tell me about aftermarket motorcycle exhaust cans...

Midget

Midget

Gold Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2002
Messages
2,806
so i'm thinking about upgrading the exhaust on my new sv650 (below)

motozh1.jpg


does upgrading the exhaust system noticably affect the performance of the bike? i've read online some slip-on type cans that are advertised to increase my 'cycle's abilities by 4 horsepower.... is that significant? stock, the bike is rated at 71hp soo... would a 5% increase in HP warrant a 200-300 dollar upgrade?

how heavy are stock exhaust cans, in general? would the weight savings be worth the increased cost of a carbon-fiber canister?


and lastly, if an aftermarket exhaust system is recommended, what's a reputable brand?


i am NOT big on noise. what i'm after here is a reasonable increase in performance, and if possible, a quiet ride. while motorcyclists all seem to love loud, throaty rides, i do not need to be waking up my neighbors every morning (5:00am) commute.


thanks in advance. i'm new to this motorcycle stuff.
 
PS,

I looked it up and the stock can weight is at ~18 pounds. If i get a CF one it might weigh right around ~7-8 lbs.

11 lbs. doesn't seem like much for weight savings, given the heavily increased price of CF...
 
would a 5% increase in HP warrant a 200-300 dollar upgrade?
Click to expand...

How often do you have the throttle wide open and the tach on the redline?

That's the only time you're using all the horsepower you already have.
 
The performance benefits of a higher flowing can are not quite as noticeable as you might think. The sound factors largely into the perceived improvement, AND.... unless you get a DynoJet box to change the mixture and timing, then the can may actually decrease power. Each model varies. This bike is a standard for performance, so getting reliable info should be easy.

Higher power at the upper RPM's is the only benefit. Losing torque at the lower R's is real, too.

I suggest a shop who has a dyno to prove the gains. Not necessarily yours, as the projects are fairly repeatable, but a shop that does more than bolt on a claimed power-making product.

The weight change is indisputable, but fairly insignificant.

One thing I always liked about a quiet performing bike was I wasn't looking over my shoulder every time I gassed it--as you will need to do with a loud exhaust. Of course, Loud Pipes Saves Lives. :rolleyes: Watching out for the other guy saves more.

Coop
 
I've got more of a cruiser-type. I have several buddies with full-on sport bikes (ie. Yamaha R1, 180HP, 390 lbs) while I'm riding a bike at 65HP and 490lbs. ;)

All of my buddies with sport bikes seem to add aftermarket exhaust within moments of riding off the lot. I can't really say that they do it for the realized difference in power or because everyone else is doing it. The same thing goes for the trend to disable one of the lights on their sport bike. :confused:

I would ride it a couple thousand miles to get a good feel for it before you decide if it is worth it. Don't forget, changing the exhaust typically means rejetting too.

Good luck with whatever you decide!
 
If you want it quiet, leave it alone. I changed the system on my 750 NH, and had a rejet/KN done. It moved the powerband to higher RPM, but decrease low-end torque. I actually found the stock system more to my liking. I ended up buying a BMW with more CC, and power and super quiet. As for off-road, my RM250 with FMF made a world of difference.

Thanks. MD
 
Cougar Allen said:
How often do you have the throttle wide open and the tach on the redline?

That's the only time you're using all the horsepower you already have.
Click to expand...



never.

in fact, the bike has never been pushed past 7k rpm.


i guess i'm looking for more power at the low-end.
 
thanks for the quick advice anyone.

i'll mull over it a little more before i consider an aftermarket exhaust. the cost doesn't sound like it warrants the increase in performance.
 
Of course, Loud Pipes Saves Lives.
Click to expand...
I think you're being sarcastic. ;)
Naturally that's a myth, and the exact opposite is true. Riders with illegally-equipped motorcycles are more likely to be in an accident.
 
More power at the low end? That SV650 is a torque machine. I had a full set of Jardine RT-1 on my SV650, they sounded really low and grumbly with that V-twin. You could hear me coming a mile away. I loved them.

However, I didnt see much of a performance gain though top end was about 125.

I think pipes are more about the look and sound on a bike. I think that most are already overpowered for the most part so they gains are not noticable.

Billyp
 
If you want more power at the low end, just put a one tooth smaller countershaft sprocket on. It'll make more a difference than an exhaust. It'll bring the RPMs up a bit at slower speeds, which makes driving around town much more pleasant.



PM, can you enlighten me on this?
Paddling_man said:
The same thing goes for the trend to disable one of the lights on their sport bike. :confused:
Click to expand...
I've never heard of anyone doing that.

SharpByCoop said:
Of course, Loud Pipes Saves Lives.
Click to expand...

If you ride a Ducati, that saying becomes Loud Clutches Save Lives :D
 
PM, can you enlighten me on this?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paddling_man
The same thing goes for the trend to disable one of the lights on their sport bike.

I've never heard of anyone doing that.
Click to expand...

it's the one in the centre of the bike
you know, the one above the rider's head?
 
since it is a v-twin you could get more bottom end torque with some pipes. V-Twin's make max horse power and torque numbers at a much lower end.

a 5% increase in horse power at the lower to mid range will be appreciable.
 
PerformanceFirst said:
No one disables one of their headlights. Some bikes have the highbeam in one housing and the low in the other.
Click to expand...

Not my experience with some riders in St. Louis I was acquainted with... also stripping lotsa plastic of their sport bikes for the "naked look."

Infinitives rarely work. Maybe some bikes now have the housings split for left-lo, right-hi or the opposite. "No one?" Nope. Lots of 'em, modify lights, stripping plastic for naked look.

("Headlight in the center" - the brain pan was turned off.)
 
The R1s have only one side of the headlights that are for low beams if they are both on the high beams are on.


Stay away from D&D they are loud as hell.

Micron makes some nice sounding pipes
 
I see that a lot -- most of the people who think they want to modify their engines for more horsepower aren't using the horsepower they already have, because they don't understand how a gasoline engine works. Sport bikes tend to have more horsepower bone stock than any sane person can use on the street for more than a few seconds at a time....

A gasoline engine only produces its maximum horsepower when the throttle is wide open and the tach is at the redline.

The closer you get to that situation, the more horsepower you get.

If you never open the throttle and you want more horsepower you don't need to modify your engine; you need to learn to open the throttle.

If you have the throttle wide open but the tach is way below the redline and you want more horsepower, you don't need to modify your engine; you need to learn to stop short-shifting. You have a transmission to give you control of rpm. When you just want to cruise along by all means continue to upshift long before you reach the redline, but when you want horsepower don't do that!

You will be awestruck at how much horsepower you have, once you learn to use it. If you ride like a lot of people do you might be using as little as 10% of the horsepower you have.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top