The RS Muffler is one of those aftermarket parts that has been around forever.  My guess is that it is just as good now as it was then.  The only difference is these days you can get one for the new generation of street cars.  The one above is for the 2008 and up Mitsubishi Evo X.  I’d love to hear how this one sounds.  If any one out there has a sound clip send it on over!

For a long time the Honda S2000 was my favorite car.  Out of the box it has just about everything you need: a great suspension, rear wheel drive, good looks, and an awesome engine.  However just like any other enthusiast we’re always going to want just a bit more.  Now its possible to get more for the S2k without worrying about the fuzz or finding a crooked smog guy.  Greddy’s S2000 Turbo Kit has just been announced as carb legal!  An extra 70hp without any tickets?  This might be a good time for me to check out the used s2k market…

I decided to take antoher look at Vorstiner’s titanium M3 exhaust.  I’ve been looking around and so far I haven’t seen too much that is on par with what Vorstiner put out.  Recently the dyno numbers came back from Evosport and it turns out that in addition to shaving off 38lbs it also added 14 horses and bumped up the torque by 13.24 ft/lbs.  So now we know for sure this exhaust isn’t just pretty piping.

In case you didn’t already know, Japanese tuner MINE’S has an arm in the US!  Also, as it turns out, they aren’t just about the Skyline either.  Check out this Titanium version of their “Silence” muffler for the 350Z.  It’s a lot like the previous Silence but lightweight (due to the titanium).  It’s also finished off with the classic blue flamed exhaust tips.  Titanium fresh!  Right now they’re sold out but keep an eye on MinesParts.com for the next shipment.

Amuse is arguably the first aftermarket company to make an exhaust for the Nissan GT-R supercar and for good reason.  The guys at Amuse are eager!  I still have lucid dreams about the R1 Titan S2000 that they built so I can’t wait to see how much further they go with the GT-R.  This titanium exhaust is a good start.  Its pricy but saves weight and adds a sweet sound.  GTR MOD has some in stock right now.

If you own a Mazda MX-5 and bolted on a crap-tastic aftermarket muffler then you probably noticed really fast just how loud the engine really is on that car!  When it first came out lots of companies threw together a system without doing much testing first so its hard to find an exhaust muffler kit with just the right sound.

The Racing Beat muffler is on the short list of the good ones.  It looks pretty fresh and it wont turn your exhaust note into that annoying buzz sound that we hear all too often from the high school parking lots.

There isn’t much one could do that would improve on the vast awesome-ness that is the Audi S5.  However sometimes less is more.  This STaSIS exhaust looks clean and subtle but will give a 10-15hp increase over stock and has a lifetime guarantee.  I wonder if that covers drilling holes into the pipes and trying to construct some sort of instrument out of it…?

The “Dolphin” aspect of this T1R exhaust’s name comes from the shape of its tip, but this piping set up is about more than just the tip.  It has a 70mm diameter for high flow and the walls of the pipes are only 1.2mm thick making it pretty lightweight.  It features a deep sound but still meets regulations so you don’t need to worry about the cops (too much) with this set up. 

Just a few days ago it was made public that Trust-Power Japan filed for bankruptcy.  After hearing this news many were left wondering what it would mean for Greddy USA since Trust-Power is its parent company.

Well Greddy set out to put everyone’s mind at ease with a press release reassuring us that the bankruptcy is merely part of a restructuring and they have plenty of stock on hand to keep going.

Good on you Greddy!

Press Release:

TRUST CO. LTD, JAPAN, FILES FOR MINJI-SAISEI-HOU IN TOKYO

GReddy Performance Products Inc., Parent Company to Undergo Reorganization

Through Japanese Equivalent of U.S. Chapter 11 Filing

September 9th, 2008, Irvine, CA—GReddy Performance Products, a California Corporation, has announced that its parent corporation, TRUST Co. LTD, has filed for Minji-saisei-hou in Tokyo, Japan, the U.S. equivalent of a Chapter 11 reorganization plan. As in the U.S., this filing is a common strategy utilized by companies to allow them to continue to conduct business and service customers while undergoing an internal reorganization process.

This reorganization will have little, if any effect on GReddy Performance Products Inc., USA. GReddy assures its customers that it has ample inventory of all products for the U.S. market, and there are no production delays on new and current product lines coming from Japan. GReddy looks forward to exhibiting at the 2008 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, NV in its 20’ x 40’ booth, and will have three new project vehicles and new 2009 products on display. Representatives from both GReddy USA and TRUST Co. LTD Japan are attending the SEMA Show to answer questions about the reorganization and future plans for the company to retain its dominance in the sport compact market segment for the next 30 years.

Stated GReddy Performance Product’s Kenji Sumino, “TRUST Co. LTD Japan has filed for bank protection in order to restructure. This does not affect GReddy Performance Products USA at this time. In fact, we are working on plans to assist TRUST Co. LTD Japan during this process in every way we can. We have more than adequate inventory to sustain us until TRUST Co. LTD Japan returns to full production capabilities. As more information becomes available, we will release it to the media.”

Taro from GT Channel has reported that Trust-Power Japan who is the parent company for Greddy USA filed for Bankruptcy this morning.  Apparantly the company is currently $60 million dollars in debt.  In Febuaray 2008 they reported sales of $53 million and while that sounds like a lot its actually down from the previous years sales.  Take into account loan payments totallying $43 million dollars and you have a serious problem.

Not much is known about what this will mean for Greddy USA and their stream of products coming over from the Japan HQ.  Many are hoping that another investor will come in to help Trust get its house in order before it gets to the point that Greddy USA may have to shut its doors.

It wasn’t too long ago that Greddy established an east coast warehouse and sales center so one could conclude that sales have at the very least been somewhat steady for the last two years or so.  They’ve also recently released a few new products including exhausts and suspension components.