Aero Cat-backs, Love'em

[Slithr]

I haven't heard or seen much on the forum about this option in cat-backs, the Areo cat-back. I went ahead and took the plunge anyway, because I'd heard the Corsa on track and they sounded raspy (too me), I don't like overly loud (I'm old 39 w/10 yrs. experience), I wanted deep throaty (the kind other cars 'feel' when passing), able to converse while driving, and Wow at WOT, and I found it. As a bonus, I got much more pop and burble which I love

Below is a link of the Mfg. explaining the technology.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDTTOa77efs&feature=player_embedded

Here's some shots while installing at Tomball Dodge;

Aero 3" Stainless Steel muffler, seems to be of good quality.

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Aero Mufflers next to OEM's (stock Gen III);

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The Aeros were 3" open straight through;

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Aero installed, but not tightened-up; All std. exhaust clamps were replaced with 3" SS 'band clamps' (like the forward one) and tack welded once set.

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Kit included nice exhaust tips, below is a pic of the OEM tips (not very fancy);

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Here's the car with the Tips that came with the kit installed and buttoned-up (I likey), the kit came with spacers that pushed the tip out ~1/4" if used (I used them).

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Over-all, very pleased I got the deep sound I was looking for with just enough 'Bling' with the extended tips. I've never experienced drone (so I don't know if these do), I've heard that drone is annoying and bothers the ears at certain RPM's? I can say, I have not been bothered or annoyed with the sound at any RPM, so I'd say these don't drone. I hope to get more educated opinioins at coming Viper events.

If I was technically savy enough to post a sound byte, I would Does anyone have a copy of 'sound bytes for dummies'?

 

[GTS-R 001]

Thanks for the Post Alan,

I'm glad you like the cat back!

Just an FYI, These kits were developed by and available only through Vipair Performance, we found the Aero Mufflers, like the technology and now our kits OEm the muffler along with our "Blingy" Tips.

 

[AbsolutHank]

Damn I wanna hear some more videos of these! I've got Corsa's on my car, and while I like them, I'd prefer some more volume...particularly on the bassy side.

 

[georgethedog]

Hank, if you end up changing maybe we can make a deal on the Corsa?

Slithr, do you still have the stock Cats??? I see we are the same age... 39 with 10 years experience. Drone is a low-pitch noise something you would almost consider to be very bassy like a sub-woofer noise.

GTSR-001, would you say they have any drone?

 

[GTS-R 001]

Hank, if you end up changing maybe we can make a deal on the Corsa?

Slithr, do you still have the stock Cats??? I see we are the same age... 39 with 10 years experience. Drone is a low-pitch noise something you would almost consider to be very bassy like a sub-woofer noise.

GTSR-001, would you say they have any drone?

Here are some sound bytes,

Stock exhaust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUy4o0WC1K8

Vipair Aero
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DKVykR5EfY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCGsULpA2lc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhEJGdGzJF4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6KwzWoxkws

George,

I would say little to no drone, I have yet to drive my car with the side sills and heat/sound barriers back on, but from what driving I have done with this cat back there was little drone and I think it would not be present at all with the sides on the car.

A lot of people do not realize this but when you add a Corsa exhaust you gain weight which is probably one of the reasons why Corsa's eliminate drone, purely by baffling the sound pulses with lots of stainless steel, I have weighed the crossover and all the stock exhaust pieces and the Corsa at approx 27lbs per side weighs in at double the weight of this Vipair/Aero cat back

 

[AbsolutHank]

Hey Steve...have you, or any of your customers installed high flow cats with your system? That's ultimately what I'm going to do anyways to help with the footbox heat

 

[GTS-R 001]

Hey Steve...have you, or any of your customers installed high flow cats with your system? That's ultimately what I'm going to do anyways to help with the footbox heat

Ssssam in the UK installed them with a set of our headers and high flow cats, he said we "nailed it!" with the sound.

I'll PM him and see if he can take a sound clip or 2

 

[SilveRT8]

I presently run the Belanger Headers with HF cats and the stock mufflers on my 08. I would like a catback with a nicer deeper tone than those but I want to hear sound clips first, especially with Headers I dont want to rely on words only. These Aero look promising but we need more clips.

 

[Jerome Sparich]

Does anyone believe that BS they are spewing in that video? Faster and slower moving? Come on, the only reason any of the exhaust gasses are moving slower is that they are being slowed down by that crazy baffle system. The hit gasses are expanding like in any exhaust, but with this they are now being "forced" thru a crazy maze system.

I said it before and will say it again, gimmick.

Sorry Steve, don't believe the hype.

 

[GTS-R 001]

I presently run the Belanger Headers with HF cats and the stock mufflers on my 08. I would like a catback with a nicer deeper tone than those but I want to hear sound clips first, especially with Headers I dont want to rely on words only. These Aero look promising but we need more clips.

Claude,

I will go out on a limb and make you an offer you can't refuse, PM me or call me tomorrow, if you are serious about a Vipair/(Aero) cat back I can send you a unit, you install and take some sound bit and if you decide to keep it, you pay for it, if it is not good for you, you ship it back.

Steve

 

[GTS-R 001]

Does anyone believe that BS they are spewing in that video? Faster and slower moving? Come on, the only reason any of the exhaust gasses are moving slower is that they are being slowed down by that crazy baffle system. The hit gasses are expanding like in any exhaust, but with this they are now being "forced" thru a crazy maze system.

I said it before and will say it again, gimmick.

Sorry Steve, don't believe the hype.

Hey Jerome,

All BS aside, the bottom line is that these sound loud like a knarly party at low RPM and they quiet down at high RPM, something is happening, and less decibels at the peak RPM, right where the guys on the tracks these days need some help to stay on the track, and not get kicked off due to loudness. Claims are that they make power, increase fuel economy etc. Bottom line is they save weight and sound damn good, and look real purdy!

 

[DMan]

Well having used Steve's stuff before, I'm sure this is a quality setup. How much is this? Any claimed hp gain?

 

[Supratt6s]

Just throw your headers and exhaust on my car Steve while it's laying around taking up garage space at your house and upload the sound clips

 

[GTS-R 001]

Well having used Steve's stuff before, I'm sure this is a quality setup. How much is this? Any claimed hp gain?

Dman,

I haven't Dyno's the set up, I know that all of the other cat backs out there claim a max of 15 RWHP and I am not sure if anyone has actually confirmed the claims they make.

My Vipair Cat back lists for $995

Here are the weights

VIPAIR AERO 13.5 LBS per side
CORSA 27 LBS Per Side

Stock
Center H 8.4 LBS
Muffler Each side 13.6
Each side from muffler to H to out Pipe 10.2
Total stock set up ((13.6 x 2)+(10.2 x 2) + 8.4) / 2 = 28 LBS per side

 

[sssammm]

Ive got mine on the car with no cats and they sound the Bollix, they are so deep and loud the wife refuses to get in the car, that is an added bonus

 

[GTS-R 001]

Ive got mine on the car with no cats and they sound the Bollix, they are so deep and loud the wife refuses to get in the car, that is an added bonus

Sam,

Any chance you can take a spirited drive with a recording device hanging out the window? Or even a few idle or rev sessions?

Thanks

Steve

 

[DMan]

Man, wish someone had a drive-off or drive-by clip. The rev vids sound good to me. I did Belenger full system on my Gen2 & it was prefection. The corsa on my Gen3 was good, had zero drone which is a must with the vert, but I wished it was either lower tone like a muscle sound, or higher like a Ferrari sound, but it's kinda in the middle, which was OK. This sounds like it may be more on the mark.

I'm doing tires & an autoform right now for track duty in Sept, not the best time to drop another grand, but man this is tempting, the stock Gen4 exhaust is so pathetic sounding it's embarrassing. Someone post a clip so I can't resist & pull this trigger.

 

[Slithr]

I'd be happy to post some sound bytes of my car (stock GEN III w/only the Aero cat-back, well mostly stock, I have an aftermarket TB and AB wires), if I could get a few pointers on how to do it? Do I need to make a video and put it on You Tube first or can I post an MP3 file? I have an Iphone that I recorded the completely stock sound byte on, and could record the after cat-back sound on, but don't know how to post that. In the meantime, I'll check with Wes in Friendswood to see if he'd help me with a GoPro recording.

 

[Slithr]

Does anyone believe that BS they are spewing in that video? Faster and slower moving? Come on, the only reason any of the exhaust gasses are moving slower is that they are being slowed down by that crazy baffle system. The hit gasses are expanding like in any exhaust, but with this they are now being "forced" thru a crazy maze system.

I said it before and will say it again, gimmick.

Sorry Steve, don't believe the hype.

Fortunately, I didn't buy the Aero cat-back for either an increase performance or gas mileage as stated in the video. My criteria was merely improved sound quality, reduced cabin heat, a nice chrome tip, and no loss of power, which I believe I got all four. I posted the Mfg. clip purely as informational and noted that it was the Mfg.'s interpretation and not an independent study (so you're right could be BS). But regardless of BS/No BS no harm no fould in my case. I'm pleased.

 

[DMan]

I'd be happy to post some sound bytes of my car (stock GEN III w/only the Aero cat-back, well mostly stock, I have an aftermarket TB and AB wires), if I could get a few pointers on how to do it? Do I need to make a video and put it on You Tube first or can I post an MP3 file? I have an Iphone that I recorded the completely stock sound byte on, and could record the after cat-back sound on, but don't know how to post that. In the meantime, I'll check with Wes in Friendswood to see if he'd help me with a GoPro recording.

That'd be cool. If you have an iPhone you can record or vid it, post vid to utube or email the mp3's to me (lol, not to be selfish, but ...). Hec, get by a wifi hotspot and facetime me so I can hear it, lol, I'll take anything. ;o)

Thanks for working on sharing this, really helps!

 

[Slithr]

Only disappointments (2 minor),

1) No fault of Steve's as his kit provided to 1/4" spacer brackets to push the tips out, the spacers looked identical but the tips ended up in different positions This must be my car (sills, or mounting point) causing this?

See pics below;

Passenger side with 1/4" spacer

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Drivers side with 1/4" spacer

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The difference is obvious in person (but might be exaggerated in the photos due to me being more zoomed in on drivers side), we're still trying to decide which side we like best. I imagine, if I asked Steve he could make me an additional spacer to compensate for this. I'll need a 3/8-1/2" spacer to push the passenger side further out, or and 1/8" or no spacer on the driver’s side if we choose to bring the tips back in a bit.

2) I purchased my Aero cat-back from Steve, back when him and Toddy were having their made in China Knock-off ******* match and specifically asked Steve if the Aeros were Made in The USA, to which he answered yes. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt as Aero is a US company based in Tulsa and/or UT, but the mufflers are Mfg. in China, which maybe Steve did not know. I always prefer to buy American (especially for my American icon) but it is and has been getting more and more difficult to find what you're looking for these days Made in USA (have you shopped for a TV lately?). This time I shopped American first and eliminated Corsa and Belanger for personal taste reasons which left the Aeros. I'm coming to grips with Chinese mufflers on my car, only because I do like the new deeper sound.

I was actually setting off car alarms yesterday in the downtown parking garage as I rumbled through, which it did not do when stock

 

[GTS-R 001]

Hey Alan,

It is really tough to figure out the source of the source of the source these days, I know, a number of the CNC shops I use locally make their products here, hell you can watch the stuff get made, but then I go down the road to the metal supplier and all the aluminum bar stock T6 6061 in there is manufactured in China. It seems to be the way of the world. I didn't check their 304 Stainless tubing but I wouldn't be surprised if it is the same thing

 

[SilveRT8]

Claude,

I will go out on a limb and make you an offer you can't refuse, PM me or call me tomorrow, if you are serious about a Vipair/(Aero) cat back I can send you a unit, you install and take some sound bit and if you decide to keep it, you pay for it, if it is not good for you, you ship it back.

Steve

Thanks for the generous offer Steve, but my work does not leave me too much time to test things these days. I'd rather wait till I hear clips and comments of the Aero with headers and HF cats from others as I dont want any drone or louder than my current set-up.

 

[AbsolutHank]

Steve, send me a set of high flow cats and your exhaust, and I'll be your guinea pig!

 

[chesapeake07]

^+1 for me and I will take video with my gopro camera!!!

 

[FLATOUT]

Steve if these are that much lighter than the Corsa than I might be up for switching from my corsa. I'll listen to Allans at TWS and make a decision.

Andy

 

[GTS-R 001]

I will work on a group buy for all you guys interested,

 

[DMan]

I will work on a group buy for all you guys interested,

Hey Steve, you just got me even more interested, I'll take spot #1 on that GP list ;o)
Dave.

 

[GTS-R 001]

Steve if these are that much lighter than the Corsa than I might be up for switching from my corsa. I'll listen to Allans at TWS and make a decision.

Andy

HEy Andy,

See if you can get a few sound snips, high speed pass, burnout, drive away etc.

 

[GTS-R 001]

GRoup Buy Rate will be $795 plus shipping, of $55 to continental USA

This will be including the better band clamps as well

Need 10 guys to make it fly