Anyone switch back to your stock muffler to regain low-end torque?

[decooney]

REQUEST:
I'm interested in hearing from FZ8 forum members who rode with their stock exhaust for a while, then replaced it with an aftermarket slip-on (muffler only - no ECU remap or Power Commander added), and have since switched back to stock muffler and compared results?. Again, this is only for those who have a slip-on only with no other ECU or filter mods.

Note: My intent is not to provide leading answers or start another ECU/PCV thread but I found some old posts on this forum and other forums where riders felt their bikes had more 1k-4k low end torque with the stock muffler back on the bike. I'd like to add a slip-on for extra noise for safety, but not at the expense of losing any low end torque. I have a 2012 FZ8 considering a slip-on muffler and ECU/PCV mods. It appears I'll likely do both at the same time now - if and when I do. I thought I could cheat with a slip-on only for a while, and buy the PCV later. Maybe not. I've seen the same complaint on two FZ8, FZ1, and CB1000RR forums. I do realize in most cases that more air = more fuel needed, but it would be interesting to see who's tried this switch back and concluded a loss of torque when adding slip-on only. Thanks in advance for your replies.

 

[decooney]

Please disregard, here is a more current thread on the FZ8 forum that essentially answers my question above. The loss of low-end seems to be related to the more freeflow muffler add-ons and not doing the fuel tuning at the same time. The loss of torque appears to be not as much of an issue with more restrictive mufflers with DB killers installed using stock ECU fuel mapping or no Power Commander add ons.
Link: http://www.779cc.org/forum/fz8-mods/2613-need-help-educate-me-please.html

 

[RoadKill]

i had to put my stock exhaust back on while Yoshi repacks it. this really sucks!
forgot how quiet it was, i do not like the stock exhaust, well except for the fact that it never needs to be repacked

5 days to get there 3 days for them to do the work and i dont know how long for it to return

Edit:
oh yeah, i havent noticed any gains just a bit of loss.

 

[decooney]

i had to put my stock exhaust back on while Yoshi repacks it. this really sucks!
forgot how quiet it was, i do not like the stock exhaust, well except for the fact that it never needs to be repacked

5 days to get there 3 days for them to do the work and i dont know how long for it to return oh yeah, i havent noticed any gains just a bit of loss.

Good to know. I since replaced my stock muffler with a Vance & Hines and I too have not noticed any loss of low end torque either. I have not tampered with my catalytic converter though so that backpressure is still there. AIS blockoff plates and Power Commander are next.

 

[pigdog]

Ive been this route with a few of my bikes, spending thousands to "make it faster" with only modest performance gains & have learned my lesson. comfort, suspension, tires. money well spent. i did all the ais removal, airbox mod, crank vent, bla bla & ended up with a box of stock parts that the new owner had to deal with. spend your $ on a vacation or a dinner date with your girl. you'll have money left over to buy a faster bike.

 

[thach1130]

spend your $ on a vacation or a dinner date with your girl. you'll have money left over to buy a faster bike.

Faster is not all there is to modding. The fun is also in the tinkering with your bike. Also it's the customizing, selecting the various bits that suit your taste that makes it uniquely yours. Some people likes to ride a camry, others like to ride a camry with fake stick on vents and low profile tires. In the end it's still a camry but it's a unique one.

 

[Bajaedition]

after 30 plus yeas of riding bikes, and modding quite a few.....

I have not changed my pipe on the FZ8

the torque curve is so flat I see no reason too, however I know guys out there will do about anything so I know there are pipes flying off the shelf to go on FZ8s everywhere

but seriously, a curve like this bike has and you want to mess with it?

 

[decooney]

After speaking with a number of Yamaha engineers and few design engineers who build components for Yamaha, the conclusion I've come to is there are a few limitations to the running behavior of the motorcycle in stock form.

I left my FZ8 totally stock for the first year thinking it would do. Two of my friends did the same on brand new bikes. Our conclusion is about the obvious flat spot at 5k-6k. After installing a mild slip-on, some of the flat spot is gone now and it is a bit more enjoyable to ride. I was skeptical and did not expect this outcome with slip-on only. I don't expect a big change with a power commander add-on, but willing to try it. Hopefully I can flatten out the power band and torque curve a tad more with the expectation of a minor improvement.

 

[BigOleChalupa]

........

Our conclusion is about the obvious flat spot at 5k-6k. After installing a mild slip-on, some of the flat spot is gone now and it is a bit more enjoyable to ride.

Hey guys, I have a question......... I keep hearing about the "flat spot" everyone is talking about. I just don't notice it.............. Can someone explain what I should be feeling??
Cheers
B.O.C.

 

[master paper clip]

It's a flat spot in the power band, the bike kinda mellows out a bit during this period under acceleration, u can get ride of it with a set of headers or take a nice dent out of it by nocking out your cat, or get a Marthy mod and go mid ship

 

[rail]

I sold my slip on and went back to stock. The bike is still too fast for me lol

 

[krillz]

i had to put my stock exhaust back on while Yoshi repacks it. this really sucks!
forgot how quiet it was, i do not like the stock exhaust, well except for the fact that it never needs to be repacked

5 days to get there 3 days for them to do the work and i dont know how long for it to return

Edit:
oh yeah, i havent noticed any gains just a bit of loss.

Why did you send the pipe to be repacked? I know you got the skill. I've seen your work.

 

[RoadKill]

i didn't want to buy a Pneumatic Riveter and only use it once every 15k miles.
Yoshi told me that a hand riveter just couldn't do it very well and that it was a pain in the ass to repack yourself. so i figured for 32 dollars it would be cheaper/easier.