Evora S Decat

There don’t seem to be any US suppliers of an Evora S decat pipe? I decided to take my unit with secondary cat to have it duplicated, sans cat, for $90. I recall that a few members had decat pipes custom-fabbed.

 

I finally had this done and wanted to post a thank you to the OP for this idea/suggestion.

In fact, I saw this thread 6+ months ago and sent it to GRP asking if they would make a plug-n-play decat pipe for the 400s. Thanks to GRP for taking up the suggestion and making this available.

I agree with the OP that this makes an instantly noticeable positive difference. It increases loudness, changes tone to a much deeper and hard hitting tone, and lowers the wail about 1000 rpms or so - i.e., the better sounding higher tones now starts at 2200-2300 rpms instead of over 3500 rpms before the decat (I'm a 6 speed manual, not sure if gear ratios for IPS are different).

I had my local Lotus race shop (Sports Car World in Dallas) install Greg's pipe and they are a pleasure to work with @DerekOfBass. But as others in this thread have posted, it seems doable at home with hand tools. Definitely get the pipe expander from Amazon!

400 owners, definitely do this! Very worthwhile mod.

 

Now you need GRP cold air intake. Since adding that I can't get enough of driving this car and the lambo has spent more time parked in garage

 

How hard is the intake install? I heard getting the stock airbox out is quite difficult.

 

OK I wanted to add after having driven a few miles after 3rd cat delete - throttle response has improved as well. I thought so yesterday after picking car up but wanted to make sure before I posted it. Definitely feels more eager to spool up now.

 

This guy after 8 pages of thread is the very first one to talk a little about the performance!!!!
We are all made different.... I also love the sound, which is really amazing, but my first thought was upon the performance gain.

 

That is great to know! Any chance you could post a file of the sound?

 

GRP pipe is the greatest thing you can do to your Evora 400.

 

For what it’s worth, I did mine with the car flat on the ground. Had no problems whatsoever. You do need to have a strong arm to manipulate the factory muffler. It’s pretty heavy. Mind you, I went the route of removing the whole factory exhaust in one piece. And then reinstalling.


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I'd already decided on ESCO but your endorsement is further encouragement. The ESCOs look like the best shot exactly because of the rubber puck. I also prefer the pin lock style over the ratcheting ones. A buddy was supposed to loan me a set today but he forgot to bring them over.

This is the first time I'll be lifting the car onto stands. I assume I can jack at the rear points alternately and that will lift the car for placement of the stands at the front?Or vice versa. I intend to block the wheels as well once they're on the stands. I will probably jack all four corners since I will have four stands but as I said, it's my first go at this.

 

This is the first time I'll be lifting the car onto stands. I assume I can jack at the rear points alternately and that will lift the car for placement of the stands at the front?Or vice versa.

Yep. Although lifting from the front pad doesn't usually get you sufficient clearance on the rear pad for a stand, unless it goes pretty low. To get the rear end up, after chocking the fronts, I used to lift from the rear pad and just place a race ramp under the rear tire. Then repeat on the other side.

It's also why JackPoint stands are pretty popular too; being able to lift and also stand from the same point makes the process easier.

 

Thanks brothers. I just got back from jacking up the car to see how much clearance I really needed and what 6 inches of added air looks like under the wheels. That allows the use of rhino ramps. I'm amused to come back and find that very suggestion tendered by you guys. In this case which doesn't involve wheels or suspension, that much added clearance looks adequate for such a simple job. I could probably get by without even supporting the front but I will do so for the sake of symmetry and as practice for when I do need to get the car off its wheels. Since the wheels aren't coming off, I likely could have gotten by even without stands but the exercise has been interesting. Those jackpoint stands are very cool though. If I did this more often I'd get those.

It's a simple thing but putting our cars on regular jack stands takes more consideration than I thought. It's like a puzzle getting all the pieces to fit. In the end the solution was an obvious one. Use ramps for this job.

It was entertainingly weird jacking it up for the first time.

 

Thanks brothers. I just got back from jacking up the car up to see how much clearance I really needed and what 6 inches of added air looks like as respects this job. That allows the use of rhino ramps. I'm amused to come back and find that very suggestion tendered by you, Julian. In this case which doesn't involve wheels or suspension, that much added clearance looks adequate for such a simple job. I could probably get by without even supporting the front but I will do so for the sake of symmetry and as practice for when I do need to get the car off its wheels. Since the wheels aren't coming off, I likely could have gotten by even without stands but the exercise has been interesting.

It's a simple thing but putting our cars on regular jack stands takes more consideration than I thought. It's like a crossword getting all the pieces to fit. In the end the solution was an obvious one. Use the ramps for this job.

Two words: car lift

:grin2:

 

Lew: The kind of guy who would buy the best possible unit, install it in his garage and use it once to take out a catalytic converter

 

At least you would have used it. Cat removal, $4500 .. well next time (never) it will be free. Look what i'll save by purchasing the tools and not using a mechanic.

 

That was exhausting! (nyuk nyuk).

But it's in, and like acquiring a mobility scooter, I achieved it at little or no additional cost to me! Because I borrowed all the stuff I didn't have, including the exhaust pipe expander. I got it as a loaner from Auto Zone and it is a better tool than the one you can buy on Amazon for twenty bucks. That's the way to go folks since the cheap offshore tool seems to break on the first try. Now, next time people ask you what the cheapest thing about my Lotus Evora is, you know what to tell them! (the owner).

Notes: For me, getting the cat off its pipe was the most annoying aspect of the job. I had to resort to the dead blow in the end and it took a lot of blows. I tried heat and freeze spray and that loosened it but I was surprised it came to that. Everything else went easily just as everyone else has reported. I haven't driven it yet as it started raining here just as I finished and rush hour started. Just winding it up in the garage, free revving, it walks the border between yawzah and obnoxiously loud if the valve is open. Valve closed is fine, just a slightly more pronounced burble, barely notable difference. Eager to drive it tomorrow and see what I got.

Lew's difficulty rating on the knuckle scale: It's a one skinned knuckle job.

Thanks Greg!

 

That was exhausting! (nyuk nyuk).

But it's in, and like acquiring a mobility scooter, I achieved it at little or no additional cost to me! Because I borrowed all the stuff I didn't have, including the exhaust pipe expander. I got it as a loaner from Auto Zone and it is a better tool than the one you can buy on Amazon for twenty bucks. That's the way to go folks since the cheap offshore tool seems to break on the first try. Now, next time people ask you what the cheapest thing about my Lotus Evora is, you know what to tell them! (the owner).

Notes: For me, getting the cat off its pipe was the most annoying aspect of the job. I had to resort to the dead blow in the end and it took a lot of blows. Everything else went easily just as everyone else has reported. I haven't driven it yet as it started raining here just as I finished and rush hour started. Just winding it up in the garage, free revving, it walks the border between yawzah and obnoxiously loud if the valve is open. Valve closed is fine, just a slightly more pronounced burble, barely notable difference. Eager to drive it tomorrow and see what I got.

Lew's difficulty rating on the knuckle scale: It's a one skinned knuckle job.

Thanks Greg!

Congrats. You will love it when you drive it, trust us. Anything above 2500 sounds great, and anything about 4000 sounds awesome.

 

It sounds a lot meaner. Man, that is a heavy muffler assembly back there. Well made though. The car is quality under the skirt. You really do need to do a little work on them, even if just once, to see that they are nice where it counts. The car goes up in one piece from a single jack point, no creaking, no flexing. Just like it drives.

 

Sounds like a positive experience!

 

It sounds fabulous. Super car noise compared to before. Kind of amazing because that cat looks so harmless. It does seem to return to idle more consistently but I need to drive it more to be sure. That was a hoped for benefit so I'll be paying attention to that. I blip almost all downshifts out of habit. I can't feel a meaningful power difference that I couldn't chalk up to my imagination but I haven't run it above 5K. Very hard to wind it up in Nash so that will wait till I take it on a real drive. I wasn't expecting more power, just the other benefits so no disappointments in any case.

Very satisfying. I enjoyed doing the mod, my first on this car. Flash, here I come!

 

I feel like a ticket magnet already... not sure I want the extra attention this might bring...

 

It's still about as quiet as it was before with the valve closed

 

That's absolutely true. It is a noticeable hunk louder running open without the cat. With the valve back in the circuit it's hard to tell if there is a difference between before and after. I put a number of miles on today to try and get the measure of the thing.

I still can invoke that rev hang thing when being an ass but I think it doesn't stutter as much when rev matching the downshifts.
It feels faster but that has to be psych related, right? The sounds coming out of the tail coupled with the supercharger whine (I have a K&N ) are tres exotique. As good as you need. The smooth, unbroken slightly 'metal humming through a French horn' tone that the car has always had is unchanged but a bit more amplified and maybe just a touch lower in pitch. I should have done before after measurements because that's what I did for forty years, but oh well.

So it is louder in a pleasing, familiar way and seems to have no negatives. I will probably be closing the valve more around town but there's another plus. It doesn't drone at 75 or 80 or on steady throttle. And .it feels faster even if it isn't, which my rational brain tells me couldn't be.


Greg's pipe itself is quality yet shows that it was custom made for this application, probably one or three at a time. Very Lotus.

I gotta do more of this. You people are a bad influence.

 

Just to reiterate others’ comments and add a few of my own after driving from Las Vegas to Tucson with the newly installed decat pipe. As a side note, the service manager at Lotus West said they will be recommending the decat to all their customers after daily driving my car a couple of days to make sure it was all put back together properly after the pack rat fiasco.

I drove a couple of 400s while I was living in Dubai, but the intervening time in my US 400 had caused me to forget just how incredible the soundtrack is with only 2 cats. This is an absolute must for all 400 owners. And so inexpensive from @GregsRaceParts. The car now has what is for me the exact right volume and character. At idle and low speeds, you get an awesome rumble especially in race mode that isn’t there before decatting. At wide open throttle, there is hell to pay. I’m not judging any of the straight pipe folks, but I just can’t imagine wanting anymore volume than the car now has. In fact, I finally started using the exhaust button to close the exhaust valve in sport mode while I was cruising at highway speeds. With the decat pipe, the difference is noticeable when cruising around 70-80mph. Without the decat pipe, there is no real need to silence the exhaust while highway driving.

In summation, the car now has a soundtrack that says the car means business without being completely obnoxious. It’s like James Bond (classy, but will kill you) rather than musclebound goons that Bond regularly dispatches. You can decide which cars fill in for the goons in that analogy. And there are now 3 meaningfully different ways to enjoy the soundtrack—sport mode, race mode for even more bass, and valve closed mode while in sport during highway speeds to save your ears while still providing the alacrity of sport mode. I suppose you can add the default neutered normal mode, but the only reason I will ever drive without sport or race mode is long distance highway cruising just on the off chance it somehow increases fuel efficiency.

 

In fact, the difference between open and closed is even more pronounced, which makes sense I suppose. Open, a smooth, sonorous flow of tone, rising in level and sincerity along with the revs. I don't know if the car is any faster but it feels more like the 4 second car it is now than it did before. With the valve closed, the party is over, the band picks up its gear and goes home and you can get some rest secure in the knowledge that everybody had a good time.

 

The decat pipe is nice but Gregs cold air intake brings sound up to the next level.

 

So, I already have Greg’s decat pipe and love the sound and slight power increase. But, has anyone determined the HP increase with the intake after doing the exhaust mod? More noise is great as long as there is a performance advantage as well. The only dyno I’ve seen is for the combination of the decat and intake.

 

I finally got around to installing mine. Did it in my driveway with hand tools, floor jack, and jack stands. It was pretty straight forward. I highly recommend a rubber mallet to aid in getting the stock cat out of the muffler and renting a pipe expander tool to make inserting the decat pipe much easier. This really does dial up the sound a ton with the valve open and I'm super happy with the final result. I also noticed that the throttle blips are much more consistent now than they were before as others have mentioned.

 

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US Evora 400 owners, if you have not gotten the decat pipe (A132S0230F) that removes the unnecessary secondary cat that comes on US/Federal cars, you are doing yourself a huge disservice.

Just had mine installed today, and it COMPLETELY changes the exhaust note in a massively good way. The majority of Evora 400 reviews on YouTube talk about how amazing the exhaust sounds, but when I got mine I was pretty disappointed relative to my Evora S with Larini decat and exhaust, which I loved. Most of the reviews were on ROW cars which come from the factory without the secondary cat, while US/Federal cars have the secondary cat.

The 400 with the decat pipe makes the car sound like it should. It's loud, but not loud just for the sake of being obnoxiously loud (a la Jaguar F-Type). It's hard to believe that a Camry engine can sound this good. I could drive around for hours with the windows open just enjoying the exhaust note. It really is that good.

Is there any drone on the highway ?

 

I don't know if I would say it has drone (I have had cars with bad drones so I know what it sounds like) but I generally shut the valve if I'm just steady cruising at 75-80mph. It's just a constant noise that I would rather not listen to since hitting the button makes the car become much more serene. Once I'm off cruise control I open the valve again as I like to hear the noise when it's not steady state.

 

I am not sure what the last few posters are on about. With GRP decat pipe, the valve button remains fully functional and car is serene/quiet/stock on highway. There is zero drone. It definitely changes the tone of the exhaust at moderate loads, and pushes the 'scream' down in the rev range and makes the sound more accessible.

There is no need to think so hard about this mod. The answer is always DO IT.

 

The reality is that it isn’t really a mod. It’s restoring the car to its original design. The “mod” was Lotus adding the 3rd cat to meet California air standards.