While I was at a tender age, my parents taught me to take responsibility for my own actions and not make excuses. As a tech editor, you hear a lot of excuses from manufacturers, particularly from companies that make products that either don't work, don't make power or don't fit.
In the July 2002 issue, the "Tech Scene" column announced we were going to conduct an exhaust shootout on our long-term 2000 Celica GT-S. We offered any exhaust manufacturer who made a system for the Celica the opportunity to get involved. By doing so, each would be standing by their product, even if it didn't produce the power levels they wished it would--no excuses.
Surprisingly, our office was flooded with systems from nine different manufacturers who wanted to participate in this first-time event for Turbo.
We elected to conduct the testing with the following criteria: Weight, tip diameter, sound at idle and 3000 rpm (normal cruising), price and power. We tested each system on a Dynojet chassis dynamometer back-to-back on the same day. All the manufacturers who participated were invited to the dyno facility to witness the testing which gave the manufacturer assurance no one would under-handedly get the upper hand during the testing. All the names of the manufacturers were placed in a hat and chosen at random to decide the order of the testing. The results of the shootout are listed below in the order of the testing.
Who was top dog? They all installed easily but, beyond that, we will let you decide which parameters mean the most to you.
| Manufacturer | Factory Toyota | 
 |
| MSRP | $219.60 |
| Weight | 27.5 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 90 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 75 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 76 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 161.0 hp |
| Peak Torque | 119.6 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | 5Zigen Fireball | 
|
| MSRP | $n/a |
| Weight | 26.5 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 85 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 79 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 85 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 163.0 hp |
| Peak Torque | 120.4 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | A'PEXi N1 | 
|
| MSRP | $560 |
| Weight | 23.5 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 90 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 77 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 88 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 164.0 hp |
| Peak Torque | 120.8 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | Blitz | 
|
| MSRP | $530 |
| Weight | 21 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 95 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 82 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 98 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 162.4 hp |
| Peak Torque | 119.9 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | GReddy Evolution | 
|
| MSRP | $599 |
| Weight | 35.5 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 115 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 82 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 83 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 166.3 hp |
| Peak Torque | 122.0 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | Tanabe Racing Medallion | 
|
| MSRP | $660 |
| Weight | 29 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 100 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 83 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 93 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 166.5 hp |
| Peak Torque | 122.6 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | Rod Millen | 
|
| MSRP | $550 |
| Weight | 28 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 95 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 75 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 88 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 166.4 hp |
| Peak Torque | 122.5 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | Toyota Racing Development | 
|
| MSRP | $648 |
| Weight | 25 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 100 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 75 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 88 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 166.7 hp |
| Peak Torque | 123.5 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | Veilside Teardrop Titanium | 
|
| MSRP | $690 |
| Weight | 8.0 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 115 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 82 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 90 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 165.3 hp |
| Peak Torque | 122.6 lb-ft |
| Manufacturer | HKS Hi-Power | 
 coming soon |
| MSRP | $710 |
| Weight | 28.0 pounds |
| Tip Diameter | 95 mm |
| Sound Decibel at Idle | 79 dB |
| Sound Decibel at 3000 rpm | 90 dB |
| Peak Horsepower | 165.7 hp |
| Peak Torque | 121.7 lb-ft |