Usually I don't write reviews but in this case I must give credit where it belongs. At 148k miles, the muffler finally gave up on my teenage daughter's 22-year old hand-me-down 1989 Mercedes Benz 190E-2.6. I checked our Benz dealer, then AMG, Remus and Brabus, but in each case the cost was absurd. Then I discovered Magnaflow thru youtube, checked their website and called its dealers in the area to understand what it all involved. Even though located 40+ miles away from our house, I settled on HP Racing because: their staff Suzanne and MJ were so patient, no matter how many times I called to ask them questions; HPR sourced and put aside the Magnaflow dual outlet model I chose (after researching it on youtube); MJ said if I called ahead it would take around 4 hours (he was right); and Suzanne quoted me a price 1/3 of the Benz dealer's. Above all, HPR bends and welds its own custom pipe work (few do). Once there, MJ was as available (patient) as he had been on the phone, and I met their technician John--who is more of a surgeon than a mechanic. Every hour he let me look at his work-in-progress, explaining what he was doing; he even told me to take pictures! Bottom line we ended up with a killer muffler, a new resonator and custom pipe work that was shaped and welded on-site specifically to fit the car. And the end-result is a better fitting exhaust than the factory original, which still came in at 1/2 the dealer's cost--and it was all done in 4 hours as promised. HPR's work was absolutely meticulous--a true work of art-- and I still admire it from the pictures! Although John had to cut into the rear bumper's lower lip to increase ground clearance (I mentioned how my teenage daughter rushes over speed bumps), it looks like it came from the factory exactly that way. When the work was done (and the car came out as clean as when it went in) the look of its new exhaust had me literally on my knees behind the car--an exact fit and awesome but discreet sound--yes, the best part is its deep growl and higher flow which makes a real difference in driving. And HPR was 100% right about replacing the resonator, because now there is no more droning inside the car (the old one was rusted anyway--John showed it to me). The Magnaflow exhaust is a great value for money, but it must be custom fitted to each car and HPR just knows how to do it right and its staff proved to be true all-around professionals--from my first phone call to waving me goodbye. Thanks HPR and I'll be back for my own car!
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