Before I start I have to apologise for the mess with the photos... it's all gone wrong and I can't spend any more time trying to sort it out
I wanted a really loud exhaust for my M2 with plenty of gurgles, backfires and rumbling bass and, after checking out loads of videos, I decided to settle for the Fabspeed combination of sports cat and muffler bypass. I didn’t want to go for a valved system as I wished to avoid unnecessary weight, silly red buttons in the trunk, silly remote controls in the cabin, possible technical problems and cost. In any case, as a 62 year old hooligan, I wanted a system which would be loud ALL the time .
Of course, as many others on this forum will attest, the videos don’t sound at all like the real thing and I unfortunately had no possibility of listening to a Fabspeed set up here in France as no-one has one. So I watched the Fabspeed video of the M2 driving backwards and forwards in their car park and thought this sounded pretty good, all the time wishing they had more videos published. I made a first contact with Bobby at Fabspeed and asked all sorts of questions and I must say I was extremely impressed, not only at his quick responses,but by the way he professionally took the trouble to provide an answer to every single question rather than give me a quick roughshod generalised load of bullshit as many companies are wont to do.
However I was becoming increasingly concerned reading about a few forum members who were experiencing some rather serious technical problems when trying to fit their muffler bypass. Luckily Bobby confirmed that the system had been redesigned. I pushed him to make absolutely sure then ordered.
The package arrived exactly as expected and I was really impressed by the quality of both the sports cat, the tubing and the shiny tips. Unfortunately I was still running the car in so had to wait quite a long time for the first service. The day after the service, december 5, I drove my car on a freezing cold morning to my local garage in the adjoining village.
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654091
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654091
Here are the two guys, Fred and Mathieu, and me ready with the tools for the job.
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654091
Fred, the owner, was happy to let me translate the instructions I’d found on the forum about fitting the sports cat but in fact he didn’t need them. All the same Megabyte kept an eye on the proceedings to make sure the work was done properly.
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654091
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654091
Fred sawed off the old silencer. In fact he had to take off an extra 2 cms after the photo was taken as the remaining pipe was still too long.
http://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1512654555
This dangling thingy on the left is the valve controller which was disconnected and tucked inside the trim on the left side in case I need it in future if I end up getting into trouble with my exhaust.
And, after 2 ½ hours, here it is all finished and looking really neat. The two beautiful Fabspeed clamps on the tips couldn’t be used unfortunately as there wasn’t enough room and the tips would have stuck out too much. I really don’t know if there’s a problem here or whether it’s just the mechanic.
The cold start in the confines of the garage made me a very happy person*indeed ! It was exactly what I wanted*: violently loud*! The 2 mechanics and the secretary were gobsmacked and everyone was laughing. Each mechanic took the car for a quick drive along the road outside while I stood and listened. All I can say is «*brilliant*!*». Now the work was done I had to go to the office. I had a great drive, despite the icy roads and my summer tyres, toggling between sports and comfort and thoroughly enjoying the experience with the windows open. Unfortunately inside the car with windows closed, you don’t hear a great deal but this is no doubt true of all non-convertibles. I’m used to hearing everything in my Lotus Elise so was kind of expecting the same with the M2. I coasted as quietly as possible across the French / Swiss border so as not to get sent back by the Swiss police and drove the remaining 6 kms in Geneva as quietly as possible. So far so good, although I was aware of everybody looking at me as I drove past. On the way home there was a lot of slow moving traffic so I put the car into traction mode. The gurgles I got every time I lifted off the accelerator were pure music to my ears. Probably 5 times louder than with the stock exhaust – a real hoot*! Because of the frozen roads I haven’t yet gone above 5000 rpm but am really very happy with my new system. It’s transformed the car which previously was rather insipid in aural terms. I just have to be extremely careful in Switzerland because they are really fussy about noise and, in the evening when I go home, I’ll seriously need to check there are no police in the vicinity before doing my cold start*!