Not too long ago Science of Speed had a group buy on the Taitec GTLW exhaust. Being one of the lightest exhausts around and a perfect match for the Taitec headers already mounted on my car, I ordered one to replace the Taitec GT Competition I had on my car.
Fresh out of the box, the Taitec looks absolutely stunning. Made of stainless steel, it was shining in the sunlight. The exhaust tips are polished to a high gloss and the workmanship is excellent, with high quality welds and even a serial plate welded on the top of the exhaust.
Now, of course, it had to be mounted. On a free evening, I jacked up the rear of the car and put it on jackstands. To be sure, I left the jack on one side just in case. The tools needed to change your exhaust are very basic. A can of WD40 to loosen the nuts, a 14mm wrench, some working gloves to protect your hands and some cloth to wipe of any excess oil and that's about it. A small flashlight might come in handy as well.
The exhaust of the NSX has two mounting flanges where it meets the cats. Each of them is mounted with three 14mm nuts. During driving, the exhaust gets extremely hot and the nuts on my car were pretty rusted. I sprayed them with WD40 and waited a few minutes to let the WD40 sink in. Don't use too much because it will drip down on you.
With some force, I was able to get the nuts of fairly ease. However, the top one is hard to reach and since I could only move the wrench a little at a time, it takes some time to get the top one completely off. Also, make sure you get your wrench on correctly or you might damage the nut to a point the wrench will slip. Once off, I spray the nuts with some more WD40 so putting them back on might be a little easier.
I first loosened the flange in the centre of the car and then the one on the right side where the exhaust pipe bends to meet the muffler.
At this point you might want to tie up the two cats because they will be hanging free after removal of the exhaust. I did not do this because I have the Taitec headers on my car which have some nice spring-mounted nuts.
After getting the nuts of, the exhaust is hanging from four mounting rubbers, two near the muffler itself (front) and two at the exhaust pipes (rear).
I first unhooked the left front one which came of easy and then, with some extra effort, the right front one. After this, the exhaust can be moved left and right to loosen the two mounting flanges from its bolts. Do this with a little care, first to protect the cats and second because once the flanges get free, the rear of the exhaust will come down in your direction. Just remember, the OEM exhaust weighs a full 43 lbs. Pulling up one knee was all I needed to hold the exhaust up once it came loose.
Once the flanges are free the exhaust is just hanging from the two rear rubber mounts. Remove these and the exhaust is free. The old and the new exhaust can be seen here.
Mounting the new exhaust is relatively easy. The new Taitec GTLW weighs only 18.3 lbs (8.3kg) so it is much easier to play with. Also, the smaller muffler gives you much more space to work with.
First, I hooked up the exhaust with the front left mounting rubber. This leaves the exhaust hanging down from one side.
Then, turn around a lift up the other side and line up the mounting flange with the three mounting bolts. With my fingers, I put on the three nuts just to make sure it would not slide off again. Then, I hooked up the rubber mount on its hook. If this is a little tricky, you can apply a little WD40 on the mounting hook to make it easier. The hooks from the car are a bit shorter but also thicker than the ones on the exhaust.
After this, I lined up the second flange and put on the nuts. Then, I put on the two rear mounting rubbers and proceeded to tighten all six nuts. I then started the car and checked and listened for any sign of leaks. I was immediately struck by the deep sounds the exhaust was making. After that, I cleaned up my stuff, changed into some clean clothing and took the car for a ride.
The Taitec Competition exhaust I had was already louder than OEM but this Taitec GTLW is even louder. At first, I even thought it might be Too loud but after a couple of days I had gotten used to it. Or maybe the sound has become a bit less. In any case, SOS delivered two small muffling devices with the GTLW which can be bolted into the exhaust pipes to muffle the sound even more. A nice touch but at this moment, all I can say is that I love the sound of this exhaust so for now, these extra tips will stay in the box.
According to SOS it should give my car a little more power and with only 18.3 lbs it is significantly lighter than stock. So, next step should be dynoing the car.
Someone asked me about droning or resonance of the Taitec. I had read about this here on NSXPrime. Like I said, the GTLW took a little to get used to but I cannot say it really resonates or drones inside the cabin. Obviously, I can hear it but it is not resonating. So far, I have had the car at up to 160 mph and have experienced zero problems.
Fresh out of the box, the Taitec looks absolutely stunning. Made of stainless steel, it was shining in the sunlight. The exhaust tips are polished to a high gloss and the workmanship is excellent, with high quality welds and even a serial plate welded on the top of the exhaust.
Now, of course, it had to be mounted. On a free evening, I jacked up the rear of the car and put it on jackstands. To be sure, I left the jack on one side just in case. The tools needed to change your exhaust are very basic. A can of WD40 to loosen the nuts, a 14mm wrench, some working gloves to protect your hands and some cloth to wipe of any excess oil and that's about it. A small flashlight might come in handy as well.
The exhaust of the NSX has two mounting flanges where it meets the cats. Each of them is mounted with three 14mm nuts. During driving, the exhaust gets extremely hot and the nuts on my car were pretty rusted. I sprayed them with WD40 and waited a few minutes to let the WD40 sink in. Don't use too much because it will drip down on you.
With some force, I was able to get the nuts of fairly ease. However, the top one is hard to reach and since I could only move the wrench a little at a time, it takes some time to get the top one completely off. Also, make sure you get your wrench on correctly or you might damage the nut to a point the wrench will slip. Once off, I spray the nuts with some more WD40 so putting them back on might be a little easier.
I first loosened the flange in the centre of the car and then the one on the right side where the exhaust pipe bends to meet the muffler.
At this point you might want to tie up the two cats because they will be hanging free after removal of the exhaust. I did not do this because I have the Taitec headers on my car which have some nice spring-mounted nuts.
After getting the nuts of, the exhaust is hanging from four mounting rubbers, two near the muffler itself (front) and two at the exhaust pipes (rear).
I first unhooked the left front one which came of easy and then, with some extra effort, the right front one. After this, the exhaust can be moved left and right to loosen the two mounting flanges from its bolts. Do this with a little care, first to protect the cats and second because once the flanges get free, the rear of the exhaust will come down in your direction. Just remember, the OEM exhaust weighs a full 43 lbs. Pulling up one knee was all I needed to hold the exhaust up once it came loose.
Once the flanges are free the exhaust is just hanging from the two rear rubber mounts. Remove these and the exhaust is free. The old and the new exhaust can be seen here.
Mounting the new exhaust is relatively easy. The new Taitec GTLW weighs only 18.3 lbs (8.3kg) so it is much easier to play with. Also, the smaller muffler gives you much more space to work with.
First, I hooked up the exhaust with the front left mounting rubber. This leaves the exhaust hanging down from one side.
Then, turn around a lift up the other side and line up the mounting flange with the three mounting bolts. With my fingers, I put on the three nuts just to make sure it would not slide off again. Then, I hooked up the rubber mount on its hook. If this is a little tricky, you can apply a little WD40 on the mounting hook to make it easier. The hooks from the car are a bit shorter but also thicker than the ones on the exhaust.
After this, I lined up the second flange and put on the nuts. Then, I put on the two rear mounting rubbers and proceeded to tighten all six nuts. I then started the car and checked and listened for any sign of leaks. I was immediately struck by the deep sounds the exhaust was making. After that, I cleaned up my stuff, changed into some clean clothing and took the car for a ride.
The Taitec Competition exhaust I had was already louder than OEM but this Taitec GTLW is even louder. At first, I even thought it might be Too loud but after a couple of days I had gotten used to it. Or maybe the sound has become a bit less. In any case, SOS delivered two small muffling devices with the GTLW which can be bolted into the exhaust pipes to muffle the sound even more. A nice touch but at this moment, all I can say is that I love the sound of this exhaust so for now, these extra tips will stay in the box.
According to SOS it should give my car a little more power and with only 18.3 lbs it is significantly lighter than stock. So, next step should be dynoing the car.
Someone asked me about droning or resonance of the Taitec. I had read about this here on NSXPrime. Like I said, the GTLW took a little to get used to but I cannot say it really resonates or drones inside the cabin. Obviously, I can hear it but it is not resonating. So far, I have had the car at up to 160 mph and have experienced zero problems.
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