I am considering the purchase of a Mina Gallery exhaust system for my 2005 XKR and was wondering if anyone has experience with this product they would be willing to share. I am interested in the usual info: product quality, ease of installation, looks, performance and sound.

Thanks
Tim V.

 

Hi,

I installed the Mina intake and exhaust on my '01 XK8 and it made a HUGE difference. More power and a much better sound. The OEM intake and exhaust on these cars is severely restricted and the Mina systems really made a difference. I own an '06 XKR now and I'm going to install the Mina system on it. BTW, I installed them myself. The Intake is easy and the exhaust wasn't too difficult if you have a little bit of mechanical ability a good jack and some tools. Good Luck!

Jon
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Jon, thank you for taking the time to reply. Your information was very helpful.

Regards

Tim V.

 

The mina exhaust looks pretty snazzy, and decently priced for SS also. I am not sure about those honkin exhaust tips though...seems a bit big for the opening in the rear bumper. But hey, when it sounds that good, who cares... right?

 

I'm having my Mina Gallery exhaust put on tomarrow (friday) morning. I'm also putting on the cold air intake as well. I went with the quad tip exhaust that they offer because I was told by a few people that I would get the more bang for my buck that way. Anyhow, I'll let you know when it's done.

 

Whenever these types of mods are done on a car, I think there is an instinctual bias to "feel" some improvement. The exhaust will definitely sound louder so it seems that you have more power. Just like whenever I open the hood and clean the engine or check all the connections or even just wash the car, I swear the car drives better.

In the end, the most accurate check to see if these types of minor mods make a real difference or a perceived difference is to dyno the car before and after the installations.

Doug

 

cleaner car = less drag = quicker acceleration!

 

And if you have ever owned an Asian car, you know that nothing works better than having big letter "R" on the quarter panels along with big wings

 

Don't forget all of the "Other" stickers. Each one gives the Ricer, I mean Asian cars, 5 hp each.

 

With my Corvette, I learned over the years just how difficult it is to really obtain any meaningful torque/horsepower improvement, especially with bolt-ons. Moreover, even if you spend enough to get say 30-40 more horsepower, that might translate to a tenth or so gain in the quarter mile but what does that really mean in typical day-to-day use. I especially resisted fooling around with the exhaust system for a couple of reasons. For one thing the bang-for-the-buck was pretty dismal (at least with the Corvette) unless you were also doing a number of other things. Secondly, the typical follow-up forum post from someone who just changed out their exhaust was complaining about the resonance and noise they now had inside the cabin where they could not hear the radio or talk to someone.

At least with a Corvette, a loud exhaust seems to go along with the whole package. But with the Jaguar, IMO it just seems sacrilegious.

Doug

 

No denying that fact that a dyno comparison is the only way to KNOW if you have a hp gain. One hopes that after market suppliers have actually done these tests...I know, this can be a faulty assumption. I installed the Mina intake and exhaust on my '01 XK8 myself. I did the intake first. When I removed the stock air intake box, I discovered that the air inlet tube was tiny...like sipping a drink through a cocktail straw. It had to restrict the engine's breathing. With the new intake the motor sounded like it was breathing much freer...sounded better too. The exhaust was the same story. The stock tail pipes make a "U" turn over the rear axles and the pipes were severely flattened where they made the bends for the "U". It had to create a lot of back pressure. Honestly, I can't imaging why Jaguar would do it this way! The Mina system comes under the axle pretty much straight through with no restriction. With the intake and exhaust the motor reved much more freely and yes it "felt" like it had more power. Did it really? Who knows. But I can say that the new sound alone made it worth the effort and expence. It definitely put some roar in the cat!!!

 

These mina gallery kits are a great value for the price. The only suggestion I will give you is to drive the car in every way possible before you leave the shop. (reverse, slow acceleration, quick jump from the line and so on) These kits may need a little adjusting to get all te rattles out due to the pipes coming very close to what looks like rear stabilizer bars. I think you will be very pleased with the results.

 

Hey Maja216

That's a very sharp looking ride! I particularly like the side treatment. Do you have a rear and front view you can share with us?

Regards

Tim V.

 

Thank you! I put together a photo album with a few more pictures of the car. Here is a link https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/a...hp?albumid=122
I will post more pics as I do more to the car so check back.

 

check out Quicksilver: www.quicksilverexhausts.com

I am considering this instead of the Mina Gallery Exhaust.