[Supadice]

Originally Posted by photorph

They are doing that today, the annoying thing is that noise isn't always there. Just occasionally at idle and when coming to a stop. So of course when I try to show it to them it sounds perfectly good. Either way they said they'll take a look. That and the stuck valve.

At least I don't have tin can sounds which I'm happy about.

Your rattle is most likely due to the valve being stuck. Other than than the car sounds great. Reminds me of my OG with full catless AKRA. but how can it be just a little louder than stock? Anyway I think I'm gonna go Remus race with the EL. Sounds awesome to me. If you get the rattle fixed it's perfect. Have any vids under load?

[Supadice]

Originally Posted by photorph

Let's say there was none of that vibration issue and the valve being stuck if fixed. I am happy with the tone. It's a bit deeper. But honestly, it's not that much louder than stock even with the race. Don't get me wrong, you can tell it's louder but if the remus sport was quieter then really the only thing changing would be the tone rather than the loudness. I'm glad I went with race because I did want it to be slightly louder than stock.

There is drone at highway driving which may be annoying but I suppose that's there with all after market exhausts, and it's not like this was a quiet interior in the first place (road noise etc).

The big question for me is if it's $4500 worth better or not, and that's hard to say. On one hand I hated the stock low hanging exhaust so I did want to get rid of that more than "fixing the sound". On the other hand I can say $4000+ could have gotten me some other upgrades that would have improved the car more so than just making it sound deeper and getting rid of the hanging stock exhaust.

Do you have the longer updated resonators?

[mrcheezle19]

Originally Posted by photorph

They are doing that today, the annoying thing is that noise isn't always there. Just occasionally at idle and when coming to a stop. So of course when I try to show it to them it sounds perfectly good. Either way they said they'll take a look. That and the stuck valve.

At least I don't have tin can sounds which I'm happy about.

I have the same vibration sound you do when at idle/when first driving after starting the car. Let me know if you find out what the issue is. I’ll be taking mine to the install shop to have them adjust it sometime this month. Hopefully it’s just a heat shield or bolt touching.

[Wah]

Originally Posted by photorph

They are doing that today, the annoying thing is that noise isn't always there. Just occasionally at idle and when coming to a stop. So of course when I try to show it to them it sounds perfectly good. Either way they said they'll take a look. That and the stuck valve.

At least I don't have tin can sounds which I'm happy about.

Do you know if the valve is stuck or the actuator is just not responding? You won't be able to move the valves with a screwdriver if it is still hooked up to the actuator, so you would have to take it off to see if the valve is frozen. Check to make sure the wire is plugged in completely.

[iWayne]

Big ups to the guys over at Autocouture w/ the installation of the Remus Race & AA EL non-res midpipes. Install wasn't a simple bolt in and required a small section to be welded in and apparently the same for another M2C that was mating the AA EL w/ Akra exhaust. Anyhow, still early and I haven't really gotten to drive it but I don't think I have that rattle with cold starts but it's been really warm past few days. I've put a quick video recorded with iPhone 12, so quality is meh but not really hearing rattling when free revving. When under load, there is some noise ~ 2.2-2.6k RPM when letting off that is prob similar to what the stock exhaust makes and also when higher in the rpm range and letting off. Will report back after a few more days.

[photorph]

Originally Posted by ESB

Photorph when did you get it installed / how long has it been happening?

3 days ago, so very recently.

[photorph]

Originally Posted by Supadice

Your rattle is most likely due to the valve being stuck. Other than than the car sounds great. Reminds me of my OG with full catless AKRA. but how can it be just a little louder than stock? Anyway I think I'm gonna go Remus race with the EL. Sounds awesome to me. If you get the rattle fixed it's perfect. Have any vids under load?

It does sound good once the valve and the rattle up front issue is fixed. I don't see how the rattle in front can be due to the valve in rear end of car being stuck.

Originally Posted by Supadice

Do you have the longer updated resonators?

Yes, since I have the newest AA EL midpipe batch.

Originally Posted by mrcheezle19

I have the same vibration sound you do when at idle/when first driving after starting the car. Let me know if you find out what the issue is. I’ll be taking mine to the install shop to have them adjust it sometime this month. Hopefully it’s just a heat shield or bolt touching.

Will keep you posted, they said nothing was touching when they installed it so I'm curious to find out what it is. The car is in there shop and I'm getting it back later today. Let's see what they say when I go there.

Originally Posted by Wah

Do you know if the valve is stuck or the actuator is just not responding? You won't be able to move the valves with a screwdriver if it is still hooked up to the actuator, so you would have to take it off to see if the valve is frozen. Check to make sure the wire is plugged in completely.

They'll be checking that out today hopefully.

[photorph]

Originally Posted by iWayne

Big ups to the guys over at Autocouture w/ the installation of the Remus Race & AA EL non-res midpipes. Install wasn't a simple bolt in and required a small section to be welded in and apparently the same for another M2C that was mating the AA EL w/ Akra exhaust. Anyhow, still early and I haven't really gotten to drive it but I don't think I have that rattle with cold starts but it's been really warm past few days. I've put a quick video recorded with iPhone 12, so quality is meh but not really hearing rattling when free revving. When under load, there is some noise ~ 2.2-2.6k RPM when letting off that is prob similar to what the stock exhaust makes and also when higher in the rpm range and letting off. Will report back after a few more days.

This sounds good. I think at least my vibration issue is likely due to an install error. No welding was done on mine, and the shop mentioned it was a pretty difficult install. Glad I didn't try to do it myself. And still with the two people there who install exhausts for a living, I still have to take it back to them cuz it was rattling. Do you know what section required welding in? This shouldn't be happening for an exhaust that was designed for the M2C. On my car they said they had to use a different base plate than the one AA supplied.

Drive it more and see if you get any funny noises anywhere. ~2k rpm range is the issue for most. For me that wasn't there.

Also what do you think of the volume? I have the same set up as you except resonated, I think the volume is fine. Not too loud at all, just a bit louder than stock. Yours is probably noticeably different because you have non res.

[scarygary]

Originally Posted by photorph

This sounds good. I think at least my vibration issue is likely due to an install error. No welding was done on mine, and the shop mentioned it was a pretty difficult install. Glad I didn't try to do it myself. And still with the two people there who install exhausts for a living, I still have to take it back to them cuz it was rattling. Do you know what section required welding in? This shouldn't be happening for an exhaust that was designed for the M2C. On my car they said they had to use a different base plate than the one AA supplied.

Drive it more and see if you get any funny noises anywhere. ~2k rpm range is the issue for most. For me that wasn't there.

Also what do you think of the volume? I have the same set up as you except resonated, I think the volume is fine. Not too loud at all, just a bit louder than stock. Yours is probably noticeably different because you have non res.

May be a dumb question, but you did replace the flange gaskets between downpipe and midpipe?

[photorph]

Originally Posted by scarygary

May be a dumb question, but you did replace the flange gaskets between downpipe and midpipe?

Yea they did.

[photorph]

Update: shop just called me, the rattle was because the bracket that mounted above midpipe in front that held felt liner in moved and was rattling. As for the valves, they said they just unplugged and replugged and it seems to be working.

I'm going to pick the car up and if all is well, i'll post more sound clips, revs, and drive bys and give my full impressions on the resonated AA EL midpipe (along with remus back box).

[Nicname]

Originally Posted by iWayne

Big ups to the guys over at Autocouture w/ the installation of the Remus Race & AA EL non-res midpipes. Install wasn't a simple bolt in and required a small section to be welded in and apparently the same for another M2C that was mating the AA EL w/ Akra exhaust. Anyhow, still early and I haven't really gotten to drive it but I don't think I have that rattle with cold starts but it's been really warm past few days. I've put a quick video recorded with iPhone 12, so quality is meh but not really hearing rattling when free revving. When under load, there is some noise ~ 2.2-2.6k RPM when letting off that is prob similar to what the stock exhaust makes and also when higher in the rpm range and letting off. Will report back after a few more days.

How are you liking it so far? Is it loud or just right?

[photorph]

Just got my car back. As they said, valve issue resolved. Big rattle resolved. No tin can sounds at 2k rpm. The only thing I have left now is a vibration when accelerating through ~2800-3100 rpm. I think I’ll live with it. I’m not sure what that can be. It only happens when accelerating through that particular rpm range, in all modes (efficient, sport etc). It’s like Bzzzp through the whole car in the time you pass that rpm range. Oh well.

Sound is good. It’s louder on start up, a lot more burbles vs before. Once warmed up it’s not really that much louder, just slightly. Here’s 2 clips. I’ll take driving clips later.

Start up in efficient first then sport +:

Rev to nearly 6k rpm in efficient, then sport, then sport+:

Am I happy with it overall for the $4500? It’s a tough call, on one hand I definitely like the sound more. On the other hand the car as a whole just feels less refined now vs stock due to this bzzz vibration throughout the car as I accelerate through the 2800-3200 is range. And in general I just feel like there’s a lot more sounds I’m hearing. If I had to do it over again, I’d likely save the $4500 and keep it stock….If I could get this sound without any of the vibrations then it would be worth it for me.

Note the installers have triple checked the install. They install bmw/Audi/Mercedes exhausts for a living at http://vastperformance.com/ so I don’t think there is anything else that can be done at this point.

[Supadice]

Originally Posted by photorph

It does sound good once the valve and the rattle up front issue is fixed. I don't see how the rattle in front can be due to the valve in rear end of car being stuck.

Yes, since I have the newest AA EL midpipe batch.

Will keep you posted, they said nothing was touching when they installed it so I'm curious to find out what it is. The car is in there shop and I'm getting it back later today. Let's see what they say when I go there.

They'll be checking that out today hopefully.

Thought rattle was from rear. Good to hear it's fixed

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by photorph

Just got my car back. As they said, valve issue resolved. Big rattle resolved. No tin can sounds at 2k rpm. The only thing I have left now is a vibration when accelerating through ~2800-3100 rpm. I think I'll live with it. I'm not sure what that can be. It only happens when accelerating through that particular rpm range, in all modes (efficient, sport etc). It's like Bzzzp through the whole car in the time you pass that rpm range. Oh well.

Sound is good. It's louder on start up, a lot more burbles vs before. Once warmed up it's not really that much louder, just slightly. Here's 2 clips. I'll take driving clips later.

Start up in efficient first then sport +:

Rev to nearly 6k rpm in efficient, then sport, then sport+:

Am I happy with it overall for the $4500? It's a tough call, on one hand I definitely like the sound more. On the other hand the car as a whole just feels less refined now vs stock due to this bzzz vibration throughout the car as I accelerate through the 2800-3200 is range. And in general I just feel like there's a lot more sounds I'm hearing. If I had to do it over again, I'd likely save the $4500 and keep it stock….If I could get this sound without any of the vibrations then it would be worth it for me.

Note the installers have triple checked the install. They install bmw/Audi/Mercedes exhausts for a living at http://vastperformance.com/ so I don't think there is anything else that can be done at this point.

Awesome: glad that the shop fixed your rattle and stuck valve issue!!!

Icing on the cake is this sound very impressive now - clearly no raspiness that EL - OEM muffler owners encountered (all jelly).

[No_curebimmer]

So…to recap somewhat given the feedback received thus far.

The majority of raspiness reported is for non res AA EL + OEM muffler + Sport/Sport+ drive modes: very common to have raspiness/tinny sounds at startups and revving engine ~ 1.5 -2 k rpm, regardless of engine/cats' temperature

To some extent, having resonated AA EL + OEM muffler in Sport/+ seems to help w/ the raspiness (more resonated EL owners need to chime in to rule this as true).

Lastly, having an aftermarket axle back paired with either EL type does not seem to exhibit the raspiness.

Question: can resonators be added inline to the non-resonated mipipe, or they need to be manufactured that way? Wonder if we could order the resonators on their own…

Somehow I am not thrilled in having to spend on an aftermarket axle back exhaust (which typically costs more than non res EL itself) to fix an issue that the EL introduced…

[Supadice]

Originally Posted by No_curebimmer

So…to recap somewhat given the feedback received thus far.

The majority of raspiness reported is for non res AA EL + OEM muffler + Sport/Sport+ drive modes: very common to have raspiness/tinny sounds at startups and revving engine ~ 1.5 -2 k rpm, regardless of engine/cats' temperature

To some extent, having resonated AA EL + OEM muffler in Sport/+ seems to help w/ the raspiness (more resonated EL owners need to chime in to rule this as true).

Lastly, having an aftermarket axle back paired with either EL type does not seem to exhibit the raspiness.

Question: can resonators be added inline to the non-resonated mipipe, or they need to be manufactured that way? Wonder if we could order the resonators on their own…

Somehow I am not thrilled in having to spend on an aftermarket axle back exhaust (which typically costs more than non res EL itself) to fix an issue that the EL introduced…

Resonators can be purchased seperstly

[ESB]

Hey so No_curebimmer when you watched my long and boring "driving around with engine warm" video did you hear whatever sounds you're referring to?

Also: goddamn I should have recorded my cold start this morning. It was SOOOO SOOOO SOOOO bad. And my neighbor was outside at the time. So embarrassing lol. I have no clue what causes the cold start to be inconsistent (sometimes terrible sometimes meh sometimes flawless)

For me it's not a deal breaker since to my ears the car doesn't have issues once warm (99% of the time at least)

So no cure bimmer not to poke at you or keep disagreeing or seem annoying but I'd argue the poll is a bit misleading. Eg I voted "yes I have the issues" but in reality I believe I only have one of the two (cold start only, no issues most of the time once warm)

Anyways - I tend to agree that getting AA muffler will likely improve the situation across the board. I sincerely hope it fixes it for you and allows you to enjoy the midpipe as much as I do. And hopefully the muffler improves the sound even more! (rasp fix aside)

[sai_dee]

I ordered the EL Resonated and I am hoping and praying this problem isn't present on the res version but I judging from the polls, they're either not checking this thread at all or just not enough res EL out there yet.

Originally Posted by No_curebimmer

So…to recap somewhat given the feedback received thus far.

The majority of raspiness reported is for non res AA EL + OEM muffler + Sport/Sport+ drive modes: very common to have raspiness/tinny sounds at startups and revving engine ~ 1.5 -2 k rpm, regardless of engine/cats' temperature

To some extent, having resonated AA EL + OEM muffler in Sport/+ seems to help w/ the raspiness (more resonated EL owners need to chime in to rule this as true).

Lastly, having an aftermarket axle back paired with either EL type does not seem to exhibit the raspiness.

Question: can resonators be added inline to the non-resonated mipipe, or they need to be manufactured that way? Wonder if we could order the resonators on their own…

Somehow I am not thrilled in having to spend on an aftermarket axle back exhaust (which typically costs more than non res EL itself) to fix an issue that the EL introduced…

[Driver87]

God damn, I'm glad I decided not to buy mine a few months ago when they called to finalize shipping. Even back then there was enough chirping to get me to back out. Never thought it would be this bad. Rasp, melted rear diffusers, figment issues.

[RafBsac]

Originally Posted by Driver87

God damn, I'm glad I decided not to buy mine a few months ago when they called to finalize shipping. Even back then there was enough chirping to get me to back out. Never thought it would be this bad. Rasp, melted rear diffusers, figment issues.

I don’t have any kind of these issues and I’m an happy customer of a complete AA EL Res and axle-back exhaust !

Not all customers give (bad or good) feed-backs.

[Finz]

Originally Posted by Driver87

God damn, I'm glad I decided not to buy mine a few months ago when they called to finalize shipping. Even back then there was enough chirping to get me to back out. Never thought it would be this bad. Rasp, melted rear diffusers, figment issues.

I just installed the AA axle back added to my EL non res. Awesome. Fitment perfect. The big ass tips don't melt anything. Still not great until it gets warmed up, but well worth it.