Test drove a nice MK3 VR6 GTI this morning. The car has a Techtonic exhaust which is surprisingly mellow on the highway. Around town it was a little louder/annoying in the car than I expected. Will throwing down some Dynamat in the hatch area and under the rear seat quiet down the drone a bit?
Does the exhaust clear the rear bumper?
Considering your userpic, I'll bet you're used to a fairly quiet exhaust in a Sentra SE-R. Mine is, too, despite a Thrush muffler on an otherwise stock exhaust on my 91 (it was faster and cheaper to do that than to get a stock replacement muffler). My Saturn SW2 - a wagon - had, I believe, the exact same type of Thrush muffler, also on an otherwise stock exhaust. The Saturn was a LOT louder than the Sentra. Why? Because the Sentra's trunk helps to isolate the sound from the muffler from the passenger compartment, while the wagon, and the GTI, don't have that kind of isolation - it's all one open space.
So you're already fighting an uphill battle on the noise front. Getting back to your original question, though, I think your Dynamat idea might work, especially if the exhaust clears the rear bumper.
Turn up the stereo. 
If its too loud, your too old
just kidding. Dynamat will work, but you may end up using so much that the added weight out back becomes slightly undesirable...that and its expensive. Can you extend the exhaust tip any? Getting the end of the exhaust farther away from the car by a few inches may make all the difference.
Can allways get some down turned tips?
I agree on the hatch note. Once I removed the back seat and stuff from the back of my Ti.. the car got louder inside.. and it was still running the stock exhaust.
Silly to note.. the Supersprint I have on the car now.. IS louder than stock, but it is quieter inside the car
This is an inherent problem with hatchbacks--the muffler is essentially underneath the interior of the car instead of being cordoned off in the trunk.
I never figured it out with my Civic hatchbacks, which were noisy even with stock exhausts. My 95 had Dynamat in the doors and eggcrate foam & extra carpet underneath the trunk floor cover thing (that piece of particle board that covers the actual floor). Car was still noisy with a 2.25" b-pipe and a stock axleback.
The cops in my town really seem to have cracked down on modified exhausts--even though aftermarket exhausts technically aren't illegal.
I'd sooner save the money on the Dynamat and just get a stock axleback setup.
Which muffler is on it, Borla? How many resonators? Which size system is it? Stock cat?
I run a TT/Borla 2.5 on my car with the dual resonators and for what it is, it's surprisingly quiet. One BIG thing to make sure of is to NOT use turndown tips, and make sure the tail pipe sticks as far out as you can visually stand. Mine is about 3" back from the edge of the cutout.
Fill the hatch with styrofoam peanuts.
I think it is a Borla. But my cheap ass low balled the guy and I think I missed the deal.
The strange thing is that my beat to crap 2.0L SE-R feels quicker around town than the VR6. I guess a 250lb difference can do that.
Paul_VR6 wrote: One BIG thing to make sure of is to NOT use turndown tips, and make sure the tail pipe sticks as
Why not use turned down tips?
mad_machine wrote:Paul_VR6 wrote: One BIG thing to make sure of is to NOT use turndown tips, and make sure the tail pipe sticks asWhy not use turned down tips?
Turned down tips are quieter from outside the car, but they put the exhaust noise back under the car which is where you'll hear it inside much more. Straight out tips are louder from behind the car, but quieter inside the car.
Chris_V wrote:mad_machine wrote:Turned down tips are quieter from outside the car, but they put the exhaust noise back under the car which is where you'll hear it inside much more. Straight out tips are louder from behind the car, but quieter inside the car.Paul_VR6 wrote: One BIG thing to make sure of is to NOT use turndown tips, and make sure the tail pipe sticks asWhy not use turned down tips?
[johnny carson]I did not know that[/johnny carson]
A little example of having the tips go straight out on my 7 series (also the benefits of a sedan with separate trunk):
That's no mufflers, just cats and stock forward resonators. When you get on the throttle it's loud outside, but not bad inside, and any other time, it's not much louder than stock. Ev en with the windows down, it's easy to talk over the exhaust, and I love the hot rod sound, especially when i'm scaring guys in AMGs or ricers...
Yep. The turn downs are WAY worse on hatchbacks then sedans as well.
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