My berk cbe review

Rui Z

I just got my BERK Technology Catback Exhaust installed by BERK. I still have my stock catalytic converter on and I will probably keep it that way. Here's a couple of videos that I made, so that people can get a sense of the difference between the sound/tone of the BERK with stock cats and with Minicobra's high flow cats video.

YouTube - 370Z BERK CBE, STOCK CATS, DRIVE-BY

Here's a review of my exhaust:
1. Fit and Finish
It looks stock, but I wish it looked even more stock. The cut angle for the exhaust tip is about half the angle of the stock tip. The tip sticks out about 0.5" more than the stock. The alignment is a little off on my car (its pointing to the left), but not noticeable unless someone was checking for alignment issues. I'm sure they could fix it easily if I brought it to their attention. Same with a scratch on the tip of my right exhaust that I'm guessing was scratched during installation. There is one weld on the muffler can that can be seen from behind if someone were checking out the exhaust closely. Also the midpipes are not running symmetrical so it gives the impression that it may be misaligned, but again this only matters if someone were checking out the exhaust closely. Other than that, the stainless steel finish looks nice and durable and the muffler looks better than the matte stock finish.

2. Performance
I'm not going to dyno it, but my butt tells me it's good. It feels like I gained about 15 horsepower that most people say they get with an aftermarket exhaust. The engine does feel smoother.

3. Sound
I love the tone. It's significantly deeper than stock. It burbles a little like the 350Z which I loved. I don't hear rasp and I occasionally hear a pop if I let off the throttle while in neutral. It is as quiet as stock during cruising, so there is no drone. I would say it's about a 6 out of 10 in loudness (4 being stock) during acceleration and revving. I wish it were a little bit louder with stock cats, because I don't want to get HFC. I know BERK made this exhaust with their HFC on, so the best sound will come from those who have the BERK HFC. I took the videos with my iphone. For those who want to see a difference in loudness/tone just take a video with another iphone.

Overall I am satisfied with the BERK CBE and I recommend it. BERK told me that they were expecting new shipments in October, but they are unlikely to do a group buy ($1399 MSRP I believe). I hope this review helps people who don't plan on installing HFC.