Nissan 370Z Forum - View Single Post

faceglide · 01-29-2014, 03:24 AM

I too have owned both and for me, its FI by a landslide.

1. Much better made, fitment is miles better on the FI. The HKS was a bitch to fit and it was never really straight. I had just as mediocre fitment on my ARK. The FI, I slapped it on, left it loose, straightened the flanges and it was 90% straight, had my wife and brother hold each tip and bolted it down. Install took me about 45 minutes(remove HKS and install FI)

2. Sound..HKS has a refined sound, I will give it that. But it is typical of an exhaust designed around the HH resonator, very deep and very "lobular", very similar to a ford v8 mod engine(4.6). The FI exhaust has a deep, growl too it, it is very Nissan, it is a 370z sound headed towards a GTR in a way, people like to describe this as "exotic".

While these 2 sounds are subjective and up to opinion, I felt the HKS sounded "garbled" with RTPs. It lost its clarity and refinement and just sounded loud. The FI exhaust can take whatever you throw at it, it does not change its tone, just gets louder.

With the CF cans, the sound is bit higher and louder. Call me crazy, but i just am not a fan of that quasi-v8 sound..

3. Customer service. Not a knock on HKS but a praise to Fast Intentions. If you happen to bust, say, ONE muffler, ONE flange or ONE resonator, you are either a) buying a new exhaust, or b) having a shop scrape something together to get you by. With a FI exhaust, you can replace one end or change your resonator settings or what have you. The product is backed completely by the hands that built it, you will ALWAYS have that direct pipeline to them, with the HKS, you are dealing with vendor-distrubutor-customer service, you will not be talking to the shop where it is built, nor am I sure at this point if these are all built under one roof to begin with.

4. Made to order. Get your exhaust, the way you want it. CF cans? Sure! No res? Sure! etc. Ans if you think it may have a bit of drone and too much volume, bam get some resonators put in. Or are you running TT and need some HFCs put into the x pipe because you are afraid of blowing out your cats, or cannot install cats, sure! The sky is the limit.

The only con is the wait, and it is a small price to pay. I derped around and bough a ARK GRiP(HKS knockoff) and then the HKS HP, sure I liked them, but then I still had my order in with tony, and decided to go through with it. Glad I did 100%..

IMHO, the HKS is likely the b est choice if you CANNOT wait, but in the end I wasted my money buying other exhausts and now I am happy with my 2.5" 18" res CF FI exhaust and it will be mated to my Fast Intentions TT setup. That exhaust was easily my favorite purchase I had made yet.

In the end, it is about what you want. Just sharing my experience. Yes, the FI exhaust will usually make the most power, but there is a lot more to it than that and that is what I am talking about. Listen to clips, reviews, get some quotes from the vendors. The best decision is an informed one.

01-29-2014, 03:24 AM	#22 (permalink)
faceglide Track Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: san jose Posts: 550 Drives: '12 370Z FI TT BkChr Rep Power: 37	I too have owned both and for me, its FI by a landslide. 1. Much better made, fitment is miles better on the FI. The HKS was a bitch to fit and it was never really straight. I had just as mediocre fitment on my ARK. The FI, I slapped it on, left it loose, straightened the flanges and it was 90% straight, had my wife and brother hold each tip and bolted it down. Install took me about 45 minutes(remove HKS and install FI) 2. Sound..HKS has a refined sound, I will give it that. But it is typical of an exhaust designed around the HH resonator, very deep and very "lobular", very similar to a ford v8 mod engine(4.6). The FI exhaust has a deep, growl too it, it is very Nissan, it is a 370z sound headed towards a GTR in a way, people like to describe this as "exotic". While these 2 sounds are subjective and up to opinion, I felt the HKS sounded "garbled" with RTPs. It lost its clarity and refinement and just sounded loud. The FI exhaust can take whatever you throw at it, it does not change its tone, just gets louder. With the CF cans, the sound is bit higher and louder. Call me crazy, but i just am not a fan of that quasi-v8 sound.. 3. Customer service. Not a knock on HKS but a praise to Fast Intentions. If you happen to bust, say, ONE muffler, ONE flange or ONE resonator, you are either a) buying a new exhaust, or b) having a shop scrape something together to get you by. With a FI exhaust, you can replace one end or change your resonator settings or what have you. The product is backed completely by the hands that built it, you will ALWAYS have that direct pipeline to them, with the HKS, you are dealing with vendor-distrubutor-customer service, you will not be talking to the shop where it is built, nor am I sure at this point if these are all built under one roof to begin with. 4. Made to order. Get your exhaust, the way you want it. CF cans? Sure! No res? Sure! etc. Ans if you think it may have a bit of drone and too much volume, bam get some resonators put in. Or are you running TT and need some HFCs put into the x pipe because you are afraid of blowing out your cats, or cannot install cats, sure! The sky is the limit. The only con is the wait, and it is a small price to pay. I derped around and bough a ARK GRiP(HKS knockoff) and then the HKS HP, sure I liked them, but then I still had my order in with tony, and decided to go through with it. Glad I did 100%.. IMHO, the HKS is likely the b est choice if you CANNOT wait, but in the end I wasted my money buying other exhausts and now I am happy with my 2.5" 18" res CF FI exhaust and it will be mated to my Fast Intentions TT setup. That exhaust was easily my favorite purchase I had made yet. In the end, it is about what you want. Just sharing my experience. Yes, the FI exhaust will usually make the most power, but there is a lot more to it than that and that is what I am talking about. Listen to clips, reviews, get some quotes from the vendors. The best decision is an informed one.