[Apexeater]

Originally Posted by MSH_

Curious why you both ended up adding the resonators? I'm trying to decide on non-res vs res AA EL to use with stock DP and stock exhaust and having a tough time deciding which version is going to be best.

I wanted a more "mature" sound and it did quiet it down some. It did help also with a slight rasp I had. It allowed me to burn burbles back on (via bimmerlink) and I enjoy that type of sound when its not overpowering.

[DadVibes]

Originally Posted by Silos

Thank you --there is hope! I've been battling my AA system for some time now; for whatever reason I cannot get the passenger side to stop hitting the rear subframe - mine only seems to do it when the car is fully warmed -- it is both frustrating and infuriating as I cannot figure out how to compensate for heat expansion when adjusting despite numerous attempts. My next attempt will be either stiffer exhaust hangers or just having an exhaust shop take a stab at it.

It's not all butterflies and rainbows for me. Even with welded connections, the passenger side still hits the rear subframe from time to time. I'm convinced it's simply an inherent design flaw with the connector pipes. From what I can tell, the only way to properly fix is to have a shop create entirely new connecting pipes with custom bends for proper clearance.

AA really needs to go back to the drawing board with the design. Some theorize that they just reused the same pipes as the M3/M4, which helps explain the clearance issues. But who knows.

Regardless, the exhaust has been enough of an annoyance that I certainly wouldn't buy the axleback again, if I could reverse time. I'd be giving my money to a different brand. Especially because AA was absolutely useless when XPH supposedly reached out to them for a warranty claim.

[BMW DIY Guy]

Originally Posted by DadVibes

It's not all butterflies and rainbows for me. Even with welded connections, the passenger side still hits the rear subframe from time to time. I'm convinced it's simply an inherent design flaw with the connector pipes. From what I can tell, the only way to properly fix is to have a shop create entirely new connecting pipes with custom bends for proper clearance.

AA really needs to go back to the drawing board with the design. Some theorize that they just reused the same pipes as the M3/M4, which helps explain the clearance issues. But who knows.

Regardless, the exhaust has been enough of an annoyance that I certainly wouldn't buy the axleback again, if I could reverse time. I'd be giving my money to a different brand. Especially because AA was absolutely useless when XPH supposedly reached out to them for a warranty claim.

So I ran full Active from DPs to axle back and never had any issues like folks report here on my F87. I didnt have to have anything welded, and the only thing I DID do was cut down a bolt head. I had one of the bolt for the head shield be slightly too long for clearance, so I cut off probably 1/4th of an inch and problem solved.

Now all that said, dont take that as me denying yalls concerns or that your experiences aren't real and sorry to hear it.

For the warranty issue, I would call Active directly as I have spoken with them a ton and even met all the key folks at Bimmer Invasion Orlando. They are great folks and I struggle to imagine they wouldn't do everything in their power to support you. Just my two cents.

[DadVibes]

Originally Posted by BMW DIY Guy

So I ran full Active from DPs to axle back and never had any issues like folks report here on my F87. I didnt have to have anything welded, and the only thing I DID do was cut down a bolt head. I had one of the bolt for the head shield be slightly too long for clearance, so I cut off probably 1/4th of an inch and problem solved.

Now all that said, dont take that as me denying yalls concerns or that your experiences aren't real and sorry to hear it.

For the warranty issue, I would call Active directly as I have spoken with them a ton and even met all the key folks at Bimmer Invasion Orlando. They are great folks and I struggle to imagine they wouldn't do everything in their power to support you. Just my two cents.

Judging from all the PM's I've received from others experiencing the same issues, I'd say your experience is more of an outlier. Granted, I have no idea how many total units they've shipped to give a proper metric. But enough people have had issues with the AA axleback connecting pipes, including myself, that I'm personally convinced it's a design flaw. But take with that, what you will.

And, while I'm sure they are perfectly friendly in person, if they wanted to provide support to help find a way to alleviate my issues, they would have. (exchange for proper fitting parts, partial refund, full return... anything)

As I imagine you have, I've installed plenty of exhausts on various cars over the years. The fitment issues and overall experience I've had with this one tops the list as being the absolute worst.

Which is quite odd because the EL midpipe fits and performs flawlessly. I do love that piece and would recommend it to others.

[FMOS Racing]

How wild. I have the full AA catback w/EL midpipe. The only issue I've had is on the DRIVER'S side. The non-resonated version fit fine, but when I changed to the resonated, I had to dimple the driver's side where the midpipe passes right next to the differential support frame. The axle-back portion has been fine with both.

[MSH_]

Hey all, for those of you that have had clearance issues with the resonated setup did anyone try swapping the driver side hanger bracket by the diff to the passenger side and vice versa? I called AA to ask some questions on the axle back exhaust since I already have the AA EL on my car. I spoke with Alan and he indicated that if you use the resonated pipes with the AA EL mid + their axle back that they are now recommending to switch those brackets. Apparently it gives the system enough clearance to prevent rubbing. Did anyone give this a go curiously?

[FMOS Racing]

From a picture earlier in this thread, this is where mine would hit and vibrate. I'm not sure how changing brackets would impact that. Does it make the exhaust hang lower?

[MSH_]

Originally Posted by FMOS Racing

From a picture earlier in this thread, this is where mine would hit and vibrate. I'm not sure how changing brackets would impact that. Does it make the exhaust hang lower?

I'm not 100% sure as I don't have the exhaust. This was based on a live conversation with Alan at AA earlier this week and then a follow up email. His comments are below. What I'm a bit confused about now (and I havent followed up for clarity) are his comments on the "double res connecting pipes" His comments seem to suggest they may have had a redesign but I'm not 100% sure. I don't recall him mentioning that in our live convo-->

Correct, you’d need to swap the drive and passenger side hangers to allow for more clearance, but only for the resonated set up, we haven’t updated the instructions yet because it’s a relatively new solution we found as is the double res connecting pipes that new orders with your same set up would be receiving. I’d assume the forums haven’t mentioned it either since it’s something new.

[MSH_]

just a quick follow up to all this....
Per Alan at AA they have indeed revised the EL resonated connecting pipes that are used with their exhaust.

"...we have revised pipes just for M2C EL’s that are paired with our rear exhaust. It’s now a double res pipe (2 resonators on each pipe) rather than a single res pipe (1 resonator on each side)."

[FMOS Racing]

That's very interesting. I wonder how it sounds compared to the single-res version?

[biguk997]

Just got mine installed with the non-resonated pipes and I absolutely love it. Minor drone under 2500 rpm but considering these cars sit at 3k at highway speeds is a non-issue. Sounds way better than the dinan system I previously had IMO.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by biguk997

Just got mine installed with the non-resonated pipes and I absolutely love it. Minor drone under 2500 rpm but considering these cars sit at 3k at highway speeds is a non-issue. Sounds way better than the dinan system I previously had IMO.

Congrats