I couldn't find a good enough reason to pay that much more. Remember that I live in Perth and suffer price hikes because of where I live. If my car was turbo, then yes I would of gone mandrel bent. For reference my 2.5" cat back system with Xforce MP02 stainless oval muffler and resonator cost me $350 installed. Getting mandrel bends would have meant that they bends would have had to been ordered, and that the price would be well over $500. Not worth it for a 1-2kw gain. Saving money for other things ;)