Hal,

I'd stay away from aftermarket exhausts.....especially from Sears, Midas, 
Meineke, etc. These folks do not have the proper muffler (size, shape, 
backpressure, etc) for your EV. They use so called "universal" mufflers that 
are the approximate size for your car, and a couple of different 
makes/models, etc. I admit they are good when it comes to making the pipes 
up for a certain application. However, their pipes/mufflers are then 
assembled using universal hangers as opposed to the rubber donuts that hold 
the VW exhaust system to the car.

I had a friend who went to Midas to get his GTI done...it was all crap! The 
mufflers were slightly different (for example the rear muffler has a "dent" 
in it to clear the shock absorber...the midas one didnt)..the system was put 
together using those cheap exhaust hangers you can get at any parts places - 
the ones with the long strip of perforated stees...a piece of cut up tire 
and then a u-bolt clamp...it vibrated, it sounded crappy...and probably 
because of the difference in backpressure, the GTI ran like crap.

Ric