life, IMveryHO.

Oh, well, I kinda get a thrill from seeing / listening to these cars accelerate away into the Bavarian countryside! (or wherever it is)

 

I also like my PSE, AWE cats, X51 headers and X51 airbox (with K&N high flow filters) combination. Its tame when cruising, but loud when you get on it and through tunnels and freeway over passes.

 

I like my pse with my set up...I like it even more since I unplugged the connector for the solenoid so the pse is on all the time and not controlled by the dme or dash switch

 

I upgraded my stock exhaust to the PSE ... works perfect for me. the ability to shut off the pse when driving out of my street early in the morning is a great option. and its just loud enought for me.

 

This question has been asked a lot. The factory sports exhaust system sounds superb (no doubt about that) but gives no extra power and is heavier than the stock system.

To gain anything from an exhaust on these cars, the main thing to change is the catalytic converters. The stock ones are very restrictive and changing to a good aftermarket set of 200-cell cats (AWE / Fabspeed) will give you a noticeable power bump. Adding headers will give a little more again but only above 5000rpm.

Changing the cats will also make things a LOT louder. The stock cats do as much silencing of the exhaust as the stock muffler and you lose this silencing as soon as you change the cats. Most exhaust manufacturers that offer cat sections make mufflers designed to work with their cats without being too over the top. Mufflers (like Tubi / AH) designed to work with the stock cats will be very, very loud indeed with 200-cell cats.

The PSE is an odd one. At least one regular here uses them with 200-cell cats. As they can be switched to 'quiet' they will probably not be insane with the aftermarket cats, but they will be much louder that they are now. I guess switching them to loud would equal VERY LOUD with a cat swap!

I would recommend AWE or Fabspeed headers and cats and keeping your PSE mufflers. If you can't stand the noise, just get the matching mufflers from the header/cat vendor.

A well-designed, full exhaust system (headers/cats/mufflers) can give 25+ BHP (crank) on these cars.

 

Interesting. So now that your PSE is no longer switched, does it sound different? In other words, does the DME do anything to it beyond whats already done by the "Sport" button on the center console? To put it yet another way, after you disconnected the solenoid, was it any different than just leaving the "Sport" button on all the time?

Thanks!

 

With PSE 'engaged' you bypass part of the baffling in the not so hot Porsche muffler (the guts of which are the same for pse or standard). The DME closes (disengages) this bypass at 'residential speeds' -I don't remember and I'm too lazy to look up, but lets say from 1600-2600 RPM -- so supposedly you don't bother your neighbors. Your option, as stated above, is to plug the vacuum line so it's on all the time regardless of what you do with the sport button.

 

The only difference is that you will not get the "quieting" of the exhaust during the specified RPM range (I believe it to be 2500-4000). It is actually "loud" through the whole RPM range. So in essence, it is different than leaving the "sport" button on all the time.

It is a super simple thing to unplug and plug back in if you want to try it out.

 

You can also have the PSE wired to a separate switch so that you don't have change your throttle mapping every time you want you exhaust to be louder. It also doesn't automatically close during any rpm range.

Some people put the switch in the ash tray. Mine is near the bottom of the emergency brake handle.

In the end I'm glad I did it with a separate switch

 

Could you explain how you ran the switch or direct us to a DIY thread?

Thanks!
Matt