Pro Dyno Hiqh Performance Valkyrie Exhaust Pipes
Pro Dyno Hiqh Performance Valkyrie Exhaust Pipes
CW EVALUATION
The sound and the fury
ONE OF THE MORE DELICIOUS aspects of Honda’s Valkyrie is the way it hurtles its immen sity down the road. Trouble is, after a while you tend to take all that six-carb flat-Six force for granted, like gravity. Even the good-sounding stock exhaust note becomes aural wallpaper after a while. If you're a Valkyrie owner, what you need, then, is something to remind you of the high-thrust and musical capabilities of this factory-hotted-up GL1500 engine.
Pipes aren’t a bad place to start, so that’s where we started. Specifically, with a $695 Pro Dyno system that includes a pair of 3-into-1 headers and two 24-inchlong automotivestyle glasspacks that are specially manufactured for this application with stuffing said to last the life of the muffler. Clamp-on tips are included (with SAE hardware?), and depending which way you orient the honking, 3inch-diameter elbows, they’re either turn-outs or turn-downs. We thought about aiming the outlets toward the sky for that Convoy effect, but since we were using an Interstate, the stock saddlebags got in the way. For maximum power gain and best throttle response, a $120 Dynojet needle set is recommended.
The whole system is strictly a bolt-on affair. After you unbolt the old stuff, anyway, which is the picture of straightforward, so we’ll skip those details.
Pro Dyno header pipes have thick flanges and high-quality chrome, and both sides went on without fuss-a perfect fit. The silencers, with less-thangood chrome, slip on over the midpipes and bolt to the stock mounts, using the OE acorn nuts. Sound easy? Yes, the left-side went straight on, no prob. The right, though, was trouble. A slight off-bend in the header made silencer installation impossible without removing either the header or the saddlebag.
DETAILS
Pro Dyno High Performance 1721 W. 10th Place, #4A Tempe, AZ 85281 480/967-5550 www.prodyno.com Price $695
Ups
A Better power everywhere A 9 pounds tighter than stock A Burnouts, now!
owns
v Mediocre chrome on V Looks like an add-on `v Almost easy to install silencers
With flange nuts already torqued, we removed the bag. A definite hassle. Worse, though, was the post-needleinstall fuel-screw adjustment (admittedly, no fault of Pro Dyno). For a lesson in tolerating frustration, try mashing your fingers between 'the intakes while holding and turning the smaller-than-a-thimble adjustment tool included in the Dynojet needle kit. Our suggestion? Have your favorite mechanic adjust the carbs post-install, and smile when you pay him.
Worth the half-day effort? Yes. Stock, our Interstate produced 87.8 horsepower and 86.8 foot-pounds of torque. With pipes and needles, there was a 10.5-bhp and 9.6-ft.-lb. gain at peak, and more power everywhere. Throttle response improved as well, although mileage went down by about 5 percent. Overall, there’s solid engineering here. The system also sounds good, but if you can make this engine sound bad, we’ll give you a fiver.
From a performance standpoint, the system gets an A+ with little stars around it. Installation woes, less-thanshow-quality chrome and a lack of integration with the bike’s styling earn grades on the B-/C+ level. Based on your priorities, judge accordingly.
