I looked into a number of companies' products, including Racing Beat and Precision Imports (now Rotary Performance of Garland, TX) before settling on Mindtrain's system. I had heard and seen both the Mindtrain and the Racing Beat products, and their workmanship and tone is similar, but the Mindtrain looked like it would be more free-flowing, at least on paper. I have since heard from a number of Spec-RX7 owners that the Mindtrain pipes seem to hold up better in the rust-belt than Racing Beat's pipes do. Prices were comparable when you look at a complete system, including the hi-flow catalytic converter that I would need to pass New Jersey emissions testing. Mindtrain was a little more expensive than the others, but I had seen their quality before I purchased, and was sufficiently impressed to part with nine-hundred-and-something dollars for a very complete exhaust system. You can reach Mindtrain, in California, at 323-931-3732. Call them and you'll probably get Fred on the line. I think he's the owner/head technician/shipper/etc, and I know he's a really nice guy. Anyway, he'll be happy to send out a catalog at no charge.
Note that MindTrain products are also available from Rotary Performance of Manassas, VA. This is particularly important because Mindtrain has been unwilling, in the past, to ship out products based on telephoned-in credit card orders. (Fred at Mindtrain will mail you a credit card slip that you can sign and mail back, but that puts substantial delays on the total order-to-shipment-arrival time.) My best guess is that Fred got burned on an expensive order while doing this "way back when," and he's reluctant to risk that happening again. But I believe that Rotary Performance's Bret DePedro is quite comfortable with credit card orders. I don't know what kind of mark-up, if any, he has on these items, so if anyone has an opportunity to compare prices, please let me know what you find. My e-mail address is here.
Mindtrain has many systems for 1st gen's, including racing and streetable exhaust systems. True to their word, their exhaust systems use a larger diameter piping than others, including Racing Beat. That should make for a slightly more free-flowing exhaust. (Laws of diminishing returns apply here, so I can't say that there's really more power on tap than with another manufacturer's exhaust system. But MT claims their system has more flow potential, and that seems reasonable.) The tubing is a very heavy gauge steel -- certainly the thickest I've ever seen on either a car or a truck. The "Big Throats" muffler is also the coolest looking muffler I've seen on any 1st gen RX-7, with large, twin chrome tips. (That was in '97. Current Mindtrain mufflers have polished stainless steel tips.) These qualities will probably be the same on all of their various exhaust systems.
The system I ordered includes what they refer to as a "street-legal header," a hi-flow cat, a connector pipe to replace the pre-cats -- whether it replaces one or both precats, I don't recall -- as well as their "hi-performance tailpipe" and the Big-Throats muffler. For what it's worth, Fred initially recommended to me that I don't bother with the pre-cat replacement pipe, as you can just as easily use a hollowed out, stock precat where this thing would go. I bought it anyway, considering the condition that my cats appeared to be in, and that the Mindtrain pipe might be less restrictive than the stock precat.
Installing the whole system was very easy with the car on a lift. It is truly a bolt-on system, but we did have to weld off some of the old exhuast system components, due to rusted bolts and the like.
Mindtrain has both more- and less-restrictive exhaust systems available, so please keep this in mind when reading my subjective evaluation, below. The presence or absence of headers or a high-flow cat will make a substantial difference in the tone and volume of the total system.
The first time I started the engine with the new system in place, I was a little shocked at the noise. Low and throaty, but kind of loud. Of course, this was in the service bay of a friend's car rental agency -- outside, it was quite tolerable. Blip the throttle, and there's just a hint of the metalic sound that is typical of many hi-perfomance rotary exhaust systems. Start driving, and you'll immediately notice the power boost in the mid-range, with no noticable loss of bottom-end torque, although the volume will make you wonder if you did the right thing. But pull out onto the freeway, and you'll know that you did! There's a nice kick in the pants now, and the sound is the coolest thing short of driving a race car to work everyday. The engine revs much more freely -- I spend much less time in 1st and 2nd gears now :) -- and Mustang drivers all seem to be a little more red-faced and humbled when you finally let them catch up to you.
The system passed New Jersey's yearly emissions testing, and the college-kid (not!) running the testing machine said "it sounds kinda cool." Around my neighborhood, I keep the driving pretty mellow, so I doubt that I'll ever have any trouble with the local constabulary, and my neighbors still like me, even after a few post-midnight arrivals. So I guess it's not too loud when idling on down the block. If I did a full-throttle departure though, I'd probably loose my lease. (Measured from about 15 feet away and not behind the car, in an open garage while doing a dyno run, this car sounded off at 108 db. That'll wake up babies, car alarms, cops... the whole neighborhood.)
This is such a heavy duty exhaust system that I'm sure that it will be
the last one that this car will ever need. (I've since transferred this exhaust
system from my old '84 to my current '85, and every component is still absolutely
rock-solid, with only slight surface rust. This is the rust-belt Northeast,
you know.) Considering the system's longevity, it was money well spent.