Two Brothers Racing V.A.L.E. Exhaust
Two Brothers Racing V.A.L.E. Exhaust
CW EVALUATION
Superior slip-on
AT STRAIGHT, FLAT LEMOORE NAVAL Air Station, the 2008 Kawasaki ZX-10R annihilated the competition in our recent 0-to-180-mph shootout (“Turn & Burn,” July). No surprise, on the CW dynamometer, the newest Ninja was the most powerful of all the 1000cc racerreplicas.
Come time for the street portion of our test, however, it became apparent that the ZX-10R didn’t deliver the low-end and midrange grunt of the comparisonwinning Suzuki GSX-R1000. Styling of the large, right-side-exiting exhaust canister didn’t win any friends, either.
To see if we could liven up the lowend and tidy up appearances, we installed a Two Brothers Racing Variable Axis Locking Exhaust (VA.L.E.). TBR claims that the carbon-fiber slip-on weighs less than the pieces it replaces, and increases horsepower and torque across the rev range. We also ordered the company’s Juice Box fuel controller ($300)-a proprietary device designed to compensate for the freer-flowing muffler design-and a sound-reducing Quiet Tip PI ($30) insert. Contained within the shipping box were detailed instructions for installation and all necessary hardware. The real surprise, though, was that a rear-fender-eliminator kit, complete with license-plate bracket, turnsignals and plate-mounting hardware with built-in LED lights, was included in the pipe’s price.
After making a stock base dyno run161.6 hp at 12,150 rpm and 75.9 ft.-lb. of torque at 9000 rpm-we installed the slip-on. We then made more runs, recording impressive results each time.
One area that the graphs consistently showed could use improvement, however, was bottom-end fueling.
Because it is designed to optimize fuel delivery, the plug-and-play Juice Box allows the user to add fuel in six different zones. Key here is that the lowest setting is the standard fuel map; it cannot be leaned out beyond stock levels. After installing the Juice Box in the tailsection, we performed another series of runs. By adding fuel in the lower rpm range (Zone 1), we were able to substantially smooth off-idle throttle delivery, which in turn made stoplight getaways easier.
Compared to the stock setup, output improved from 2500 rpm to redline, with gains of 8 hp and 7 ft.-lb. of torque at 6000 rpm. Impressive! Our sole concern was that the sound emanating from the nicely turned-out silencer was far too loud for street use. We installed the more-restrictive Quiet Tip, which reduced sound emissions by a whopping 10 decibels, unscientifically measured using a handheld meter. The insert had minimal effect on power output, reducing peak numbers by a scant 1.5 hp and torque by less than half a foot-pound.
With its across-the-board power gains, sharp styling and included fender-eliminator kit, Two Brothers’ V.A.L.E. exhaust system is not only an impressive performer, it’s a good deal.
DETAILS
Two Brothers Racing 401 S. Grand Ave., Santa Ana, CA 92705 714/550-6070 www.twobros.com Price...$550
Ups Installs in less than 30 minutes Fender eliminator included Great tit and finish; 13 pounds lighter than stock system
Downs Loud without added-cost P1 Quiet Tip insert Carbon and Ti mufflers cost $100 more than aluminum Juice Box required for full
