Full of Q's tonight...Brakes, resonators, belts....

[twitchy]

Im thinking of things to do to my car at some point.. And I have some questions. Ill list them all in one thread to save space. Feel free to answer any or all of them?

1) What is the function of a resonator on your exhaust system? Would it be important to have one or two or three of them if I was going to an aftermarket muffler and wanted the car to sound very mellow and nice? (Think probe GT)

2) Canadian tire said my brake rotors are "finished" when they looked at my brakes last. They say they are "past tolerance" and cant be machined anymore. How do I know they arent lying? They arent warped, no shuddering when I stop, seem absolutely fine, although im changing the pads this weekend. Will I be safe? (yes I know theyre like 20 bucks but im cheap)

3) Is changing the belt (the one on the water pump) as easy as backing off the tensioner, slipping off the old belt, installing the new one and retensioning? Where is this tensioner?

4) Would there be any benefit to upgrading to a higher powered ignition coil on a stock engine (slight intake and exhaust work)when I get new plugs?

5) When doing something like exhaust or installing an intake (next week) do I need to reset the ECU and / or will it adjust anything at all considering the changes? Will It know I did anything and willl it react?

Thanks all!

[Frappe]

4. Probably not, minimal. I'm not as sure about that though. I can't imagine a better ignition system would make a huge difference, might run a bit cleaner/efficiently??

5. You shouldn't have to reset it as long as you've disconnected the battery before unplugging any sensors and the like. (fried sensors are bad)
It should automatically adjust for the new intake volume and such, and no, you probably won't know it's adjusting for them.

[Stee Flo]

the resonator is for sound reduction. Usually there is one on there if you buy an aftermarket catback. I bought a kei office s13 muffler without the piping so i had custom piping done. I didnt have any resonators put in mine but the muffler is jasma certified so its not too loud without a resonator. You might wanna put a resonator in yours.

[DuffMan]

1) You should probably have a resonator for mellow sound, but if you are buying a catback it will most likely include one. Resonator is basicly just a muffler that is closer to the engine, and absorbs the higher frequency of sound. Some exhausts can sound quiet without one, and some are loud with one, depending on the design of the muffler and the resonator.

2) Probably should get a 2nd opinion on that and actually have a mechanic measure them. Though as long as they arent warped your braking will probably be fine, but best to be safe.

3) on a KA24DE its just a matter of loosening the tensioner on the p/s. KA24E has a different belt setup so I'm not sure.

4) No

5) It will adjust by itself, resetting it might speed up the adjustment process. I dont think intake exhaust will have much if any affects on the ecu function on our cars anyways.

[fiebru1119]

the "can of bees" sound you hear on some exhausts, is caused by not having a resonator..