Thoughts on this Cat bypass
 

Came across this cat bypass on Fleabay. Anyone had experience with this product? It's stainless, and appears to be well made, and the price is right. No connection to seller, just thought I'd pick the brains on the forum.


OBX CAT DELETE PIPE 75-89 PORSCHE 911 2.7L 3.0L 3.2L : eBay Motors (item 150431641334 end time Apr-14-10 17:02:11 PDT)

Walmart is selling Porsche parts. This will further help kill American made products even as the pay scale for skilled welders and other trades continues to slide.
You get what you pay for.

CAT Bypass
 

I bought a pipe that look just like that, imported from Canada for $225.
when I got it, the box said "Made In Taiwan". LOL. :eek:
I think the word Sucker is written on my forehead. :mad:
I haven't mounted it yet, i'll let you know how THAT goes.
On a side note; my pipe does look well made. The welds are a perfect "set of dimes". http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1271185099.jpg

Wow, he asked for advice on a part and he gets a load of guilt sliding his way?....
You get what you pay for, indeed.
Which would be 99 dollars worth of cat bypass...
This is not rocket ship technology, it's tubing, flanges and some welds.
Looks good, go for it. No need to feel guilty.
If it is no good, it will only have cost you 99 bucks.

I think Brians response is much like my thoughts. I do my best to hand Tig weld, Purchase US stainless, and use local Laser cutting shops to produce our M&K premuffler with a near perfect 02 sampling merge. Ours are $335 and allot more then the ebay ad but I can honeslty tell you that It is very difficult to produce a quality product and still make it worth while and work for both the producer and the buyer and actually fit and last more then a year. It is just sobering in this econmy to even see more of this. to be hosest it will probably work and it is a 1/3 of the price of ours. Best of luck

I've also bought this bypass. Well made, great fitment and superb sound. You have to blend the O2 sensor mount (for older cars) with either a O2 sensor or a M-18 threaded bolt. I think that I payed $229 on ebay.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...3/P8012438.jpg
"Just perfect - DANSK race muffler at the end"

Ben, I get your point, as well as I got Brian's.
I just wanted to comment because I thought it was kind of harsh and a bit unfair to critique the OP for looking to buy a non US made product.
Economy is hard on almost everybody now and you cannot blame someone for looking out for a good deal, even if it is not made in the US.
Most Pelican members love a little DIY, should they feel guilty because they do it themselves instead of going to mechanics, bodyshops,... for every little thing that needs to be done? They too could be charged with hindering economic revival....
That's about it, I'm sure you can understand this point of view too.

Unfortunately, things NOT being made in the US is part of the reason that our economy is hurting.

We've lost well over half of our manufacturing jobs in the last 40 years.

If I can reasonably buy a US made product, I will. If it's something I don't really need, I'll put it off if I can't get US made. Local (your city or state) is even better.

I know these are German cars, buying used is different than buying new.

The Germans, for the most part, get it. You don't see a lot of toyotas in Germany, lots of Golfs, etc.

Sermon over.

hey, how long does it take to replace one of these cat bypass things??

Sorry, but I have to agree with Geronimo '74, these are not rocket sience, I know I built my own in an afternoon with a torch and a mig and a die grinder.
Depends what you are looking for, if it's something to get the exhaust from one piont to the next, that thing will work just fine.

Laying a trip on someone because he can get it somewhere cheaper is weak.

If you can check every label in your house and garage and every product says "Made in North America" then I guess you have an opinion, but I would guess 70% to 90% of the items are not.


Just to be clear, everyone knows that this website is all about cars that are built in Germany right.

I bought the "Maxspeed" catbypass, good quality, good fitment, no complaints.

It's not about guilt, it's about supporting the home team.

That's right which brings home the point. I you can buy American you should. Our way of life is eroding fast due to the invasion of cheap Asian products and the devastation it has had on American manufacturing. Not everyone is cut out to be an accountant or work for the Geek Squad. You want to make $1/day to work? If this keeps up we all will.

Then you won't mind making 1000 of them and selling your time for nothing. The mandrel bent stainless and flanges required (to make a bypass pipe) of any quality at all will cost you that $100 pricetag. How much was your welder? Gas? Fixture for quality checks? Safety equipment? Garage to work in? Utilities? Insurance? Education or experience learning to weld? Marketing? Sales? The list goes on. This is a retail product that is also made by owners with overhead and folks earning a living here in the US that need your support.
No I don't feel one bit bad reminding folks of what is happening here. I watched my home town die because of this as one by one every manufacturer went to Mexico and then China. It's personal. My family will continue to do all we can to resist the Walmart mentality.

From what I've read here on Pelican, the OBX products look good and are priced super low but don't hold up under track conditions, welds tend to crack and fail. If you plan to do a track day with your car my advise is to save yourself the hassle and go with an M&K.

No I don't feel one bit bad reminding folks of what is happening here. I watched my home town die because of this as one by one every manufacturer went to Mexico and then China. It's personal. My family will continue to do all we can to resist the Walmart mentality.[/QUOTE]

Its very hard to avoid foreign products these days. Foreign also depends on where you live. One also has to place the blame partially at home. I mean Apple tries for example to say that everything is "designed in the US" but its still made in China. US bosses are deciding to produce in China just like European bosses are. As long as the chinese artificially undervalue their currency the situation isn´t going to get better any soon. The Taiwanese have now emerged as masters in tubular steel and carbon fibre technology(a spin off from the bicycle manufacturing). Its also down to pricing policies. I can get some items on the Pelican site cheaper than here in Germany. Yet when the parts arrive they are OEM made in Germany.

I just received my M&K premuffler. I am very impressed with the quality and I expect it to last for many years. This is for an 88 Carrera. And it is made in AMERICA by AMERICANS. I am beyond tired of sending the jobs of my fellow Americans overseas in order to save a few dollars. I will bite the bullet and buy American when given the choice. It keeps getting harder to do.
Gary

Looking at the cylindrical "muffler" portion of the Asian made product, it is clearly a smaller diameter than others I've seen and certainly the M&K. I purchased one of Ben's pre mufflers and the muffler section of it is of a larger diameter - with batting inside - than the Fabspeed pre muffler that I also have. The M&K is a little bit quieter (in my opinion) than the Fabspeed as well as being of much better construction. Guess which one in on my car right now...

I would also guess that the Asian made pre muffler posted above is also not nearly as quiet as the M&K - one of the reasons why I wanted it in the first place.

Talk about going off topic & screwing up someone's thread.

So it is ok to buy German and not buy Chinese? We all need the work.

America is a great country, I love it, and feel so lucky to be born here.

However, we need to get off our butts, use our heads (ingenuity & productivity), manage our costs (tax rates, labor costs, & entitlements), and learn how to compete again.

Oh, and it would probably help if we stopped complaining like a bunch of spoiled sports that the other team is winning and get back in the game.

My apologies to uwanna for just making things worse!

to get back on topic I would think for $100 how could you go wrong other then if it did not fit. I can't even buy materials to do it at that price so kudo's to them. so now off topic With that said When I purchase something it is always nice to know that a person is at the very least interested in the product they are selling for example, TRE or Wayne, Rothsport etc. those guys are ethusiests do I shop at Walmart yup but I try to buy stuff made here which most times I can. The good news is steel prices are going up world wide so you will see a evening of the market. I just keep pluggin away Best of luck now someone close this thread or move it to off topic

Please correct me if I'm wrong but,

Some seem to be confusing the items here, The original post is for a "Cat delete pipe" or test pipe. This is a strait piece of pipe (non resonated).
Some are comparing it to a Pre-muffler, which is a resonated high flow pipe much like a glasspack. The two are different.
Just as the price justification from a $100 OBX test pipe and a $335 M&K or whatever RarlyL8 Motorsports sells.

You are comparing Apples to Oranges.

No one is going to argue that a 316 grade hand made stainless steel made in North Amarica test pipe is of superior quality than an offshore peice, but some don't want to spend $350 on it, they want to spend $100, and the latter is the option.

It is so great to have choices.

IMO, there is no proven power difference between the OBX, Bursch bypass, Porsche pre-muffler, or M&K pre-muffler that I have been able to verify or have seen. Not sure but I think the 911chips.com chip is the same for all.

I suspect the main advantage of a pre-muffler, besides reducing back pressure over a Cat, is it can 'help reduce noise' to a small degree.

If one went to far with there sport muffler it might bring things back some. If one prizes a car that is as quiet at possible it is something to consider.

I went with a used Bursch cat bypass pipe for $80 delivered and it did not seem like my car was any louder with the stock muffler and bypass than cat and bypass.

Not sure where the Bursch is made but you can support Pelican to for only $70 more Pelican Parts.com - CAT By-Pass Pipes

The best.