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99amgc43
04-20-2004, 05:52 PM
i want to keep my stock amg muffler but want a deeper sound... can i just knock out all the resonators and replace with custom piping? does anyone know how many resonators the c43 has and can this be done in order to make the exhaust deeper/louder

SpEeDy230
04-21-2004, 10:20 AM
You can replace the resonator with custom piping and would sound much deeper too.

98_Benzo
04-21-2004, 10:29 AM
You'll notice quite a difference if you knock out your resonator. I had the resonator removed on my C230 and it was not an extremely loud vehicle until you jumped on it. I think personally it would sound sweet and it's inexpensive.

slipNslide
04-21-2004, 11:28 AM
There are 4 cats and 1 resonator on the C43. You can not remove the 2 primary cats because they are before the o2 sensor (unless you get something to fool the o2). You can remove the 2 secondary cats as well as the resonator. That's what I did and I love the sound as well as the power increase. If anything, you will remove a good deal of weight by doing this.

The tone will be nice a deep. Your car will rumble but will not be too loud. With the windows up I can barely notice the sound. But I have had plenty of people ask me what I have under the hood because they say that they have never heard a mercedes sounding like mine...

Hope this helps....

audiophile
04-21-2004, 11:35 AM
98 _benzo,
does your 230 sound ricey in any way? where is the resonator on that car and if its a diy?:)

CKlasse
04-21-2004, 12:22 PM
Originally posted by slipNslide
There are 4 cats and 1 resonator on the C43. You can not remove the 2 primary cats because they are before the o2 sensor (unless you get something to fool the o2). You can remove the 2 secondary cats as well as the resonator. That's what I did and I love the sound as well as the power increase. If anything, you will remove a good deal of weight by doing this.

The tone will be nice a deep. Your car will rumble but will not be too loud. With the windows up I can barely notice the sound. But I have had plenty of people ask me what I have under the hood because they say that they have never heard a mercedes sounding like mine...

Hope this helps....

We've built manifold back systems for C43s. If there is anything to be replaced on the system is those restrictive cats. You actually get deeper tone by swapping these out due to the higher flow. The resonator is pretty straight through already.

Thanks
Ken

99amgc43
04-21-2004, 01:17 PM
thanks guys, how much did it cost for piping to take out the resonator and the two cats after the o2 sensors? also did you guys do mandrel bent piping? i cant find any shops in the bay area that have mandrel, they are all crush bent. also what piping size did you use? 3"???

CKlasse
04-21-2004, 02:05 PM
There are only 4 mandrel benders used by exhaust shops in the country! None is in Cali. Magnaflow has theirs in CA, but they are strictly a manufacturer. :)

98_Benzo
04-22-2004, 08:57 AM
does your 230 sound ricey in any way? where is the resonator on that car and if its a diy?

It wasn't horribly ricey sounding. It sounded more like the new WRX's at high RPM's. The resonator is located almost right underneath the passenger seat. It is really long, you can't miss it.

As for weight, they weigh about 25 pounds, so it's not substantial weight loss.

Easiest way to see if you like the sound of your resonator missing...unbolt the bolts infront of it and start your car up, your car will actually be a little quieter once you put a straight pipe in place of the resonator, but it will give you a basic idea of the sound.

slipNslide
04-22-2004, 09:06 AM
If you decided to take out the 2 secondary cats and the resonator you do not need a mandrel bends. The cats and the resonator are all in line with one another. The two cats go into the resonator and then merge insided the resonator and becomes a single outlet from the resonator to the muffler. There is a flange between the resonator and the fuffler. So the side after the resonator can just be unbolted. Have a muffler shop make a cut right before the cats and weld flanges to the open pipes. Also weld flanges to your cats so that you can put them back on later if needed. Then the muffler shop will need to create 2 straight pipes and have tem collect at some point. Then after they collect to 1 pipe, connect that end to the muffler.

There are several ways of having the 2 pipes collect to 1. I went the route of extending the 2 pipes (size = 2.5" each pipe) all the way back to the flange of the muffler. The I used a collector to merge the 2 pipes together and bolted the collector to the muffler flange.

CKlasse has a nice setup! Different than mine.

Oh also I had to get my car smogged and I was questioning whether or not to bolt my cats and resonator back on for the test. I decided to leave them off and just see what happens. I passed with flying colors. So I don't think the cats and resonator are ever going back on....(at least not if I can help it) ;)

Hope this all made sense....

99amgc43
04-22-2004, 10:57 AM
made good sense and ya i was worried bout smog too, but now I guess i am not worried too much anymore, this is gonna be done on sat. in 2 days!!! hope it goes well...

99amgc43
04-22-2004, 01:22 PM
actually how much did all of that cost you where was it done at??? and do u think it would be better to do the y pipe after the cat and have just one pipe going to the muffler rather than two goin all the way down the car then at the end y pipe into the muffler??? you get what im sayin??? maybe do 3" piping with just one pipe and the y right after the cats... what u think?

CKlasse
04-22-2004, 01:28 PM
That's a matter of preference. Do you like TORQUE or HP?

slipNslide
04-22-2004, 03:25 PM
It's like CKlasse mentioned, torque or HP. Either way, I think that the difference will not be that dramatic between the two. Just a little more one way or another, but definetly more power.

My thought was to not disturb the flow of the exhaust. 2 - 2.5" pipe should flow more that 1 - 3" pipe. So I tried to carry the pipes out until I had to merge them into the single to the muffler. Now I'm no exhaust expert but I like what is has done to my car and that's good enough for me. I think that the V8 has a good amount of torque already so I'd rather have some more umph up top. The AMG was made to be an Autoban shark and that's what I got. I've run a few E46 M3's on the freeway and stayed dead even with them from around 50mph to 130mph.

I was afriad that the exhaust might resonate inside the cabin but that didn't happen. Only thing that does happen is on startup, the exahust will emit a bit of raspyness. Once idle settles down it goes away.

I'm in So Cal. and had the work done at a place called Mike's muffler. I've known Mike for years back when he did work on my imports. I trust his work. As far as price, I really can't remember but if I had to guess, around $120. Don't quote me on that.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out...

slipNslide
04-22-2004, 03:33 PM
Oh yeah , just another side note, the pipe diameter of the stocks are not exactly 2.5. They're somewhere between 2.25 and 2.5. I remember this becaust after we cut the pipes, we tried matching them up with either 2.25 or 2.5 and they didn't match. Same with the rear pipe from the muffler. I think it may just a bit smaller or larger than 3".

If you want an ulitmate AMG setup, find a muffler section from the E55 and use that one. That muffler has 2 inlets compared to the one on the C43. Run a X cross pipe like Cklasse and that will make a kick ass system.......

99amgc43
04-22-2004, 05:10 PM
as far as deep tone what would be better one 3" pipe or 2- 2.5" pipes??? i dont care bout torque or hp cuz i think that the c43 hasw plenty of power to spare, i would think on the freeway the m3 would be slower... what year m3 did u race, the newer style then ya i believe it, the older modesl i would assume would be slower...

99amgc43
04-22-2004, 05:13 PM
nm i see that u put the e46 model not e36.... i should read a lil bit better

audiophile
04-22-2004, 05:36 PM
Originally posted by 98_Benzo
It wasn't horribly ricey sounding. It sounded more like the new WRX's at high RPM's. The resonator is located almost right underneath the passenger seat. It is really long, you can't miss it.

As for weight, they weigh about 25 pounds, so it's not substantial weight loss.

Easiest way to see if you like the sound of your resonator missing...unbolt the bolts infront of it and start your car up, your car will actually be a little quieter once you put a straight pipe in place of the resonator, but it will give you a basic idea of the sound. hey thanks, i think i'll try this weekend.;) oh yeah, did you have the straight pipe welded or how does that work?:confused:

CKlasse
04-22-2004, 05:41 PM
Originally posted by slipNslide
Oh yeah , just another side note, the pipe diameter of the stocks are not exactly 2.5. They're somewhere between 2.25 and 2.5. I remember this becaust after we cut the pipes, we tried matching them up with either 2.25 or 2.5 and they didn't match. Same with the rear pipe from the muffler. I think it may just a bit smaller or larger than 3".

That's because it is 100MM. :)

99amgc43
04-23-2004, 02:11 AM
anyone have pics of their custom exhaust???

98_Benzo
04-23-2004, 11:23 AM
hey thanks, i think i'll try this weekend. oh yeah, did you have the straight pipe welded or how does that work?

I had it welded, BUT if you want to go really fancy and cool....cut out the resonator and then get a piece of straight pipe....then use flanges to hook the straight pipe up. That way if you don't like the way the straight pipe sounds or if you just want to put the resonator back on you can simply do it. It's not going to add a ton more work to it, but you just need to buy 4 flanges and then you need someone to roll the ends of the pipes for you, so they make a nice tight seal when you hook it up. Hope that helps you out!!

99amgc43
04-25-2004, 01:15 PM
taking out the two cat and resonator, are you sure you passed ca smog??? did you do the dyno smog???

i took the car to a muffler shop, they wanted hella money to do it. they said if i kept the resonator and take off the two cats it would be a deeper sounding tone . he said it would sound like a rice rocket if it took everything out, any opinions????

speedybenz
04-25-2004, 01:45 PM
I have a dual 2.5" system that uses high flow cats from BMS(CKlasse) and a Magnaflow muffler that is a dual 2.5" in and out. The center of the muffler forms an "X" pipe. Then I have dual 2.5" pipes that go out to the back with no other mufflers. Not too loud at all. Sounds very racy at WFO throttle.

So I don't think your C43 is going to sound ricey.

Jeff

99amgc43
04-25-2004, 03:19 PM
speedybenz how much did you pay for the piping and where was it done at, i go to school in davis near sac... did they make it a complete bolt on/off system or they just cut and weld???

CKlasse
04-25-2004, 05:14 PM
Originally posted by 99amgc43
taking out the two cat and resonator, are you sure you passed ca smog??? did you do the dyno smog???

i took the car to a muffler shop, they wanted hella money to do it. they said if i kept the resonator and take off the two cats it would be a deeper sounding tone . he said it would sound like a rice rocket if it took everything out, any opinions????

You REPLACE the cats w/ high flow cats. And I'd recommend you to keep the stock around just in case.

99amgc43
04-25-2004, 11:10 PM
naw i want to jus knock out the two last cats... will that create back fire and me not to pass smog??? some guy said he passed smog with the just the two cats up front

slipNslide
04-26-2004, 09:37 AM
Yes, I passed CA smog, no problems. And yes, it was on a dyno smog machine. I had it smogged about 6 months ago. Now this was just my experience but the numbers that the C43 put out were WAY below the max. allowed numbers for emisions. BTW, I did not know the guy at the smog place in case you were wondering.

No, the exhaust doesn't sound ricey at all. Different people have opinions on what sounds ricey so not sure how one classifies something as "ricey" but I can only give an opinion on what mine sounds like. On start up there is a slight raspiness to the sound until the idle settles down (about 10 seconds). Then at idle it sounds like a deep rumble (kind of like a V8 big block at idle with exhaust). On take off it continues to rumble just like idle but louder as the revs increase. Now I have to guess at this (wind noise makes it difficult to tell the exact tone of the exhaust) but past 5000 rpm the exhaust gets even louder and begins to scream like a V8 at high rpm. Doesn't sound like a honda/acura if that's what "ricey" means. There's a pretty unique sound to a V8 with an exhaust. Although the tone is different from exhaust to exhaust, you can still tell a V8 from an inline 4.

How much did the shop want to charge you to do the work?

99amgc43
04-26-2004, 01:04 PM
$250 to make a piece between the downpipe and the resonator (the part that has the two cats) and he was gonna make it so i can unbolt and bolt the stock back on and he told me i want to keep the stock resonator because that is what makes a deep tone.... should i just take it to a another shop, have em cut off the cats after the big bend and weld straight pipes all the way to a Y into the muffler???

slipNslide
04-26-2004, 01:38 PM
I guess it couldn't hurt to get a second price but I would put the quality of the work before the price. I would rather have a quality job done as opposed to saving a few bucks.

It's great if the shop can make it so that you can bolt and unbolt the pipes so that you can turn it back to stock if need be. Costs more but leaves you the option.

As far as the resonator, the purpose of the resonator is to help surpress sound. Yes, a resonator can help to keep a deep sound in an exhaust but with the V8, the exhaust will already have a deep rumble to it. Freeing up the exhaust will just allow it to be louder as far as sound goes. I don't think that the resonator really restricts the flow but I'm sure that a straight pipe will flow better.

My opinion is to take out the 2 cats as well as the resonator. Do the straight pipes into a Y and then to the muffler flange. Again, where you put the Y is up to you (more upsteam or downstream). You are spending the investment, might as well go for the whole enchilada.

99amgc43
05-03-2004, 11:31 PM
well guys i got it done last weekend and it sounds mean and deep. i took out the two cats and the resonator, did the set up by putting dual 2.5" piping all the way to a Y into the muffler. i got a lil too excited the first day i got the exhaust and already got a ticket for speeding, my 3rd one in only 6 months!!!

jnolte
05-03-2004, 11:36 PM
Originally posted by 99amgc43
well guys i got it done last weekend and it sounds mean and deep. i took out the two cats and the resonator, did the set up by putting dual 2.5" piping all the way to a Y into the muffler. i got a lil too excited the first day i got the exhaust and already got a ticket for speeding, my 3rd one in only 6 months!!!

does it sound like a camaro now or does it still sound like abenz>? I am thinking of this modd also

99amgc43
05-04-2004, 09:36 AM
doesnt sound like a camaro, has its own unique rumble i would say... ill try and make a small video clip of how it sounds this weekend with my digital camera

speedybenz
05-04-2004, 09:52 PM
My car has a deep sound, that is also tight and revs quickly and does not sound like a Camaro or Mustang at all.

Jeff

pierreS
05-05-2004, 04:47 AM
This mod gets my vote but I went to 2 Muffler shops yesterday and they both declined to do the job!!! Its against the law to remove cats here and they were too afraid to do it... I've gotta find one!!

pierreS
05-05-2004, 04:49 AM
Any CEL with this mod by the way?? I removed the cats from my other car (WRX) and did get CEL all the time...

99amgc43
05-05-2004, 01:13 PM
no check engine light because there are no o2 sensors connected to the last 2 cats... on the wrx i believe there is a sensor in the cat...

CKlasse
05-05-2004, 01:33 PM
99amg... just make sure you put them back on before you sell/ or go for emission test. I got into that kind of trouble way too many times. It was a $15000 fine in CO.

pierreS
05-06-2004, 04:09 AM
15000$ !! wow... Better be carefull!! Yur right about the O2 sensor ont the WRX. The one on the down-pipe kept saying that the Exhaust Gas Temp was too high... I guess there is no such problems with an atmospheric engine...

99amgc43, cant wait to see your video... If possible, please shootunder the car so we can visualize your new piping...

Thanx!
PS

slipNslide
05-06-2004, 09:47 AM
Glad to hear that everything turned out good. So do you think that the new sound is too loud? Does it sound "ricey" to you? Just currious on other people's opinions now that you have the same setup. I had a friend drive my car and I stood on the curb as he drove by. The sound was louder that I thought. You don't hear the rumble and deep tone while in the car as much as you do outside the car (when the car is driving).

Sorry about the ticket. I can understand how it happened. When I got my exhaust done, I was punching it all the time so that I could hear the rumble.

How much did it end up costing you? Did you make flanges so that you could bolt back the stock setup?

99amgc43
05-06-2004, 10:18 AM
naw i didnt do the flanges, i jus had them cut and weld new piping and i kept the cat/resonator... the car doesnt sound ricey at all, very deep rumble... i ended up paying only $100 cash at this shop my frend knew. ill have pics up this weekend

coolcarlskic43
05-11-2004, 04:52 PM
My car sounds pretty loud ! The pipe behind the resonator broke apart .However I also find that the car feels fast as hell.TOP END is CRAZEEE!
It sounds too loud though. Like a big block Drag Car.. Just waitng for my BMS Exaust...
Its weird but I always wanna punch it or drive by a vette or mustang and let them hear it..Just to see their reaction.