Stillen CBE Clearance Problems Fixed?
 

What's the latest new on fitment and clearance issues with the Stillen catback? I know a few months ago there were issues with the exhaust hitting the crossmember and people were using metal hose clamps to hold up the exhaust. Then Stillen said this issue was fixed, but someone posted in late July claiming they still had a problem.

Has anyone installed the Stillen CBE lately to verify if the install was free of clearance problems?

I'm interested as well!

I just put one on 2 weeks ago with berk cats and it hits the cross member. It rattles in the rear.
The stillen headers are next and we are going to have to cut the cat and realign them for a perfect fit as the headers do not fit well at all.
Hopefully every thng will work out then.

Hey Z I saw your test results from your time at the track and good job will you be looking into some drag radials to resolve the wheel spin?
thanks for answering the rattle question.

Thanks for the reply. Taking the Stillen CBE off my list...

No one from Stillen cares to post here?

get F.I headers if you want perfect fitment

and get F.I catback... they are the best

Nismo CBE with Berk HFCs = perfection IMO...

soundclip?

Fitment is good with the Berks, not too close to any of the heatshields?

i installed my stillen and berks with NO issues, bolted it up and fit perfect. no rub against the cross member at all. no fancy tricks, just bolted it together.

Sounds like a craps game to me with some rolling snake eyes while others roll a seven. My personal feeling is if you take it to a muffler shop whom does it all the time, they probably know enough tricks to make it work. My other personal feeling is you shouldn't have to.

Two rounds of jacking the car up myself and two more rounds at a muffler shop cutting the rear Y-pipe in half and rewelding it back for better clearance, still hearing a funny noise and getting a vibration I can't figure out. Some of it is the tires and the road, some of it is??

Really don't know exactly what to do or if something else is creating a diversion. Anybody with other exhaust systems having any probems?

Forged Performance installed my Stillen headers recently and I already had Stillen's CBE in place. After the header install, the exhaust sporadically hits the crossmember brace. There is very little space between the brace and the exhaust. Nevertheless, I'm going TT anyway so the exhaust, headers, etc. will have to go. Keep that in mind cause I will post them up for sale on the boards.:p

Check out minicobra1's clips with the exact same setup. His clips convinced me to add the berks to my Nismo CBE. I'm not sure if he's running CAIs too but I am and love my setup:

YouTube - 370Z With Nismo Catback and Berk HFC's

YouTube - 370Z Nismo Catback- Berk HFC's Launch & Mild drive by

Nismo exhaust is a perfect fit and the berks bolt on perfectly with zero fitment issues...*

That was pretty nice sounding. What other mods does he have cuz he was chirping pretty good thru the first and second gears.

Thats it. From his sig he doesn't even run CAIs. My ride is ferocious with CAIs...

I have the HFC's and the CBE from Stillen. No "fitment" issues. Never had any. I installed mine in mid July. Sound and performance is fantastic.

going back on topic...
last time i was at stillen i was informed problem has been fix
assuming you buy directly from stillen you should be ok(from what i was told)

now if you are buying from a third party(vendor) it is possible that they still might have an old batch in stock so who knows

Agreed. I was one of the members here who had the earlier batches of Stillen CBEs with crossmember clearance issues. I was able to work it out with Stillen and I was able to get my hands on their adjusted mid-pipe. With the current mid-pipe, the exhaust fits without any clearance issues. If you have any concerns about this, just order it directly through Stillen.

Ordered the exhaust through Stillen and it went in perfectly. No clearance issues at all. Just make sure you don't attach any of the parts upsidedown...I wonder how many people actually did that rather than have an old batch that needed tweaking.

Is it possible to install it upside down? Doesn't the piping only go one way due to the flanges? ie. don't meet up correctly upside-down?

Don't really know. I didn't install mine.

I was there when we installed mine, after mine hit the cross member I thought maybe it's upside down, so we turned it over and the flanges didn't meet up so it appeared that they could only go one way. I'm still trying to sort out a good way of fixing the knocking like 5 months after I installed it haha

Why not call Stillen. Maybe they'll ship you the new version that won't hit the crossmember. They have good customer service, and since they updated the design to fix a problem I'd guess they'd accommodate you.

I'm in Australia, so I doubt they'd ship it down here.

Anyone from Stillen still here? is it possible to mount it upside down?

What have other people done to solve this issue?

Hey guys, I'm taking my car in on Saturday to try and fix this issue, are the hose clamps (some members have done this) the best way to stop it hitting the cross member?

What have other members done to stop the knocking? cheers

Did you call Stillen?

I sent them an email but they never got back to me. So might have to do a patch job to get it sorted up. Was thinking about the hose clamps but it's a bit of a dodgy fix

Had my Stillen CBE exhaust installed since October 2009 and have 0 fitment issues.

Installed Stillen CBE and G3- did it myself and I have a desk job - no fitment problems at all - went in fine first time - really pretty easy and basic- sounds and feels great- can feel more power and sound is more than stock but not too much that it wears on you out on long ride-
one note on G3 -when you remove the front fascia mark the location of the metal cross member you loosen so you put it back in the same location- it is adjustible and affects allignment with hood

Dealer installed my Stillen CBE last month with no fitment issues. The technician that performed the work did say it took a little extra effort to make sure the exhaust tips were perfectly centered. That's probably due to me telling him prior to the install that there were no other options! Looks great and sounds great.

Wow that was a mistake.

Don't they have a presence in New Zealand?

Emails, they do nothing!

Pick up the phone. :icon14:

I dont have a fitment issue, everything bolted into place, however, the muffler section doesnt look right, the right muffler tip is off centered, didnt notice it until yesterday, now its bothering the hell outta me.

Originally Posted by Denny McLain
"two more rounds at a muffler shop cutting the rear Y-pipe in half and rewelding it back for better clearance"

I beg to ask the very pragmatic question........why was that a mistake? Called Stillen for assistance and they were absolutely worthless in support. Very glad to hear that some people have no issues. However, those who never have had issues need to recognize that they can and do exist.

Relatively handy doing my own engine building, head/intake porting and paint/body work. All the mods to my Z were done by my me including dyno tuning where I rented dyno time to do so. Have zero need to buy "canned tunes."

My Corvette won "best in class" at the 2007 Dallas Autorama with me painting the car doing all the restoration down to replacing the carpet and engine detailing. Currently in the mid-winter process of restoring a 1964 Chevy Impala SS cutting out the floorboards and welding new ones back in myself. After that, I'll finish out the interior and them repaint the car in the spring. It should look like new and I plan on doing some local shows. Oh yes, I'm replacing the rusted exhaust system with a new one.

The Stillen exhaust was not properly manufactured, needed to be fixed, have the experience to realize when something needs to be done and I fixed it. End of story.

So.......tell me how that was a mistake. What should I have done?........let it hit the cross member and put my head in the sand? Deny there wasn't an issue?

Curious minds want to know.

Goes to show you. Dont even bother with stillen. Thats like one of the most important things. fitment. they sell you stuff at a premium but they fit like cheap ebay parts lol.

For years and years, been a fan of the Millen's cheering them on in their racing efforts. Stillen in my opinion represented a tradition of winning performance. However, up to owning the 370; had never purchased anything from the company.

It was with zero hesitation and grateful anticipation that I placed my first order with them. As a result of mediocre product quality, repeated problems and very poor customer support, I've washed my hands from every doing business with them.

Busted my bubble as I truly expected better.

MIne hits the cross member and I am installing the headers next week.
after the headers ,cats and CBE are installed im off to the local high performance exhuast shop to get it fixed.

4 thick washers between the crossmember and pipe is all it takes to fix it cheap and easy.