Borla ATAK Muffler vs full Cat-Back System

Gunndy Gaming · January 5, 2022

Currently trying to decide between getting the full Borla S-Type Cat-back exhaust or just getting the Borla ATAK muffler to replace the OEM flapper and muffler while leaving the resonators. YouTube videos just usually don't do it justice, even when playing them back on high end home stereo to try and get a true feel. They can generally give you good representation of the exhaust tone; but not the true loudness as every phone/device microphone is different.

I know there are a lot of people who have the S-Type Cat back full exhaust installed, but every video I see seems to make me feel different about how loud this is in general. I'm looking for a pretty aggressive start-up growl, but want it to settle down to a low "purr" at idle and cruising speeds. I really only want the throaty growl at start up and on any aggressive launch or highway acceleration. I still want to be able to stand at the tailgate of my truck and carry on a casual conversation while my truck may be idling and/or warming up.

Anyone heard the full s-type vs atak crate muffler in person? It seems like the factory resonators do a really good job of quieting the idle/cruising volume while still allowing the loudness to come through when you give it some right foot.

shakenfake · January 5, 2022

Just get the muffler.

If you have AFM disabled then I would cut out the resonators.

It's Tim · January 5, 2022

1 hour ago, Gunndy Gaming said:

while still allowing the loudness to come through when you give it some right foot.

Always enjoyable to see someone flogging a pickup truck.

jroth7 · January 5, 2022

I had the atak muffler put on with flap delete. Resonators are still on. I had quite a bit of drone when cruising at 1600-1700 rpm, which was all the time on the freeway. I just had a 30" j-pipe installed before the muffler and the drone is gone now. It sounds amazing!! Your experience may be different though. Also note that I have the 6.2. I also recommend keeping the stock muffler and flap just in case you decide to go back.

Gunndy Gaming · January 5, 2022

29 minutes ago, jroth7 said:

I had the atak muffler put on with flap delete. Resonators are still on. I had quite a bit of drone when cruising at 1600-1700 rpm, which was all the time on the freeway. I just had a 30" j-pipe installed before the muffler and the drone is gone now. It sounds amazing!! Your experience may be different though. Also note that I have the 6.2. I also recommend keeping the stock muffler and flap just in case you decide to go back.

Thanks, I am getting the 6.2l as well (just heard from the dealership that the delivery date has been changed to "TBD" instead of today, as originally listed).

My gut is telling me to go with just the muffler/flap replacement for now and see how it sounds. It should be pretty easy for any shop to remove the resonators later if I think it's too quiet.

The only reason I'm thinking about the S-Type is that the labor cost of getting a shop to install the crate muffler, with the welding and everything may cover a lot of the added cost for the full cat-back system, which is an at-home bolt on solution.

jroth7 · January 5, 2022

4 minutes ago, Gunndy Gaming said:

Thanks, I am getting the 6.2l as well (just heard from the dealership that the delivery date has been changed to "TBD" instead of today, as originally listed).

My gut is telling me to go with just the muffler/flap replacement for now and see how it sounds. It should be pretty easy for any shop to remove the resonators later if I think it's too quiet.

The only reason I'm thinking about the S-Type is that the labor cost of getting a shop to install the crate muffler, with the welding and everything may cover a lot of the added cost for the full cat-back system, which is an at-home bolt on solution.

FYI, my charges were cost of muffler + $108 for install. After the discovery of drone and pinpointing the RPM range I spent $80 for the j-pipe.

M1ck3y · January 6, 2022

9 hours ago, Gunndy Gaming said:

Thanks, I am getting the 6.2l as well (just heard from the dealership that the delivery date has been changed to "TBD" instead of today, as originally listed).

My gut is telling me to go with just the muffler/flap replacement for now and see how it sounds. It should be pretty easy for any shop to remove the resonators later if I think it's too quiet.

The only reason I'm thinking about the S-Type is that the labor cost of getting a shop to install the crate muffler, with the welding and everything may cover a lot of the added cost for the full cat-back system, which is an at-home bolt on solution.

There is a massive premium for 304 stainless cat-backs for borla, corsa etc. It's cheaper to do a muffler swap.

kodiakdenali · January 9, 2022

You may have seen this already, but it has an SPL meter on most of the time to indicate how loud it is in addition to what it sounds like. Meter was near the driver's seat.

Its the ATAK catback.

Gunndy Gaming · January 11, 2022

On 1/8/2022 at 10:34 PM, kodiakdenali said:

You may have seen this already, but it has an SPL meter on most of the time to indicate how loud it is in addition to what it sounds like. Meter was near the driver's seat.

Its the ATAK catback.

Thanks, lot of good audio notes/clips there to go by. The more I research I think I may just go ahead and get the full cat back system. Seems to be almost whisper quiet below 2k rpms and at highway cruising. Only seems to draw attention when you want it to. Now just gotta choose between the stype or the atak.

kodiakdenali · January 12, 2022

6 hours ago, Gunndy Gaming said:

Thanks, lot of good audio notes/clips there to go by. The more I research I think I may just go ahead and get the full cat back system. Seems to be almost whisper quiet below 2k rpms and at highway cruising. Only seems to draw attention when you want it to. Now just gotta choose between the stype or the atak.

One really nice thing Borla did with those exhausts is that they are identical except for one piece, the ATAK has what they call a polyphonic synchronizer (basically a pipe where the single pipe splits into 4 smaller passage ways, each with its own length, to specifically tune the sound of the exhaust) the S-type has a secondary muffler in that position.

Borla sells each of those parts individually so if you pick one and then if you decide it wasn't the right choice, you can switch ATAK to S-Type or vice versa for about $200.

Gunndy Gaming · January 14, 2022

Anyone know/heard the difference between the borla catback with tips vs with factory cutouts? I know that tips can change the exhaust note quite a bit, but not sure if the borla s-type quad tips are long enough to effect things much more than aesthetics. That extra $100 can go towards other mods!!!

TNTSierra · January 15, 2022

On 1/13/2022 at 6:02 PM, Gunndy Gaming said:

Anyone know/heard the difference between the borla catback with tips vs with factory cutouts? I know that tips can change the exhaust note quite a bit, but not sure if the borla s-type quad tips are long enough to effect things much more than aesthetics. That extra $100 can go towards other mods!!!

The tips make the exhaust note just a bit deeper because it funnels it back further instead of spreading out more with the factory tips.

When I got my Corsa full Catback I used the factory tips. I like them, but I wish Corsa made their own but they don’t. If I were you. I’d get the tips and make it look a-little different. I’m still researching to find a nice pair of chrome ones without any lettering/badging on them to match my exhaust.

Good luck.