Review of AAM Competition 2.5 True Dual Cat-back System

[avantgti7]

Hey Guys,

I just installed the AAM Competition 2.5 inch True Dual Cat-back to my otherwise stock 370Z. I love it! Khoi knocked off $50 bucks from the price listed on their website. I picked up the box from their store and drove over to my friend's house to install it the same day. If you plan to do local pickup, make sure you bring at least a mid-sized car with backseats that can be folded down.

It took us one hour to install the system. My friend does have a hydraulic lift and air tools in his garage so that definitely helped. I would imagine without these luxuries, the install couldn't take more than 2 to 3 hours. The bolts on the factory system were pretty tight even for a car with only 31k on it, so be sure to use a breaker bar and some kind of penetrating oil.

I was very impressed with the quality of the packaging that the cat-back system came in and also in the welds and finish of the system. The average person would not be able to tell that this system is aftermarket from a visual perspective. The tips are adjustable which allows you to get it flush with the bumper unlike the Invidia 370Z exhaust.

When I first turned on the car after installing the system, I could immediately hear more bass in the exhaust note. The exhaust has become louder now after a couple hundred miles as expected. The car should have came with this exhaust from the factory! The Z's stock exhaust growl is still there in the high RPMs but now there are boomy bass notes in the melody throughout the rev range particularly between 1k and 4k. It sounds really good and again, the average person probably wouldn't notice from hearing it that the exhaust was aftermarket.

The plan is to get HFCs, cold air intakes, and get the car tuned on a dyno. I'm sure with the HFCs and the cold air intakes that the car will no longer sound stock to anyone but that's okay.

I was getting tired of hearing the Z's vacuum cleaner-like stock sound but didn't want to make the car sound obnoxious or take away from its sexy appearance. There are other exhaust systems such as those made by CNT and Invidia that accomplish these goals for a couple hundred dollars cheaper than the AAM system. However, these systems come with drawbacks such as fitment issues like with the CNT system or the exhaust tips not being flush like with the Invidia system.

I will post some pictures and a before/after video of the AAM system as soon I get a chance.

- Sheebu