Jazz X-Force header

[Tony]

I have posted this in the Articles/Review section but for some reason it doesn't show up?? Anyway, here's the review:-

The following review is purely my personal view on this product.

Firstly, I'd like to thank Trav (egSi) for sending me the header. The header came in perfect condition and it took less than a week to get here. I'd strongly recommend this seller to everyone.

Welding: 7.5 (10 being perfect, <5 is not acceptable)
The welding on the outside of the exhaust manifold is very nice, however if you look from the inside, some joints hasn't been filled completely by the welds. I've seen this happened to other big name brand headers as well, so I guess it's not too bad. Carbon deposit will probably fill up these gaps very quickly anyway..
The welding on the front pipe is very nice, both inside and outside.

Fitting: 7
The position for the header reinforcing bracket is out by alot, I'll need to get someone to custom make another bracket for me. Personally I don't think the bracket is very important coz our Jazz engines are not going to shake very badly anyway. Also, part of the front pipe is touching the underside of the car, which resulted in a bit of unwanted noise. Again, I don't think it bothers me at all, I can only hear the noise when driving at slow speed with air-conditioning/stereo both turned off.

Sound: 10
I'm still using my stock exhaust for cat-back so what I hear is what's been changed by the header only. I've noticed a slight difference in exhaust note after I had the header installed. It's only very subtle difference and I can only hear it from outside the car. It sounds deeper, it's not loud. hmm.. I reckon it sounds similar to a stock M3. lol

Installation: 6
Get a mechanic to do it, don't do it yourself unless you have the proper tools and a hydro lift. You'll need to access the back of the engine from above and below the engine bay and you'll need to remove the airbox and intake manifold to reach the back of the engine. Also fitment of the header isn't the best so you'll need to force it a bit to tight up some of the screws. Listen to me, get a mechanic.

Overall satisfaction: 9
Ok, I had the header installed and took it for a test drive. I noticed a significant difference at higher rpms. The rpm needles went up a little bit quicker than before. Overall very happy.