K-Tec Stealth - Too Loud?

[Guvna!]

I have been following this thread with great interest.

My *standard* exhaust is a lot louder than my friends Miltek cat back.

Cold it is fine but as soon as it warms up it's pretty noisy but at 60 mph it is not too bad. 70 is pretty noisy.

I have had Renault and Four Ashes have a look and no sign of any leaks - it pops a lot.

I'm tempted to whack a stealth exhaust on as around town it sounds really chavvy and droany.

Are all new K-tec's equipped stuffed with these bags?

My mates Miltek does sound pretty nice but i'd rather go stealth!

 

[piggoy]

I don't get the complaints people have with the KTR Stealth. I fitted my cat back silenced centre one on Saturday and it was almost silent on the first kick up, gave it a good bit of s**t back home and it got louder, a lot louder, at that point I s**t it as I thought I'd got the wrong system and it would be nowt but a loud exhaust to replace the loud exhaust I'd bought it to get rid of.

Set off from Nottingham to Oldham in the afternoon and loved it. The exhaust had quietened back down to little more than a slight burble on tick over, quiet around town with only a slight hint of it not being OE and even ok on the motorway - no booming, ear ringing or headaches. Give the car a thrash and the system comes to life over 4k, but whilst driving normally it's perfect.

I've only done about 400 miles since fitting it but I'd say the exhaust has settled in now. I'll grab some videos at the weekend if I get chance and post them.

Thanks for your post Sym0n,

That may be a little reassuring for me :approve:. Like I said in my previous post I just fitted a replacement rear section on warranty from K-Tec. Shaun/Sean at K-Tec maybe thought that my first stealth was from a bad batch. If you've just recently fitted a new one which is quiet then I may be in luck. I'm gonna take it for a thrashing this weekend so I'll keep ya posted.

 

[Guvna!]

I look forward to hearing the clips from Sym0n.

If it sounds decent it may twist my arm.

Maybe it is just a rumour but I heard if you decat the K-tec it adds a bit more meat to the note? Bass I guess, if we were talking about audio.

 

[TimR26]

I really like the sound my stealth makes. Its slightly louder than standard with normal drving but when you give it some beans it sounds really good.

 

[yap]

That's what I found. Just fitted a mild steel stealth on Saturday and it sounded just a tad louder than standard but after 10 miles it got lounder and after I booted it over 4000 revs a few times it have remained loud. I just hope after a few hundred miles it does get quieter.

 

[Guvna!]

Anybody in the West Midlands, prefferably Wolves or Shropshire got one on theirs that I could listen to lol?

 

[franx]

I'm gonna get under the car tomorrow and check it's fitted 100% correctly, just as one last attempt to keep it but I'm still quite sure I'm going to be selling it at a minimum loss to myself

As I've got all day I may aswell post up some videos too

Hi Bucko, do'nt know if you have already lost your exhaust but this is important.

The exhaust expands when running (heated) and this can cause one of the mounts ( or more) to touch metal on metal, if you know what i mean. When not taking this in account the exhaust will send all it's vibration through the chassis (body) , lot of noise coming with this.

When mounted properly, the exhaust wil hang free in its' rubbers ; not touching any metal parts. All the mounts are adjustable so this can be taken care of.

Mine had a mount which was touching and made a lot of noise. I took it off and drilled out the oval adjustment-holes some more so it could be adjusted some more ; no more probs, no more noise. May still be of some use i hope.... a bit late , sorry.

 

[Sym0n]

As promised...this was made about 10 minutes after the exhaust was fitted last week. So the sound has changed a lot now, it's got quieter (I'll sort another one when I can be arsed).

[youtube]g71aqDNh2NY[/youtube]

or better quality Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/5348781

White smoke on start up is oil from the manufacturing process and/or plastic bags that hold the sound deadening stuff. Stopped after a couple of short runs...

Hope that helps.

Sy

 

[tomnokes]

Hi all,

I too have been reading this thread with interest as I am looking at getting the KTR Stealth Stainless option in a fornight to replace my blowing/leaky/dying std exhaust (which made it to 51k!)

Sy, thanks v much for the video mate - helped very much!

I was a bit worried after seeing peoples' feedback that it's too loud when at motorway speeds / gentle throttle around town.

Sy, based on your video, it doesn't sound much louder than standard when you're cruising on a stable or trailing throttle-position. Is this pretty much accurate? How do you personally find it at motorway speeds (IE 70-100)?

I'm really not after a rorty exhaust which gets too much attention, just something a little more interesting than the Renault item. As a few of my friends still work in the motorsport industry or have *much* more exotic cars than me, I don't want to end up looking like a boy-racer in their company :clown: ... especially since the 172 gets so much respect from them normally!

Based on Sy's video I think this will be okay. What do you think?

Cheers,

Tom

 

[DMS]

I've got the K-Tec Supersport recessed exhaust and even that isn't very loud when you're cruising along at low speeds (i.e; through town). Gets a bit noisy at high speeds (above 60mph) but you just get used to it - it's not that intrusive. If I drive with my foot to the floor it's VERY loud though, but it sounds epic. I'd imagine the silenced version of these exhausts are even quieter when driving "normally".
Just get one. You won't regret it.

 

[MarkCup]

Hi all,

I too have been reading this thread with interest as I am looking at getting the KTR Stealth Stainless option in a fornight to replace my blowing/leaky/dying std exhaust (which made it to 51k!)

Sy, thanks v much for the video mate - helped very much!

I was a bit worried after seeing peoples' feedback that it's too loud when at motorway speeds / gentle throttle around town.

Sy, based on your video, it doesn't sound much louder than standard when you're cruising on a stable or trailing throttle-position. Is this pretty much accurate? How do you personally find it at motorway speeds (IE 70-100)?

I'm really not after a rorty exhaust which gets too much attention, just something a little more interesting than the Renault item. As a few of my friends still work in the motorsport industry or have *much* more exotic cars than me, I don't want to end up looking like a boy-racer in their company :clown: ... especially since the 172 gets so much respect from them normally!

Based on Sy's video I think this will be okay. What do you think?

Cheers,

Tom

I've had a stealth fitted for the last 105,000 miles and personally think it's mint.

At light throttle and low load no one would ever notice any difference but give it some beans at high revs and it screams away nicely. Noise/character on cue. You WILL get some resonance at certain speeds but nothing you can't drive around (mine hums at 70-75mph but seems almost silent at 80mph).

Having said that I've got a brand new centre section replaced under warranty last week that I'm just running in at the moment...early indications are it sounds just the same as it always did...new video to follow soon...

[youtube]Jb2vU6s1fWY[/youtube]

 

[Sym0n]

Sy, thanks v much for the video mate - helped very much!

I was a bit worried after seeing peoples' feedback that it's too loud when at motorway speeds / gentle throttle around town.

No problem, I was in the same boat and it was only after hearing one kick up at FCS that I finally made my mind up.

Sy, based on your video, it doesn't sound much louder than standard when you're cruising on a stable or trailing throttle-position. Is this pretty much accurate? How do you personally find it at motorway speeds (IE 70-100)?

Once you're up to speed it's just a slight grumble in the background anywhere between 60-90, obviously if you thrash it to get there, like I did the videos, then it makes more noise until you settle in. For me it's perfect, just after I shot those videos I drove up to Oldham from Nottingham and it's the first time since owning my Ph1 that I've got out without a headache or ringing ears . Perfectly easy to chat to your passengers, no booming and you don't have to have the stereo blaring just to hear it.

I'm really not after a rorty exhaust which gets too much attention, just something a little more interesting than the Renault item. As a few of my friends still work in the motorsport industry or have *much* more exotic cars than me, I don't want to end up looking like a boy-racer in their company :clown: ... especially since the 172 gets so much respect from them normally!

Based on Sy's video I think this will be okay. What do you think?

Cheers,

Tom

For me unless you thrash it with this system on it's nothing more than a slight rumble to give away that it's not an OE system. Best buy I've made so far TBH.

Plus mines got quieter now it's coked up a bit and the sound deadening has had chance to fully expand.

 

[Bondie]

:S i have a magnex system and I think its too quiet...

Agree!

 

[Fletcher]

No problem, I was in the same boat and it was only after hearing one kick up at FCS that I finally made my mind up.


Once you're up to speed it's just a slight grumble in the background anywhere between 60-90, obviously if you thrash it to get there, like I did the videos, then it makes more noise until you settle in. For me it's perfect, just after I shot those videos I drove up to Oldham from Nottingham and it's the first time since owning my Ph1 that I've got out without a headache or ringing ears . Perfectly easy to chat to your passengers, no booming and you don't have to have the stereo blaring just to hear it.


For me unless you thrash it with this system on it's nothing more than a slight rumble to give away that it's not an OE system. Best buy I've made so far TBH.

Plus mines got quieter now it's coked up a bit and the sound deadening has had chance to fully expand.

I've done over 10k on my stealth now, and i think it's getting lounder when hot

 

[Sym0n]

I've done over 10k on my stealth now, and i think it's getting lounder when hot

When it's hot it will do as the metal will expand and the air will flow faster.

I gave mine s**t (mostly 2nd and 3rd) from it being fitted to make sure that it got nice and hot, so the metal expanded and also so that the plastic bags holding the sound deadening stuff melted and allowed it to expand. I rinsed and repeated quite a few times over the weekend just to make sure it had got hot enough... :clown:

Now it's poifect even when hot. Obviously time will tell if it stays like that though, biggest test will be the exhausts first outing around a track lol.

 

[Fletcher]

When it's hot it will do as the metal will expand and the air will flow faster.

I gave mine s**t (mostly 2nd and 3rd) from it being fitted to make sure that it got nice and hot, so the metal expanded and also so that the plastic bags holding the sound deadening stuff melted and allowed it to expand. I rinsed and repeated quite a few times over the weekend just to make sure it had got hot enough... :clown:

Now it's poifect even when hot. Obviously time will tell if it stays like that though, biggest test will be the exhausts first outing around a track lol.

yes mate, i gave mine hell at first too :evil:

 

[Guvna!]

Thanks for that Symon, gonna get me one I think.

How much do they charge to fit as I have no ramps and although I changed the exhaust on my Saxo with the car half on, half off the kerb it was a ball ache lol.

 

[Sym0n]

K-tec? I've no idea mate you can get a quote for fitting from their website though if you add the item to your basket. But any decent garage/exhaust fitter will be able to fit it for you with no problems, can't see it costing more than £40 at the very most.

 

[piggoy]

Thanks for the vids Sym0n, great job. I'm not giving up on my replacement backbox just yet. I took it for a thrash yesterday and it does appear to be getting quieter, something my first backbox didn't.

My biggest problem with the KTR stealth is the motorway drone. Two examples of when it really annoys me, mainly when you place increased load on the engine.
1.) Accelerating from 65mph to 75mph in 5th gear on a packed motorway. Fast lane 'speed up - slow down' stuff.
2.) Maintaining a constant speed of 70mph going up a hill, in 5th gear.

The drone in the above two examples is worse if you have more weight/people in the car, and quite embarrassing aswell!

Sym0n, what is your KTR stealth like in the above scenarios?

 

[TimR26]

Thanks for that Symon, gonna get me one I think.

How much do they charge to fit as I have no ramps and although I changed the exhaust on my Saxo with the car half on, half off the kerb it was a ball ache lol.

Ktec charge one hours labour which was £50+vat when they fitted mine last November.

 

[Sym0n]

Thanks for the vids Sym0n, great job. I'm not giving up on my replacement backbox just yet. I took it for a thrash yesterday and it does appear to be getting quieter, something my first backbox didn't.

My biggest problem with the KTR stealth is the motorway drone. Two examples of when it really annoys me, mainly when you place increased load on the engine.
1.) Accelerating from 65mph to 75mph in 5th gear on a packed motorway. Fast lane 'speed up - slow down' stuff.
2.) Maintaining a constant speed of 70mph going up a hill, in 5th gear.

The drone in the above two examples is worse if you have more weight/people in the car, and quite embarrassing aswell!

Sym0n, what is your KTR stealth like in the above scenarios?

I was concerned about the drone/booming that people were complaining about from motorway driving, but I've not come across it. But that said the exhaust fitted by the previous owner was very loud and so maybe I'm just not noticing it. :S

Anyway with you examples above. If I drop it a cog the exhaust will become quite lively, but if I just accelerated gently in 5th from 65-75 I can't say that I've noticed any difference. Nor with an uphill climb in 5th at 70.

Plus I was five up last weekend from Oldham to Warrington (M60 -> M62) and unless I was errm overtaking someone everyone was easily heard without the need to shout and not one of them complained about noise.

Last night I was on the M1 from J26 to 24a and didn't notice the exhaust at all until I hit the A50 and accelerated quickly. In most cases mine is just a slight rumble in the background and the most annoying noise my car now makes are the f**king rattles and squeaks lol.

Seeing as you're from Sheffield, or anyone else for that matter that wants to listen for themselves, either pop along to one of the meets or find me at Trax and I'll take you for a spin. Videos are good but for sound it's as loud as you have your speakers plus it's not a patch on hearing it for yourself.

 

[Fletcher]

Thanks for that Symon, gonna get me one I think.

How much do they charge to fit as I have no ramps and although I changed the exhaust on my Saxo with the car half on, half off the kerb it was a ball ache lol.

Ktec charge one hours labour which was £50+vat when they fitted mine last November.

I had mine also fitted a k-tec, iirc exhaust and fitment for under £400.

 

[yap]

Thanks for the vids Sym0n, great job. I'm not giving up on my replacement backbox just yet. I took it for a thrash yesterday and it does appear to be getting quieter, something my first backbox didn't.

My biggest problem with the KTR stealth is the motorway drone. Two examples of when it really annoys me, mainly when you place increased load on the engine.
1.) Accelerating from 65mph to 75mph in 5th gear on a packed motorway. Fast lane 'speed up - slow down' stuff.
2.) Maintaining a constant speed of 70mph going up a hill, in 5th gear.

The drone in the above two examples is worse if you have more weight/people in the car, and quite embarrassing aswell!

Sym0n, what is your KTR stealth like in the above scenarios?

I get the same drone on my Stealth, at 70 constant drone. Only sounds like standard when under 3k and ticker-over is droney. Only done 60 miles on the exhaust, maybe it will get quiter when I have done 300 miles.

 

[piggoy]

I get the same drone on my Stealth, at 70 constant drone. Only sounds like standard when under 3k and ticker-over is droney. Only done 60 miles on the exhaust, maybe it will get quiter when I have done 300 miles.

The bizarre thing is that when I get above 4K revs (85+ mph) my exhaust becomes whisper quiet, regardless of whether you're cruising, accelerating or going uphill :S. I'm convinced that the drone is some sort of resonance with the boot space, like when you blow across the top of a bottle. I might attempt to soundproof my boot to see if it helps.

 

[Guvna!]

Do I have to ring K-tec if I want to take advantage of the CS.net paid members discount?

 

[Fletcher]

Do I have to ring K-tec if I want to take advantage of the CS.net paid members discount?

^^^yep.

 

[piggoy]

Do I have to ring K-tec if I want to take advantage of the CS.net paid members discount?

Goto the special CS discount page on the KTR website.

http://www.k-tecracing.com/cliosport.asp

Or, for a KTR stealth exhaust for ~£300 inc VAT

http://www.k-tecracing.com/show_product.asp?id=2749

 

[Guvna!]

Goto the special CS discount page on the KTR website.

http://www.k-tecracing.com/cliosport.asp

Or, for a KTR stealth exhaust for ~£300 inc VAT

http://www.k-tecracing.com/show_product.asp?id=2749

Spot on, cheers

 

[Guvna!]

Just ordered it using the links above.

How do I get them to fit it?

Ring them and tell them I don't want it posting?

 

[Fletcher]

Just ordered it using the links above.

How do I get them to fit it?

Ring them and tell them I don't want it posting?

I rang them, and asked to have it fitted.

 

[-J-]

I have the K-tec Super Sport sat in my room waiting to be fitted, Its going into Ren-Tec on the 13th July, looking forward to a bit more noise TBH

 

[Guvna!]

With my rammed work rota, going down to Dorset (150miles) is not possible during July so they are posting it up.

If I ring a Renault specialist up, would they fit it? How much would you say is a reasonable cost?

I have no ramps and in this heat I cba to do it lol

 

[Fletcher]

I have the K-tec Super Sport sat in my room waiting to be fitted, Its going into Ren-Tec on the 13th July, looking forward to a bit more noise TBH

What system are you running atm?

 

[172cupwizard]

My Powerflow stealth is just a bit more noisy than standard, so they not all loud

 

[Sym0n]

If I ring a Renault specialist up, would they fit it? How much would you say is a reasonable cost?

Any reasonably skilled garage or exhaust fitter will be able to do it for you, cost £20-60 dependant on where you go.

 

[-J-]

What system are you running atm?

Standard with a Loose Heat Shield and vibrating Baffles for that Added Embarrassment at 4k revs

 

[Greeny.]

Get the Ktec Super Stealth, gives abit of a tone by very slight and no motorwar drone. Only mild steal though and mine took 6 weeks to arrive.

 

[Guvna!]

Booked it in at Four Ashes for Sat morning. £40

 

[Guvna!]

Had it installed today, sounds really nice.

It gets noiy-ish when it has been running for a bit but nothing major.

Very pleased with it and Four Ashes did a very good job!

 

[OLR]

Mine is fine up to about 60mph but between 60 and 80 in 5th its very drooooooony. After 4.5krpm the note goes more hi pitch like a bike.

Solution = drive at 60mph or 85mph