Miata Mailing List: August 1994, Message #36
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   From: Al Staats 
Subject: Re: Borla Exhaust
   Date: Tue, 2 Aug 1994 00:12:06 -0400

Mike, while it may be technically possible to connect the Borla muffler to
the stock intermediate pipe, it is not a practical approach. The tubing is
larger and it would be difficult to mate the stainless steel material to
the stock steel system. Borla is now in the process of reevaluating its
system on a Miata brought into the factory and if necessary, will make
changes to the intermediate pipe as necessary to insure proper clearance.
It is also reevaluating the issue of heat transfer although I doubt that
that is a serious concern. In a steady state (ie. the car standing still)
a hot pipe near the differential might be an issue, but as there is a
relatively constant airflow, this is of little concern. Also, as the Borla
is made of T304 aircraft stainless steel which is a very poor heat
conductor, the concern about heat transfer to the differential is not  a
serious concern (as it surely would if the pipe were made from mild
steel as the stock system and others such as HKS and Trust are).

One last point that must be recognized is that the number of fitment
problems is a small percentage of the total of systems sold. In fact, we
have a far lower percentage of fitment problems with the Borla as compared
to the HKS, Trust, and Leistritz systems, all of which we sell and install.
An engineer said to me today " exhaust systems are not precision parts...
there isn't an aftermarket exhaust on the market that fits as well as its
OEM predecessor... there is a reason why exhaust ssystems are hung in
rubber hangers..."