Disappointed with DP quality

[sidekick]

EDIT: Just to keep everyone updated, CP-E has done a great job handling this. I've even decided I want to go a different route with my downpipe choice and they are still helping to make sure everything is squared away between me, the vendor I purchased the DP from, and CP-E themselves. IMO, it is not the occasional bad part that should speak for a company, but rather how they handle the situation of a customer receiving a bad part.



I just bought a catted downpipe about a week ago (of course before the presidents day sale ). I don't want this to come off as me bashing CP-E, because you guys do make nice products and my cat-back looks solid, but I'm a little disappointed by the quality of my downpipe.

First off, the welds on the flex section are horrendous. There is porosity and the welds are just plain UGLY. I'd expect better from a $650 dollar piece of pipe... Anyways, I'm more concerned about the function of the welds. I was told that the porosity could lead to leaks. Is this how all of the flex sections look when they leave your facility?


Then there is the "bellmouth", if you want to call it that. It looks fine from the outside, but the inside is pretty bad... There are built up welds, no clean-up, sharp edges everywhere, a flap of sheet metal, and overall, it just isn't smooth. Also, are your 5 bolt flanges ground, cast, or machined? They look similar to the flanges used on ebay downpipes..


Then, there is just an overall lack of consistency in the welds.


Again, I'm not attempting to bash you here, CP-E, I just want to know whether or not everything is how it should be, before I install this. I understand that these are mostly cosmetic problems and will not have a significant impact on performance (except maybe the flex section), but when I'm paying almost $700 for a 3" piece of pipe, I expect it to look and perform pretty damn well.

@www.cp-e.com; @Grumpyjap; @BoominChu;

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__________________

2006 Mazdaspeed6

FreekTune | 91 | JBR 3", PMM & RMM | CS Racepipe, TMIC & TMM Inserts | Autotechs

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Last edited by sidekick; 03-01-2013 at 01:31 PM.

[StayBroke]

I just cant see myself paying that much for a downpipe......idk why but I just cant do it.

sent to you from me

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by StayBroke I just cant see myself paying that much for a downpipe......idk why but I just cant do it. sent to you from me

Well, unfortunately, it's the only option for a full 3" downpipe. I couldn't find ANY other downpipes that will mate to a 3" flange cat-back, except an eBay one... I wouldn't be caught dead running that shit on my car.

[Ireland]

Man that sucks. Hopefully they will chime in and resolve this. Looks like they are making the dp's by quanity not quality.

sent while spool'n

[ABSpeed3]

Originally Posted by sidekick Well, unfortunately, it's the only option for a full 3" downpipe. I couldn't find ANY other downpipes that will mate to a 3" flange cat-back, except an eBay one... I wouldn't be caught dead running that shit on my car.

just curious..why? I paid 1/5th the price and have better welds to boot!

[yomyster67]

that looks horrible and i wouldn't install it. hopefully they can exchange it for you without hassle. good luck.

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by ABSpeed3 just curious..why? I paid 1/5th the price and have better welds to boot!

There are a lot of stories about broken welds and some about bad fitment, I'd rather buy a product with a real vendor supporting it.

[BrianB6]

ATP and Corksport are options too

[6Y MAZDA]

There's nothing wrong with ebay DP. Idk why you are so against it. Granted i wouldnt buy any other performance parts from ebay, but from what i've heard, the ebay DP is pretty solid for a fraction of the price. You are just paying more for the namebrand.

[Volcom8190]

the welds on mine and my two friends didnt look like that, they were actually pretty damn good. Id be returning that for a new one.


However, the hangers are rusting on mine and the other two after < 1k miles, so much for them being completely stainless....

[2011speed]

Looks like dp was made at Mexico mufflers

[StayBroke]

Ran ebay on my 3076 no problem. I dont make alot is probably why I make choices like that but also tlive installed 3 ebay dp and not one gave trouble.

I bought mine from erz on this forum so technically I bought from a vendor.

sent to you from me

[ABSpeed3]

Originally Posted by sidekick There are a lot of stories about broken welds and some about bad fitment, I'd rather buy a product with a real vendor supporting it.

really? Cause the way I see it you could have 5 of them fail on you and still come out even on your one DP. Not trying to bash you or cp-e, and I am all about classy parts for a classy bitch, but I am here to tell you there is nothing wrong with an eBay DP and the welds are solid as ever after 1.5 years.

I hope you get everything sorted because I wouldn't want to pay that much for a pipe that looks like that.

[Menace1]

That is the worst welding job I have seen on this forum so far. My 3 year old daughter could weld better than that for a piece of candy, let alone a paycheck the person that did this, earned. I know its a long shot but sometimes new workers practicing on stuff could get mixed in to parts on the shelf by accident? Right?

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by 6Y MAZDA There's nothing wrong with ebay DP. Idk why you are so against it. Granted i wouldnt buy any other performance parts from ebay, but from what i've heard, the ebay DP is pretty solid for a fraction of the price. You are just paying more for the namebrand.

I'm paying more for a product with a lifetime warranty. There are plenty of cases of the ebay DP failing... I don't want to deal with the downtime and I don't want to run a catless downpipe. There is no catted ebay DP and the price quickly doubles if you buy a cat+pay to have it welded in.

[rfinkle2]

Originally Posted by sidekick I'm paying more for a product with a lifetime warranty. There are plenty of cases of the ebay DP failing... I don't want to deal with the downtime and I don't want to run a catless downpipe. There is no catted ebay DP and the price quickly doubles if you buy a cat+pay to have it welded in.

I'd return that. Contact someone from CP-E and return it.

They are working on improving customer service, and this is their chance.

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by BrianB6 ATP and Corksport are options too

ATP mates up to the stock cat-back, so it won't work with my 3" cat-back. The corksport would work, and I probably should have just picked it up, but I got this for the exact same price as the CS

[6Y MAZDA]

Originally Posted by sidekick I'm paying more for a product with a lifetime warranty. There are plenty of cases of the ebay DP failing... I don't want to deal with the downtime and I don't want to run a catless downpipe. There is no catted ebay DP and the price quickly doubles if you buy a cat+pay to have it welded in.

Well, i couldn't tell from the pictures that you got a catted DP. It's ridiculous how a little cat can make such a difference in price.

[faeker]

That is some awful welding. It's amazing to see a company try and turn their act around and then something like this shows up. Hopefully they'll use this as a way to show that they are changing for the better. I personally would have gone with the Corksport DP. It's less expensive, has a cat if you need it, and bolts up to 3" setups.

Edit: guess your lil rage post had the opposite effect. Lols were had.

[boostdmazda3]

for sure those welds look like they have holes in it....my COBB downpipe was flawless btw...shit CNT had much better welds...wtf cpe

[rfinkle2]

@www.cp-e.com;

Originally Posted by boostdmazda3 for sure those welds look like they have holes in it....my COBB downpipe was flawless btw.

It also necks down to 2.5 inches though. Not a full 3" pipe.

[sidekick]

Lol you guys are all up in arms over me not wanting to run eBay parts made in a sweatshop in china... Get over it, I already have this downpipe and I have my reasons for not going with the ebay downpipe. Once again, there is no catted version... and that $150 DP quickly becomes a $400+ dollar downpipe if I add my own HFC. High quality highflow cats are easily $150-$200 depending on the brand and style. There are pictures of DESTROYED downpipes in the ebay downpipe thread... I'm talking like the downpipe was in two piece... I'm not buying that shit.

[Dash08]

Those are by far the sloppiest welds I've ever seen from Cp-e. That is not normal for them at all.

Don't worry, man. I'm sure they'll take care of you.

[MazdaBoy2.3]

Ummm. Yuck. That doesn't look good.

[boostdmazda3]

Originally Posted by rfinkle2 @www.cp-e.com; It also necks down to 2.5 inches though. Not a full 3" pipe.

true but the welds are flawless tapering down or not.

[rfinkle2]

Originally Posted by boostdmazda3 true but the welds are flawless tapering down or not.

I agree 100%. I have the Cobb DP. LOL

[sidekick]

I also emailed them earlier, so hopefully I will hear back soon. I'll let everyone know what happens.

[BrianB6]

Originally Posted by sidekick ATP mates up to the stock cat-back, so it won't work with my 3" cat-back. The corksport would work, and I probably should have just picked it up, but I got this for the exact same price as the CS

The ATP works with 3 inch. I think it would be a well known issue if it didn't.

Here are pics of mine.

[Ireland]

hopefully you get it fixed. don't worry about everybody they are just busting your balls cause how much you paid for it. it's your car dude you can buy whatever you want and whatever brand you want. they are just trying to tell you how much you could have saved money wise that's all bud. good luck and keep us updated dude

sent while spool'n

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by BrianB6 The ATP works with 3 inch. I think it would be a well known issue if it didn't. Here are pics of mine.

Well ATP's website states that it mates with the stock catback... So I went with what they said. My catback has a 3" flange, so based on ATPs own claim, it wouldn't work. If they have mis-information on their site, that is their problem. I was originally going to buy the ATP until I read that.

Originally Posted by NeVeRSeeN hopefully you get it fixed. don't worry about everybody they are just busting your balls cause how much you paid for it. it's your car dude you can buy whatever you want and whatever brand you want. they are just trying to tell you how much you could have saved money wise that's all bud. good luck and keep us updated dude sent while spool'n

Nah I get it man, but thanks. They're right, I could've saved a lot, but at the expense of a lifetime warranty and direct contact with the MFG. I bet no one has any idea who is actually making those DPs. Lol. This just isn't the place for it, I wanted feedback from CP-E and I was hoping this thread would grab their attention. I've had a lot of bad experiences with buying the cheaper parts that "work".

[tokoam]

cnt is 3 inch all around however i dont know if fitment is the same on the speed 6 as its not listed on there site however my welds were top notch on my cnt downpipe i paid 350$ and love it !

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by tokoam cnt is 3 inch all around however i dont know if fitment is the same on the speed 6 as its not listed on there site however my welds were top notch on my cnt downpipe i paid 350$ and love it !

As far as I know, CNT doesn't make anything for the MS6.

[Ireland]

Originally Posted by sidekick Well ATP's website states that it mates with the stock catback... So I went with what they said. My catback has a 3" flange, so based on ATPs own claim, it wouldn't work. If they have mis-information on their site, that is their problem. I was originally going to buy the ATP until I read that. Nah I get it man, but thanks. They're right, I could've saved a lot, but at the expense of a lifetime warranty and direct contact with the MFG. I bet no one has any idea who is actually making those DPs. Lol. This just isn't the place for it, I wanted feedback from CP-E and I was hoping this thread would grab their attention. I've had a lot of bad experiences with buying the cheaper parts that "work".

True that. 90% percent of the time, you get what you pay for. Im sure CP-e will take care of it.

sent while spool'n

[ABolewski]

Who cares if your down pipe tapers to 2.5". Go to a muffler shop with two 3" vband flanges and have them cut and weld for $20/$30. For two flanges and a band maybe another $25?
The welds might not be glorious but they'll work.

[Karmat]

I like how you say you wouldn't be caught dead with the Ebay downpipe but my Ebay downpipe has nicer welds than that.

[lilred]

I was waiting for the nsfw derailment or some more random post relating to nothing the op wants in msf fashion lol

Good luck with everything op sucks having to wait installing a part you already have.

tapafuck

[LittleredMPS]

Hang on a second. You said that is a Cpe DP?

Since when was the bellmouth on Cpe DP's welded? For years now they have been a cast bellmouth.

That thing looks like a cheap pos compared to the Cpe DP I bought a couple of years ago.

[captain slow]

Too many fags in this thread not getting the point. This thread is not about eBay vs cpe. This is about shitty welds and a shitty bell mouth. How that got passed quality control boggles my mind.

[sidekick]

Originally Posted by ABolewski Who cares if your down pipe tapers to 2.5". Go to a muffler shop with two 3" vband flanges and have them cut and weld for $20/$30. For two flanges and a band maybe another $25? The welds might not be glorious but they'll work.

Alright, clearly people here need to learn how to read. I HAVE A FUCKING CATBACK THAT ALREADY HAS A 3" FLANGE SO IM NOT GOING TO HACK UP BRAND NEW PARTS AND MAKE THEM PERFORM WORSE THAN WHEN I BOUGHT THEM. Shut the fuck up and get the fuck out of my thread faggot. This issue doesn't concern you. Why would I buy a 3" exhaust only to have it neck down to 2.5"? That defeats the purpose of having a 3" exhaust and I might as well just stick to stock if I'm going to do that dumb shit.

Originally Posted by Karmat I like how you say you wouldn't be caught dead with the Ebay downpipe but my Ebay downpipe has nicer welds than that.

Yeah, most of the time really nice welds do this:


Will that shut you eBay downpipe dick riding faggots up? God damn. I'm not buying an eBay downpipe, so you can all stop suggesting it and telling me how amazing it is. I DON'T GIVE A FUCK.


I'll say it one last fucking time. I don't want any fucking advice on what downpipe I should buy and I don't want to fucking hear about how nice the welds are on your sweatshop downpipe. I'm trying to contact a vendor on here to see what they think of this situation. If you are not from CP-E and have nothing useful to say, then please see your way out. @Raider;

Originally Posted by LittleredMPS Hang on a second. You said that is a Cpe DP? Since when was the bellmouth on Cpe DP's welded? For years now they have been a cast bellmouth. That thing looks like a cheap pos compared to the Cpe DP I bought a couple of years ago.

The MS6 uses that bellmouth rather than a cast one for whatever reason.

[Standsideways]

Originally Posted by LittleredMPS Hang on a second. You said that is a Cpe DP? Since when was the bellmouth on Cpe DP's welded? For years now they have been a cast bellmouth. That thing looks like a cheap pos compared to the Cpe DP I bought a couple of years ago.

Its a speed6