Applicable to: '99 + 1.8 liter
FlowMaster 2 Chamber muffler, non cat-back
I had this installed a year ago .... see my previous post. Recently I've taken up racing the other guys with miatas in my ar club. With the muffler on my buddy with same year (01) STOCK miata could walk away from me after 3rd gear .. id lose by nearly two car lengths. Out of frustration I took the thing off. Now I run dead even with him. Which boils down to the muffler was choking my engine off and HURTING performance (nice huh, especially when flows are a PERFORMANCE muffler) I called thier tech support to ask them about it and they were less than helpful... or more accurately, they dont care. So I justh tough I'd pass the news along. Basically, I recommend you avoid flowmaster muffler when dealing with a mazda miata.
Sounds ok... but hurts performance. Less than helpful tech support ... unless the mufflers broken or installed incorrectly (which is not the case, mufflers fine according to exhaust shop, and installed properly) they just dont seem to care very much. So my recommendation is to avoid flowmasters like the plague. thanks.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter
a muffler meant more for V8 cars than imports. i got the one with 2.5 inch piping
the muffler was bigger than i was expecting, but it went on well. instead of putting a tip on it, i just put an outlet on it.
this thing is loud!!! it has this very aggressive, almost mettalic sound above 4k at WOT. sounds very cool in my opinion. The only bad thing is the terrible resonance from about 55-65 mph... right there in the normal driving range. It is so bad that you cant even carry on a normal conversation. Ohh well; i guess ill just hafta speed up! Overall, id do it again just so i can have that aggressive race-car sound. i haven't been ticketed yet for a loud exhaust, but then again, i dont race around the po-po.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '99 + 1.8 liter
Flowmaster 2 Chamber muffler, most likely the 40 series. Good quality, and cheap, alumanized steel.
Had muffler shop install it on my 2001 and it sounds... unique. Nothing at all like the other reviews I have read on this site. It is only bassy in certain parts of the powqerband, mostly it has a very hollow duck like noise.
I would recommend this product to people who want a unique sound to thier miata. It is VERY loud. The other reviews are overly generous with the discription of the exhaust note. It is in a nutshell, a mix of a honda boy not (up to about 4 grand and after that a raspy echoy hollow noise that you can here from about 300 yards away. I would not have done it if i knew then what i know now.
Difficult to remove without leaving
damage
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter
Flowmaster 2 Chamber Exhaust. The product is small and light with 2.25 pipe
The Flowmaster exhaust is loud but has a nice sound when your car is on idle. you could use stock pipes welded on but you should get 2.25 It sounds a lot better then stock except for the 2-3 min warm up period. its sounds tinny and rattles a lot but after its warm its all good! I have no clue what makes that sound and it suck. I would rate it a 7 out of 10 only because of that tiny sound warm up. On the freeways it quiet and i hear only intake when i punch it but on the low end from 1950 rpm to 3175 rpm it has a loud boomy sound which is cool but bad when Five O is around. You could put a chrome time to make it look nice but i left mine stock looking so i wont attract Five o's attention and get a modified exhaust ticket and take my few pennies i earn.
The product i got cost about 50$ plus 30 to weld on. im planning to see if i can do a dual exhaust flowmaster on my miata. Iduno if it will fit but ill make it fit!
Difficult to remove without leaving damage
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
Flowmaster 2 Chamber Muffler and 2.25" Pipe from the cat back.
When you first start the car and the exhaust is cold, it is extremely loud and high pitched and sort of messed up sounding. You have to take it easy for about 3 minutes. Once this thing is warmed up though, look out! It sounds soooo AWESOME going under a freeway overpass or through a tunnel when you stomp on the gas or just give it a little rev. If you heel and toe downshift like I do and you're coming up to a stoplight, it gives off this incredible deep popping, rumbling, V8 sound! Power is great when you lay on the throttle. I'm pleased!
I had this product installed at a local muffler shop for just under $150. Although I have the 2 chamber Flowmaster, they also make a 3 chamber Flowmaster that is a little bit quieter (I like it loud). Now for the downside... I have had this on my car for 3 years and last week I got a ticket from the California highway patrol for "modified exhaust". He told me he pulled me over because my exhaust was too loud (which it wasn't - I was really taking it easy) and then he says that actually it wasn't that loud but if I "got on it" it would have been. So he admits that it wasn't that loud! Anyway, I'm going to try and fight the ticket.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Heavy duty stainless-steel performance muffler with 2.25" inlet/outlet. Stock chrome tip fits.
Had it installed at exhaust shop for $165. I now realize that this price was a bit steep, considering that the unit costs only $65. Still a relative bargain. It fits perfectly onto the existing pipe and is only 4" thick (lower profile than stock), so it is totally hidden from view.
The exhaust note is very loud and grating under hard acceleration within the first 2 or 3 minutes when cold. The muffler apparently warms up a bit slower than the engine. If, for instance, I drive for an hour, turn off the car and then resume driving 15 minutes later, although the engine is already warm, the Flowmaster is annoyingly raspy under fairly hard acceleration for the first minute. To get around this I simply take it easy when starting out each trip. Once it has warmed-up, the exhaust note is deep, louder than stock but fairly mellow. My wife is neither impressed nor annoyed, which is about all I could hope for! It gives a sporty, powerful impression to the ears. Pumping the gas gives off a satisfying growl. The note seems to compliment the engine sound. When at low rpms the note is low and even burbles from time to time, which I enjoy. At higher rpms the exhaust has a higher pitched note. The volume is low enough to notice a faint growl at cruising speeds. More satisfying is the sound of flooring it through a tunnel.
In terms of performance changes, I can only comment based on that seat-of-the-pants feel. I have not gained any noticeable low-end torque, in fact, I may have lost just a tiny bit. The tires don't chirp from a standing start quite as easily as before. I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that Flowmaster's product line is mainly aimed at much larger engines with gobs of low-end torque. The 2.25" in and out is appropriate for the Miata though. I imagine that a larger diameter would have been a big mistake. This is my only disappointment, however, since the power in the mid to high engine speed range has improved. Once it hits around 4k, it pulls noticeably harder than before.
If I were to rate this product on a scale of 1-10, with stock being 5, I would give it an 8. If price were factored in, it would be a 9. My previous stock muffler was worn out at 55k and was giving off a lot of chain saw chatter at 3-4k and at 5k, so the change has been great!
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