[Editor’s Note: This article originally ran in the June 2013 issue of Grassroots Motorsports.]
New cars are great. They take advantage of all the latest technology to squeeze out maximum performance, all while providing the appropriate street driving experience for the intended market.
In the case of econoboxes, that usually means great mileage, good handling and a quiet cabin—but only adequate power. To correct this compromise, you can give up the quiet cabin and gain some forward motivation through a performance exhaust. When prepping our Mazda2 for Street Touring FWD autocross, we ran into a little issue and needed to design an exhaust from scratch.
Like most modern cars, this Mazda2 uses two catalytic converters, including one directly in the manifold. This puts the cat closer to the cylinder head, which reduces cold-start emissions. The manifold runners must be quite short as a result, and that tends to hurt midrange punch. Additionally, the…
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