BERK Catback Exhaust System installs/reviews

Holliday · 08-17-2010, 09:32 AM

Looks great!

You can just tweak the hanger to get the tips to line up. Good luck!

BOLIO 671 · 08-17-2010, 09:49 AM

Congrats on the install....Does look blingin.....the misalignment does not look obvious on you pic...but only you would know....From what I read in past threads, adding some washers will do the trick of getting them aligned...

Dembflyr · 08-17-2010, 04:54 PM

I crawled under the car and found that the left resonator pipe's hanger was not in the rubber mount. I figured that I must have knocked it out while doing the install. So loosened the bolts and realigned the pipes making sure that the hangers were all in place. Everything looked good except...
What I noticed is that the hangers don't seem long enough. They are barely in the mount on the left side and the right side doesn't look right either.
Long story short, I just looked at the tips after running some errands and sure enough the left one is down again.
I looked under the car and the hanger is out of the mount again.
I might have to modify the mount.

Rob@BerkTech · 08-17-2010, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dembflyr

I crawled under the car and found that the left resonator pipe's hanger was not in the rubber mount. I figured that I must have knocked it out while doing the install. So loosened the bolts and realigned the pipes making sure that the hangers were all in place. Everything looked good except...
What I noticed is that the hangers don't seem long enough. They are barely in the mount on the left side and the right side doesn't look right either.
Long story short, I just looked at the tips after running some errands and sure enough the left one is down again.
I looked under the car and the hanger is out of the mount again.
I might have to modify the mount.

Hey,

We are getting a couple reports of this - in fact we just had a customer bring up their car for us to take a look. Our first recommendation is loosening the bolts and twisting the pipes to get it all lined up. If that doesn't work, you can do a washer or two on the hanger mount.

We're not sure why this issue is coming up with only certain 370Zs and not others, but we're taking a look on other cars to figure out what we need to tweak. But please let us know if you can't get it right and we'll figure out a solution for you.

Dembflyr · 08-17-2010, 06:16 PM

I did loosen the pipes and I tried to realign everything. When I tightened it back up it still wasn't right.

The metal rods on the resonator pipes aren't long enough to extend through the rubber mounts.

I will put it on ramps and take some pics tomorrow when I get home.

memorylasts · 08-18-2010, 12:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob@BerkTech

Hey,

We are getting a couple reports of this - in fact we just had a customer bring up their car for us to take a look. Our first recommendation is loosening the bolts and twisting the pipes to get it all lined up. If that doesn't work, you can do a washer or two on the hanger mount.

We're not sure why this issue is coming up with only certain 370Zs and not others, but we're taking a look on other cars to figure out what we need to tweak. But please let us know if you can't get it right and we'll figure out a solution for you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dembflyr

I did loosen the pipes and I tried to realign everything. When I tightened it back up it still wasn't right.

The metal rods on the resonator pipes aren't long enough to extend through the rubber mounts.

I will put it on ramps and take some pics tomorrow when I get home.

I was the one up there today, all i have to say was it was a great experience. I showed up a bit earlier then expected but never the less my GF and I were welcomed like family, At the end of the day we got the issue handled (tip alignment), i also had the hanger issue but I went about it in a way im not comfortable with posting, Rob and/or BERK can post that information if need be.

I will say BERK Tech. is a company that you cannot compare to HKS or Magnaflow... etc they have more of a focus on quality then quantity, and as most of you know if you have questions they are more then happy to trouble shoot it out just give them a call, or send Rob a PM or leave it here, but they are here for the customer and they will help you work the issues out.

I am extremely happy with my experience thus far with all of their communication and product(s)(future and current). I guess i just want to say thanks, and everyone please use your patience.

I have forced myself off the forums to and extent in terms of posting because I didn't want to sent any bad vibes through the forums before i was able to get up there and figure it out with them.

I hope this helps, and if not, it is meant with good intentions.

Vegitto-kun · 08-18-2010, 05:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob@BerkTech

Hey,

We are getting a couple reports of this - in fact we just had a customer bring up their car for us to take a look. Our first recommendation is loosening the bolts and twisting the pipes to get it all lined up. If that doesn't work, you can do a washer or two on the hanger mount.

We're not sure why this issue is coming up with only certain 370Zs and not others, but we're taking a look on other cars to figure out what we need to tweak. But please let us know if you can't get it right and we'll figure out a solution for you.

The same thing has happened with my FI CBE. one hanger doesn't fit on the mount properly but thank god that it hasn't fallen off

Dembflyr · 08-18-2010, 10:23 AM

So here are my pics.
Left tip is slightly lower

Here is part of the reason.

The right side looks ok, but it could be in there a bit more in my opinion.

Here is the left side in the rubber mount.

The bracket could be more level.

I modified the bracket and moved it about an inch to the right. I also bent the resonator hanger up a bit.

Much better.

But there is still a problem. I then removed the muffler and bent the left bracket down as far as I dared. That helped but not perfect.

Left side.

Right side.

This may seem nit-picky to some but 3/16 of an inch is noticeable.

So I made some shims for the right side out of an old car stereo install kit.

I put them under this bracket.

Here is the left side again.

And the right side after the shim is installed. Perfect!

Now that looks better!

So there you have it. This took me less than an hour to get this worked out.

I am even more happy with this exhaust now.

I am glad that I gave Berk the chance to make things right to those of us who waited. Rob contacted me about these issues before I even had a chance to contact him. I think that shows that Berk has turned a corner as far as their customer service is concerned.

memorylasts · 08-18-2010, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dembflyr

So here are my pics.
Left tip is slightly lower

Here is part of the reason.

The right side looks ok, but it could be in there a bit more in my opinion.

Here is the left side in the rubber mount.

The bracket could be more level.

I modified the bracket and moved it about an inch to the right. I also bent the resonator hanger up a bit.

Much better.

But there is still a problem. I then removed the muffler and bent the left bracket down as far as I dared. That helped but not perfect.

So there you have it. This took me less than an hour to get this worked out.

I am even more happy with this exhaust now.

I am glad that I gave Berk the chance to make things right to those of us who waited. Rob contacted me about these issues before I even had a chance to contact him. I think that shows that Berk has turned a corner as far as their customer service is concerned.

The thing i was uncomfortable in posting was this! About the resonator hanger, and sliding it over that inch. Since you did post it and come to your own on it i guess i can comfortably say it. haha. I just dont want the finger pointer at me for it.

Glad to see you got it all worked out! I still have a little fiddling to do, but i am not sure if i am going to use the shim idea or got with some hose clamps around the bushings. i will probably do the second idea, and i plan on lowering the car a little, and the roads here are not the most friendly even at stock height.

Justin1686 · 08-17-2010, 07:19 PM

so, my cbe is installed, and i gotta say, soooo worth the wait. sounds great, looks fantastic.

alright, so after 4 hours of driving around in the car after the install. i know have more time to write a better review. So, thanks to VinnyTen Racing to the install, quick and perfect alignment. The startup sound was, phenomenal. Even some of the guys in the shop, and for those of you that know have heard a lot, came to the bay door to listen to me start it up and drive away. That alone says something about the sound of this exhaust. I had made the decision to wait for the Berk cbe after listening to g35guys FI setup, and 370zsteve's Berk setup. The FI setup is great sounding, and looks great as well, but I was looking more for the stock look.

What I was surprised about though is, Steve did not have the HFC on his car, the sound difference with it on my car. It sounds AMAZING. The sound is deep, grumbling, and slightly exotic all at the same time. I'm thoroughly pleased with the setup. I'll try to get pics up tomorrow and possibly a video.

Dembflyr · 08-17-2010, 07:35 PM

One thing that I haven't mentioned is the very noticeable increase in power that I have felt since the CBE was installed.
I installed the Cobb MAF tubes at the same time and the throttle response is awesome.
With VDC off this thing is a tire roaster now.

The butt dyno approves.

Justin1686 · 08-17-2010, 10:37 PM

after driving around some while tonight. i noticed that there is a rattling noise coming from the exhaust. I cant pinpoint where its coming from, but while sitting at a light, or even just idling, it almost sounds like a rotational rattling, if that makes any sense. its quite annoying.

memorylasts · 08-18-2010, 12:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin1686

after driving around some while tonight. i noticed that there is a rattling noise coming from the exhaust. I cant pinpoint where its coming from, but while sitting at a light, or even just idling, it almost sounds like a rotational rattling, if that makes any sense. its quite annoying.

if you are facing the back of the car look to the right exhaust tip and follow the piping there is a tin yes tin or very thin metallic tray, and it you can literally take a finger and bend back the tray edge to get it out of the way from rubbing on the pipes.

you dont need a lift to do this just look under there you should see what im talking about.

im hoping that is the sound you are hearing.

Holliday · 08-18-2010, 02:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by memorylasts

if you are facing the back of the car look to the right exhaust tip and follow the piping there is a tin yes tin or very thin metallic tray, and it you can literally take a finger and bend back the tray edge to get it out of the way from rubbing on the pipes.

you dont need a lift to do this just look under there you should see what im talking about.

im hoping that is the sound you are hearing.

Great info! Good lookin out!

+1 rep from me!

Zeester · 08-18-2010, 03:22 AM

What are we seeing as far as power gains with the BERK cat back ? Im in the market for an exhaust and ever since seeing the video with the Grey 370Z + BERK CBE, i fell in love with the sound !

Ive done some research and decided that its either the BERK or the Invidia exhaust. How does this compare, power gains wise to the Invidia exhaust ?

08-17-2010, 09:32 AM	#1 (permalink)
Holliday Track Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Cache, OK Age: 38 Posts: 916 Drives: in the fast lane.... Rep Power: 17	Looks great! You can just tweak the hanger to get the tips to line up. Good luck! __________________

08-17-2010, 09:49 AM	#2 (permalink)
BOLIO 671 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: GUAHAN Posts: 1,198 Drives: To & From then Back Rep Power: 3400	Congrats on the install....Does look blingin.....the misalignment does not look obvious on you pic...but only you would know....From what I read in past threads, adding some washers will do the trick of getting them aligned... __________________ 2013 Nismo Z34 / FI TT #091 / IG: @lilzilla_z34

08-17-2010, 04:54 PM	#3 (permalink)
Dembflyr Track Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 886 Drives: G37S Sedan Rep Power: 17	I crawled under the car and found that the left resonator pipe's hanger was not in the rubber mount. I figured that I must have knocked it out while doing the install. So loosened the bolts and realigned the pipes making sure that the hangers were all in place. Everything looked good except... What I noticed is that the hangers don't seem long enough. They are barely in the mount on the left side and the right side doesn't look right either. Long story short, I just looked at the tips after running some errands and sure enough the left one is down again. I looked under the car and the hanger is out of the mount again. I might have to modify the mount. __________________ 2012 G37S Sedan 6MT - Project Practicality 2009-6MT-Sport/Touring-Dembflyr's Journal-TT Build Thread-CAR IS SOLD

08-17-2010, 06:16 PM	#5 (permalink)
Dembflyr Track Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 886 Drives: G37S Sedan Rep Power: 17	I did loosen the pipes and I tried to realign everything. When I tightened it back up it still wasn't right. The metal rods on the resonator pipes aren't long enough to extend through the rubber mounts. I will put it on ramps and take some pics tomorrow when I get home. __________________ 2012 G37S Sedan 6MT - Project Practicality 2009-6MT-Sport/Touring-Dembflyr's Journal-TT Build Thread-CAR IS SOLD

08-18-2010, 10:23 AM	#8 (permalink)
Dembflyr Track Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 886 Drives: G37S Sedan Rep Power: 17	So here are my pics. Left tip is slightly lower Here is part of the reason. The right side looks ok, but it could be in there a bit more in my opinion. Here is the left side in the rubber mount. The bracket could be more level. I modified the bracket and moved it about an inch to the right. I also bent the resonator hanger up a bit. Much better. But there is still a problem. I then removed the muffler and bent the left bracket down as far as I dared. That helped but not perfect. Left side. Right side. This may seem nit-picky to some but 3/16 of an inch is noticeable. So I made some shims for the right side out of an old car stereo install kit. I put them under this bracket. Here is the left side again. And the right side after the shim is installed. Perfect! Now that looks better! So there you have it. This took me less than an hour to get this worked out. I am even more happy with this exhaust now. I am glad that I gave Berk the chance to make things right to those of us who waited. Rob contacted me about these issues before I even had a chance to contact him. I think that shows that Berk has turned a corner as far as their customer service is concerned. __________________ 2012 G37S Sedan 6MT - Project Practicality 2009-6MT-Sport/Touring-Dembflyr's Journal-TT Build Thread-CAR IS SOLD

08-17-2010, 07:19 PM	#10 (permalink)
Justin1686 Track Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Nassau, NY Age: 38 Posts: 689 Drives: 09 370 PG AT Rep Power: 17	so, my cbe is installed, and i gotta say, soooo worth the wait. sounds great, looks fantastic. alright, so after 4 hours of driving around in the car after the install. i know have more time to write a better review. So, thanks to VinnyTen Racing to the install, quick and perfect alignment. The startup sound was, phenomenal. Even some of the guys in the shop, and for those of you that know have heard a lot, came to the bay door to listen to me start it up and drive away. That alone says something about the sound of this exhaust. I had made the decision to wait for the Berk cbe after listening to g35guys FI setup, and 370zsteve's Berk setup. The FI setup is great sounding, and looks great as well, but I was looking more for the stock look. What I was surprised about though is, Steve did not have the HFC on his car, the sound difference with it on my car. It sounds AMAZING. The sound is deep, grumbling, and slightly exotic all at the same time. I'm thoroughly pleased with the setup. I'll try to get pics up tomorrow and possibly a video. __________________ 2009 Touring & Sport Package \|\| Platinum Graphite \|\| 40% 3M Tint \|\| Xpel Clear Bra \|\| Berk CBE \|\| Berk HFC \|\| Stillen Sway Bar \|\| H&R Spacers \|\| Swift Springs \|\| SPC Rear Camber Kit \|\| Thanks to Savage Autosports, VTR, PM, and R.A.D.

08-17-2010, 07:35 PM	#11 (permalink)
Dembflyr Track Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 886 Drives: G37S Sedan Rep Power: 17	One thing that I haven't mentioned is the very noticeable increase in power that I have felt since the CBE was installed. I installed the Cobb MAF tubes at the same time and the throttle response is awesome. With VDC off this thing is a tire roaster now. The butt dyno approves. __________________ 2012 G37S Sedan 6MT - Project Practicality 2009-6MT-Sport/Touring-Dembflyr's Journal-TT Build Thread-CAR IS SOLD

08-17-2010, 10:37 PM	#12 (permalink)
Justin1686 Track Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Nassau, NY Age: 38 Posts: 689 Drives: 09 370 PG AT Rep Power: 17	after driving around some while tonight. i noticed that there is a rattling noise coming from the exhaust. I cant pinpoint where its coming from, but while sitting at a light, or even just idling, it almost sounds like a rotational rattling, if that makes any sense. its quite annoying. __________________ 2009 Touring & Sport Package \|\| Platinum Graphite \|\| 40% 3M Tint \|\| Xpel Clear Bra \|\| Berk CBE \|\| Berk HFC \|\| Stillen Sway Bar \|\| H&R Spacers \|\| Swift Springs \|\| SPC Rear Camber Kit \|\| Thanks to Savage Autosports, VTR, PM, and R.A.D.

08-18-2010, 03:22 AM	#15 (permalink)
Zeester Base Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 118 Drives: 2009 370Z Rep Power: 16	What are we seeing as far as power gains with the BERK cat back ? Im in the market for an exhaust and ever since seeing the video with the Grey 370Z + BERK CBE, i fell in love with the sound ! Ive done some research and decided that its either the BERK or the Invidia exhaust. How does this compare, power gains wise to the Invidia exhaust ?

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