The other day the good folks at Racing Beat said their next batch of 50 exhausts should be done by the end of next week (i.e., June 11). They will call everyone on the waiting list to confirm their orders, then start shipping. I think the list is full but I'm not sure. I do know I'm on it. Can't wait ....

Thanks, can't wait - ditto. Guess I won't have it in time for an autox event June 12-13, but maybe in time for a divisional event June 26-27.

How do I get myself on the waiting list? I can't find it anywhere here. Also how much is the exhaust? Thanks~

www.RacingBeat.com has all the answers. You just need to call them at 714 779 8677 and ask to be put on the list. You may need to wait for the next batch if the list if full, but I suspect the batches will be ramping up now that parts are available. The price is $595, IIRC.

You can also give me a call if you need that exhaust. I can offer it a little cheaper than the retail price.

Jason
www.rx8store.com

A quick update..... the subcomponents are due in today (6/7) and we should start to begin production within a couple days. Once the process starts to flow, we should have systems later this week!

Jim L
Racing Beat

Great Exhaust system Jim!

Just called Racing Beat: Now they're saying the systems will be ready by the end of NEXT week (i.e., June 18 or so).

OK, I just got off the phone with Racing Beat. Today, Thursday, June 10, at 4:21 PDT, they were unloading the shipment of RX-8 cat-back exhaust systems from the truck. They have to inspect them and move them into their warehouse, then start calling people on the waiting list and shipping them out.

They hope to start shipping them out tomorrow, continuing into early next week. They have 65 extra units beyond their waiting list, so presumably, anyone who wants one right now can buy one without waiting.

:D

So any updates on this Jim? are they ready to ship out some time this week, or are we pushing it back another week....... or maybe 2........ or another month?............?????

I talked to them today, and they said they hope to ship out maybe the first 12 or so today, and an equal number each business day for the coming week or so, until they have filled all their orders. I'm number 15 on the list, so I'm hoping they ship mine in the next couple of days.

OK, yesterday they told me they still haven't started shipping. They're welding on the hangers and hope to start shipping tomorrow, Friday June 18.

hahaha I bet if you call them today they will say monday, I hate when they keep pushig back the date.

Yup; BTDT. I do "know" (been told by several different people there) that the exhausts are actually now in stock. The question is, when do they actually start shipping them?

I called Racing Beat on the 14th (i'm #57 on the list..lol) and was told to call back Tuesday, June 22 for an update. They are in production, but only produce between 4 and 5 exhausts a day. You do the math...

Not to quibble, but as I understand it, the exhausts were manufactured overseas in a huge batch (150 or so). They are done and all have arrived at Racing Beat's Anaheim facility. The guys in Anaheim are now welding on the hangers and boxing them up for shipping. They hope to be able to ship out 10 - 15 per day.

Is it really cheaper to have something that bulky manufactured overseas and then shipped here? Wow.

jds

it is, as in overseas, labor is so cheap! maybe some materials too!

I just picked mine up last Friday, very well made exhaust, the staff at Racing Beat was really cool, and they are great people to deal with. They even showed me a sneak preview of there intake system and new body kit. Can’t say much but it will be worth the wait.

i just picked mine up today :D (monday) and installed it about an hour ago AND DAMN DOES IT SOUND NICE!

Yes, we are in full production of the exhaust systems now at our Anaheim facility. We have the canisters produced to our specifications by an outside supplier, and then the systems are assembled at our facility. (You can view some actual production shots on the opening page of our RX-8 website section.)

We are producing the systems at the rate of approximately 10-12 per day, and have made a decent reduction in the backorder list. Since the word is out that we now have the systems, the list has continued to grow. But, at the rate that we are producing them, everyone on the list should have a system within the next couple of weeks. (Sure we may be off a couple days here or there, but I assure you we are cranking them out as fast as possible!!!)

I have may some changes to the installation instructions to allow for removal of the stock system without the need to remove the plastic shrouds that surround the tips. (Per comments that we have received, the tabs that hold these in place are fairly brittle and can break off during the removal process.) The alternate technique requires the removal of the studs on the cat converter pipe section, thereby allowing the stock system to be lowered and moved forward on the chassis.

Thanks for waiting, we hope you enjoy the systems.

Jim L.
Racing Beat

Jim,

Did any production change ever take place to help reduce the bronzing effect on the polished tips? It was my understanding that they discolored slightly after a few heat cycles.

Was this limited to the "first run" systems prior to any production tweaks, or has the design been considered final?

I think this is the nature of the beast with stainless steel and heat. The exhaust on my ex (FD) did the same exact thing, and I've seen it on countless other cars with other exhausts types as well.

jds

The beast meaning aftermaket exhaust systems I suppose. The stock tips are subject to the same heat and stay chrome.

The beast meaning stainless steel. I'm pretty sure the stock tops are chrome plated something-or-other, but not polished stainless.

jds

For many of our applications we have used a stainless steel double-walled tip to isolate heat from the outer layer. This prevented the tips from turning the typical "golden bronze" color that can occur with repeated heating. I have spoken to several of our dealers regarding this occurrence on other rotary aftermarket systems (RX-7 and RX-8) and they agreed that it was fairly common. They claimed that most people did not have a problem with the discoloration and just accepted it.

Since we did have a couple of complaints, we decided to try some alternatives. We are currently using a stainless steel double walled tip that collects at the outer edge, under the rolled lip. There might be some discoloration, but not as extensive as on the prior tip. We are testing a chrome-plated stainless steel tip, more will be posted as time progresses.

Jim Langer
Racing Beat, Inc.

Jim, we're happy to have you here representing your products first hand to members!

Yes, Jim, thanks for staying on this and keeping us informed!

Grrrrrr...... GD-it...... Someone get a GOOD sound clip of the exhaust installed. Sheesh, your all slackin. :D

Originally posted by Racing Beat Inc
For many of our applications we have used a stainless steel double-walled tip to isolate heat from the outer layer. This prevented the tips from turning the typical "golden bronze" color that can occur with repeated heating. I have spoken to several of our dealers regarding this occurrence on other rotary aftermarket systems (RX-7 and RX-8) and they agreed that it was fairly common. They claimed that most people did not have a problem with the discoloration and just accepted it.

Since we did have a couple of complaints, we decided to try some alternatives. We are currently using a stainless steel double walled tip that collects at the outer edge, under the rolled lip. There might be some discoloration, but not as extensive as on the prior tip. We are testing a chrome-plated stainless steel tip, more will be posted as time progresses.

Jim Langer
Racing Beat, Inc.

Maybe ceramic-coated or powder coated tips would work well? Isn't there some new powder-coating that looks about 95% like real chrome, only it doesn't discolor with heat?

there is a good sounclip of the rb exhaust... go to rx8web.com and search for mazdatrix and u'll find his soundclip

Originally posted by Mikelikes2drive
there is a good sounclip of the rb exhaust... go to rx8web.com and search for mazdatrix and u'll find his soundclip

"A quick video of our 8 at full throttle with a Racing Beat cat-back and K&N Typhoon intake.":
http://www.rx8web.com/videos/mztxracingbeat.wmv

Back on point, Racing Beat shipped my system last Friday, June 25, and it arrived in my office today, June 29. According to UPS, the shipping weight was 61 pounds, including packaging.

I opened the top of the box and peeked around the wrapping: It looked simply delicious; heavy-duty, polished and purposeful. My wife then picked it up in our van and took it home.

I'll install it ASAP (maybe one night this week; maybe this weekend) and write up a review under a new thread.

Happy happy happy. Joy joy joy.

One thing a friend mentioned to me one day...

"the only thing that takes away from the looks of your car is that muffler(stock RX8 muffler). You can see the bottom edge of it from the rear as you drive down the road. It is dull and dirty looking. Everything else is bright and clean."

So I looked for myself. I found that if you stand far back, it is very visble.....and ugly.
I polished it the best I could with metal polish....and it helped alot, but it was still ugly.

My question is this......How visible are the Racing Beat mufflers and splitter from the same vantage point?

I hope it can be seen like the ugly stock muffler can. I think it would look fantastic with all that polished metal and aggressive looking design.:)


Anyone have any pictures of the rear of the car fitted with the Racing Beat cat back exhaust system? The video posted by Mazdatrix wasn't clear enough to see the mufflers.

Good questions. As and when I do my install, I'll try to take a few minutes to snap some good pix, and weigh the system, too. It may not be until this weekend, though. I will tell you that the whole system is much beefier than I expected, and I already had high hopes. It is extremely imposing in the "flesh."

I just sent this private message to Jim Langer: "I'm still trying to decide which installation approach to use, when I install the RB exhaust this weekend. Your instructions don't say, but what's the best way to remove the cat studs? I'm used to jamming two nuts together for such jobs. (I also have a stud removal tool, but I doubt it's the right size or thread.) Any suggestions? Are the Racing Beat nuts and bolts the same size and thread as the OEM studs? Thanks!"

The OEM studs where to hard for me to remove I was afraid I was going to break them off, so I decided to remove the plastic part where the tips of the exhaust go through, be careful when removing them, you might brake off some of the clips that hold it. The nuts and bolts that came with it fit perfectly.

I installed mine last night. I intend to post pictures and a review soon in a new thread. I wound up removing the frames around the tips instead of the studs.

It was a pretty easy (maybe 90 minutes, going slow) one-person job using Rhino Ramps for the car and a floor jack under a board to support the parts. The hardest tasks were getting the exhaust hangers off, and getting access to torque the cat bolts (for which I used several socket extensions).

The kit itself is extremely clean and I wouldn't change a thing. It is awesome. It weighed in on my bathroom scale at roughly 38 pounds, versus 40 for the OEM kit.

The instructions would be better, IMHO, with the following changes and additions: The cat bolts are 14 mm, not 17 mm.

The Racing Beat bolts are 14 mm on both ends.

The best way to prevent breaking the attachment clips on the panels surrounding the tips, is to reach up inside and pop out each clip with your fingers, from behind. They have locking tabs that need to be pressed gently away from the edges.

The bolts attaching the exhaust section to the connecting pipe look better facing forward.

The easiest way to start the four attachment bolts is to fit the connecting pipe onto the cat studs, attach the connecting pipe hanger, then loosely start all four nuts before tightening any of them down.

Amazingly, I have yet to drive the car with the new system, since I had to take another car in to the shop today. Just driving it off the ramps, it sounded stock. The tips look simply wonderful at the back of the car, and underneath, the polished cannisters look sweet. Perfect fit and finish.

I have seen neither hide nor hair of my exhaust that I ordered in May. I'm starting to get a bit... anxious. :(

Bummer, mon. You should just call them up and ask where it is; they're shipping out maybe 12 a day, so they can give you a pretty good estimate of when yours will go out.

Your avatar affects me strangely.

Just picked up my RB exhaust and had it installed yesterday. It sounds beautiful! Low, throaty but not obnoxious. When you step on the gas, it sounds just great; never annoying at any rpm. As for looks, well it puts the stock exhaust to shame. I'm very happy with it!

Jim Langer showed me a picture of the pre-production intake system they're working on...it's gorgeous! Looks like it could have been designed by the Mazda factory team itself. Integrates beautifully with the engine compartment. I'm definitely going to get it; it will be worth the wait.

Spiff, please: More details on that intake! Is it still a secret? I want to hear what it looks like, sounds like, power gains, estimated price, estimated production date, CARB legality, etc. This is driving me nuts!

Yes details please, I did not want to wait, so I installed the SR intake - really nice. But if the RB is better - I'm there with you. I'll sell my SR at 1/2 price!