Moss Hide-A-Spare

Moss Hide-A-Spare

[7/30/2006] Reviewed by: Andy B - not.breathing@gmail.com

Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter

Cat-back exhaust system that allows relocation of spare tire from trunk to underneath trunk.

This system is advertised as being stainless steel. I purchased one (~$450ish) from Moss, and installed it several years ago. It's got a lovely, large, polished exhaust tip, and 2 resonators instead of the giant stock muffler. It was not terribly difficult to install, but a little engine oil on the exhaust hangers will help get them through the rubber hangers. Several of them did not line up well and took quite a bit of brute force to get working. Once installed, the tailpipe tip melted a portion of my rear bumper fascia. It also discolored into a golden hue VERY quickly, and required polishing frequently to remain silver. However, three years later, my "stainless" exhaust started getting terribly loud. Turns out it was a mess of rust. It was obnoxiously loud even new, and unfortunately took away the soulful howl of the OEM exhaust. Fortunately it did NOT sound like the typical Civic "fart can" (and you know exactly what I'm talking about when I say that). Recently, I went to a muffler shop (Mineke, I think), and for $200 they made an exhaust that 1) has a warrantee 2) allows the relocation of the spare still 3) sounds brilliant. Had I done this sooner I'd be a much happier person.

An absolute waste of money. Poorly made, poorly designed. The concept of relocating the spare is great, but if you remove the stock muffler and then remove the heat shield that sits above it (under the floor of the trunk) you'll find some holes that can be used to run bolts through to mount the spare underneath the trunk. Then go to a Midas or whatever, explain that you need it custom made, and let them have at it. You'll undoubtedly save $200 or so, and with luck you'll keep the brilliant howl that sends shivers up the spines of Miata owners.

Over 30 minutes to remove completely

Hide-a-spare cat back exhaust from Moss Motors

[3/4/2001] Reviewed by: Craig Finley - cboaz@mindspring.com

Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter 1.8 liter

Cat back exhaust that allows relocation of te spare tire under the rear floor (out of the trunk to allow more luggage space)

The O2 sensor port threads are cut too shallow. Even the plug sent with the kit (for pre-95 models) wouldn’t thread into the hole more than about ½ turn. I had to use a Dremel tool to grind out the threads. In total this was about a 3-hour setback trying several different ineffective fixes until a friend rescued me with the Dremel tool. Interferences were numerous and tailpipe alignment in the rear fascia cutout was poor. I resorted to an extremely time-consuming process of removing the entire system, bending exhaust hangers on the car, bending hanger brackets on the cat back, reinstalling the system, evaluating the results, and repeating the process. Some hangers are possible to bend with the system in place but some are not. If you follow the instructions on the spare support brkt, you will have 3 holes in your trunk floor. If you buy this system feel free to email me and I will send you recommendations how to solve most of these problems. Not enough space here.

Quality of construction appears very good. The sound is very good but quite a bit louder than I would like, much louder than stock. I won’t drive this car anymore on a trip with someone I want to talk with on the way. The quality of the product in terms of its physical compatibility with its target application (the Miata) is very poor. Installation was a nightmare. For this reason I do not recommend this product. After installing a complete FM suspension package, a Racing Beat header, and the JR CAI on my Miata, I expected the cat back to be quick and simple. Instead, this was by far the most aggravating and time-consuming of all of them. The manufacturer of the product is not mentioned in the Moss catalog. When it arrived and I saw the JR sticker on the box and JR on the installation instructions I thought they might have sent me the wrong parts, but these were the right parts. I will be hesitant to buy JR products in the future.

Over 30 minutes to remove completely