In conducting my research for this article, I disregarded what everyone had told me and took a different approach.  First, I used the Internet to learn about the different options available for the STI.  Second, I conducted additional research by phoning both manufacturers and vendors to learn more about each exhaust system.

Create a Baseline to Measure Future Performance Against

I normally research and come up with a modification path before just buying any part.   After all, if I was going to modify a good Japanese sports car, I wanted to know that I would face no issues installing aftermarket parts.  The ideal situation is getting first hand experience in vehicles installed with those parts I am a considering.

A local track event advertised by Kingofimports.com and IWSTI.com at Buttonwillow Raceway located in sunny California caught my attention.  I wanted to gauge the STI's performance on the track before performing any modifications.  This would provide me with a basis for comparison before bolting on aftermarket parts.

The event was dominated by other STI enthusiasts.  While several had not yet installed aftermarket parts, many had modified their exhaust systems.  Aside from the ability to drive the STI on the track as fast as one could, a lot of the fun of this event for me was riding in other STIs with modifications I anticipated installing on my own STI in the future.  I sat inside their cars listening to the aggressive exhaust notes that my car could not produce and watching the needles on their tachometers race to redline faster than my STI's motor could.  At that point, I knew that my car needed an aftermarket exhaust system.

But which one?  At the event alone, I discovered that no two enthusiasts had the same advice or opinion when it came to modifying the exhaust on my STI.  I quickly learned that countless exhausts were available on the market and some were made of different materials, so how was I to choose the right one for me?