After watching Dustin "Nelly" Nelson complete an impressive and successful Championship bid in the ITP QuadCross series outfitted with a DRD Competition exhaust, it was time to take a deeper look at this exhaust system's performance. With Nelly's success piquing our interest, we ordered a Championship exhaust system with header pipe to gauge its performance gains for ourselves. As I unpackaged the system I was quick to notice the quality and craftsmanship that DRD puts into their products. This stainless steel muffler features trick billet aluminum mounts, welded construction to reduce weight and an easily removable end cap for repacking. We bolted on the exhaust and header without any unusual drama as all of the tabs matched perfectly with very little bending and tweaking required. Within just a few minutes, we were ready to do a little thrashing with our new pipe.
When we fired up our YFZ450 for the first time since the installation of our new exhaust system, we were impressed by its deep throaty sound that resonated from it. Yes, it was a bit louder than our stock pipe, but we thought it was an acceptable level especially when considering that it's a competition pipe. As we hit the track, it was quickly apparent that the DRD system with airbox lid removed had significantly increased the performance of our motor. The YFZ now pulled with intensity off the bottom and continued with a potent pull through the mid and top end. We were definitely impressed with the performance gains of the Competition exhaust and felt that it was one of the more potent systems for the Yamaha YFZ-450 for $524.99. -Thad Josey
| HARD PARTS |
96 |
| Installation |
20/20 |
| Function |
19/20 |
| Durability |
19/20 |
| Design |
19/20 |
| Price |
19/20 |
Bottom Line: Trick design, top-notch quality and extremely potent performance gains throughout entire power band.