Illusive

Well, after a lot of searching, e-mails, PM's, etc., I've finally decided on an exhaust system for my C350 4MATIC. I ended up purchasing the Remus Exhaust System for the W204 C350 from www.remusexhaustshop.com today. Communication has been excellent thus far and they were happy to answer any questions I had.

It seems like no one on this forum has purchased this system yet or people that did have not posted up any pictures, videos, or sound clips. I'm going to change that and document the whole process on here from purchase to final sound clip. I probably won't have this fully installed until next weekend at the earliest given that this system is being shipped up to Canada and the fact that the weather hasn't been that great recently. Now for some up front information and introduction:

For those of you who have been looking for exhaust systems, it's definitely been an arduous process with the limited selection and relatively higher pricing. Other options out there are Eisenmann (sp?) and Meisterschaft (sp?) which are excellent options and very nicely made, but the price was what put it out of range for me. The Remus exhaust comes with single tips so those of you with W204's sans C63 or C63 diffuser will not require any additional parts. Also, there is no welding required as it is a bolt on installation with clamps (you can weld on if you choose).

Here are some other specs from the site:

2 rear silencers
2x138x90mm chrome plated and resonated tips
Weight: 18kg REMUS vs 21kg OEM
Tip material : 441 stainless steel, chrome plated, resonated
Body material : 304 stainless steel inside and out
Black ceramic paint on key areas of the mufflers for better looks and to prevent damages.
Unlimited mileage lifetime warranty
TUV/EC Approved
Performance : Backpressure reduction of 43% over OEM
Clamp-on installation

The part number in case any of you are interested is:

509007 0517R/L

As for pricing, contact whichever dealer is closest to you or search online which is what I did. I got a price comparison from local suppliers and online suppliers and went from there. I'm sure it will be different for everyone.

Just as a disclaimer and FYI: I am not affiliated with Remus or www.remusexhaustshop.com. I am simply a person who has purchased their exhaust and want to share my experience and pictures for others to consider if they are looking for an exhaust on their W204 since no one else has done so. All of my research can be easily found on the net and is provided here for information only. If you choose to purchase this exhaust based on my review and documentation, you do so at your own risk and I'm not liable for any problems you may have (if any). This is simply an unbiased opinion and information for general use.

You'll find I'm very thorough with my work! More updates to come as this project progresses. I'll let everyone know when I'm expecting to receive it and document the shipped product (box size, etc.) and condition upon arrival with pictures. Till then, cheers!

NickCats

Thanks Illusive ! I look forward to your updates. The Remus is the only exhaust I have been considering for my car, but I have concerns with resonation with a non-stock system...

Nick

Illusive

That is one of my main concerns as well. I chose the Remus exhaust based on other Remus exhausts I've heard including some sound clips on other Mercedes vehicles. From those clips and the information I have, it shouldn't have these problems, but you never know until it is on the car. It's also an understated exhaust system as only the tips are chromed and most of the pipe is ceramic coated so it should look pretty stock; I don't expect this system to sound a lot louder than stock. I'm sure it will be noticable at speed or when I push the car, but otherwise I don't expect it to affect the overall ambiance inside the car day to day which is what I'm looking for. It will definitely have a different tone (I hope!).

EDIT: Shipped out of CA today. Should take 5-10 days depending on customs I'm guessing (always is across the border, hopefully they don't hold it as long as they did for my lens). I'm going to book an install next week and hopefully will have sound clips first weekend of February!

emerged

I wanted to purchase their exhaust when they first came on the forums, but pricing didn't work out. Love remus had them for many years, post up sound clips when you can!

-randy

Derspeed

I purchased that exhaust back in 2008, from a forum sponsor and that is the website he was associated with. He turned out to be a flake and the staff at that shop seemed fishy as well. Anyway, I got my money back and put the whole thin on hold. I am very interested to see how it works out for you, as I think the Remus system is the only logical choice for the W204. I still want to get that system, so take some good pics and post sound clips please.

Illusive

Yeah I did a bit of research with regards to this company before I committed to purchasing it. Here is my understanding regarding the distribution of Remus exhausts in the US: A year or two back, there were a few distributors of Remus exhausts. In 2009, all Remus distribution in the US was consolidated to MaxMoto. Remus Exhaust Shop is a sister company to Mimo USA who used to be a distributor. Remus Exhaust Shop is now an authorized retailer in the US. This all came about after I checked the official Remus website and found that MaxMoto was the only distributor listed in their US contacts.

I've had good communication with Remus Exhaust Shop leading up to the purchase, so I'm pretty happy with the service thus far. Just for safety, I purchased the exhaust via Paypal with the description along with the P/N listed so I don't get screwed. The exhaust was shipped out on the same day I paid which is excellent. I should have it in hand by the end of this week, it's making its way up the coast right now

Agreed, the other exhausts are very nice, but the pricing is too expensive for no real performance gains. I just want a throatier sound (nothing loud, just a more agressive tone) and this seemed like the best option out there. Like I said, I'll be documenting this whole process from start to finish with lots of pictures and some pre/post sound clips. I'll post pictures of the packaging upon arrival, unboxing, and installation (great excuse to play with my Rebel XSi some more!). I'm hoping my installer will be available next weekend, I'm not a patient person lol!

Derspeed

Yes, I knew all of the MaxMoto stuff and so forth. If it works out, I'd like to get a contact name from you, so I can order mine again.

Illusive

UPDATE: UPS made a delivery attempt today. Wasn't home as I was at work. Not a happy camper, they couldn't ship via USPS because it was too big and did not consult me before sending it via UPS Standard. I now have a $200 bill from UPS for brokerage fees. If I remember correctly, these costs can be avoided by shipping express and you get it sooner as the paperwork is done up front to expedite shipment rather than have a broker do it.

Bah, oh well, I've scheduled to have the package picked up tomorrow. Will take pics when I get a hold of the box tomorrow and do a proper un-boxing for everyone to follow. I've already arranged with my installer to have it put in on Friday, so I will have pictures installed as well as sound clips before and after. Car will be dirty though, I'll try and give her a wash before I take the final pics.

Stay tuned!

Derspeed

You're doing just what I was going to do for the Remus sponsor that was banned from this forum.

Illusive

Was this the deal with the company that you first contacted but found shady and had your money refunded?

I think everyone is looking for a good, detailed review of this exhaust and I just want to provide everyone with the information they need to make an educated decision if this is the exhaust they will want to purchase. I'm taking the risk up front as I don't know what this will sound like or look installed. Lots of places usually have a test fit and will provide clips for people to see and listen to to help persuade buyers to their products. Unfortunately that doesn't exist with this item.

That being said, my review and documentation is only from my own experiences. I think we can all agree that to build up a reputation will require more than one persons opinion. I'm sure you can contact whoever you are speaking with and see if you can do something similar to what I am doing for a discounted price on the exhaust. The more opinions, the better for Remus and it's distributors.

I'm not supporting any one shop or sales distributor on this site, but I did state who I got mine from for future reference for people who may want to purchase this item. My experiences going across the border are not as positive as I think anyone would want, but alas, what's done is done. I really wanted to support a local shop, but the markup from Remus to the final destination locally was too much (even with the crazy brokerage fee included!) so you can see why I went the route I did.

More to come tonight including pictures!

Sentosa

This is an excellent thread so far. Remus exhausts were the preferred aftermarket exhausts for Audi out here for a long while. Have lost touch with that part of the industry now. Its a pity they are so expensive here now.

Will look forward to the DIY, pics and clips. LOL.

f8al

They also have a "group buys" section on their web page.... i just can't view it from work

Illusive

If there is enough interest after I post up all of the installed pics and videos and if the Remus sales guy on the forum can get their ban sorted out, a group buy will be available!

Anyways, as promised, I came home to a big box sitting on my porch. Brought it inside my garage and started to un-box the exhaust! Here are some initial pics of the box and how it looks like when I first broke it open:






Packaging to be honest I'm not so impressed. Just simple cardboard cover and no bubble wrap. The exhaust was definitely stuffed in there with no additional padding. One side of the box which I presume was the bottom during shipment was worn and had some give to it. Hopefully they will pack it better for others in the future. Luckily, this exhaust feels like a quality piece. There were a couple of chips in the black coating (as expected), but no dents or damage of any kind. The materials used to manufacture this exhaust are top notch IMO. Here are some pics just after I cracked open the cardboard covers:




Now some close ups. Here is the embossed "Remus" tip and "Remus" logo on the underside of the muffler. Looks quite nice!






Here is a picture of the other side. Nothing new here, they were packaged with mufflers on either end. It looks as if the two sides came in different boxes and were taped together for shipping.




Finally, here is the full exhaust, both sides side by side. I took a picture of the bottom of my car, everything looks like it will be in order. I'm a little worried the exhaust is bent differently for the 4MATIC models vs. the regular ones. I hope not, it doesn't look like it from my pictures but you never know. (Can anyone confirm that the exhaust is the same for the 4MATIC as the regular W204? Would definitely put my mind at ease!) I'd be a lot more concerned if the standard W204 was FWD as opposed to RWD.



More to come tomorrow as I will be installing it in the afternoon. Pics of the install and sound clips to follow. Hopefully I don't run into any anti-4MATIC problems, otherwise this thread will be short lived!

f8al

haha, thanks for the pics of the box! I think we are as excited as you are to see how this turns out, good luck!

I wouldn't worry too much about the pipes though, any muffler shop will should be able to bend them to fit. I bought Borla exhaust for my camaro and they pretty much had to custom fit everything even though borla claims it's just a bolt on part. anyway, shouldn't be a problem.

Illusive

I hope I don't need to do any cutting, bending, or welding as I'm installing this on my buddy's driveway haha...his garage is being taken up by a CRX with a broken control arm! No heated garage today, so hopefully it warms up a bit here so we don't freeze installing this!

kit0515

damnnn, i cant wait till you put it in and post some sound clips!! Currently only have an x-pipe mod =(.

Illusive

Well I finally got it installed today. Not quite as "bolt on" as it was originally stated. It required welding, cutting, and some extra effort, but it came together. Some good and bad news:

#1: I'm an idiot and forgot my P&S camera at home so I didn't get a video of the stock exhaust to compare. Also, I didn't realize my DSLR wasn't on auto so the pictures are not great either. But you can hear a difference in the video posted below of the installed system.

#2: System is not bolt on as stated. It required me to cut off the passenger side and weld the drivers side (confused yet?). More details below.

#3: Sound clip of the exhaust can be found below!!!

#4: I took some pics of the exhaust taken off of the car with my DSLR.

#5: It sounds exactly as I hoped it would! It's not loud at all, but does add some rumble especially under load.

Pictures, video, and impressions below:

Arrived at my installers house and jacked up the car. Looked like a pretty simple install. However, after a closer inspection of the OEM exhaust and the new Remus exhaust, we realized that we would have to cut the passenger side of the exhaust a few inches from the hanger. No biggie there, but not happy that it was not mentioned in the product description. First thing we did was remove the drivers side exhaust. This is held in place by a clamp. It is not attached to the cat like the passenger side. We removed the clamp, took off the hangers, and got that side out. Next, we decided to remove the cat and drop the whole section down to measure and cut the muffler off. Two clamps, a couple of hangers, and it came down. We placed the Remus exhaust over top of the stock exhaust, marked where to cut, and cut off the exhaust. The Remus muffler pipe fits over top of the stock pipe coming from the cat and is adjustable. Once you are happy with the position, you just tighten the clamp in place. Here are some pics of the OEM and Remus exhaust:





Again, sorry for the crappy pics. We fit the passenger side over the pipe coming from the cat that we just cut and proceeded to re-attach the cat and hangers leaving the clamp over the Remus exhaust and OEM cat pipe loose for adjustment once we got the drivers side on. That was quite simple. Now for the bad news. We fit the drivers side part of the exhaust and put the hangers in place.

Upon tightening the OEM clamp, we found that the ball flange on the Remus exhaust was too small and the clamp was not able to affix the muffler to the cat. This was definitely disheartening, but we decided to loosely connect it and hope that the clamp wouldn't come loose when I drove it to a muffler shop for welding. Luckily, it held for the short journey. Once we got it up on a lift and jiggled it, the drivers side Remus muffler fell off where the clamp was. The welder took off the clamp and then fitted the exhaust to the cat pipe and welded it together instead of using the clamp. If you are confused what the connection joint looks like, take a look at the second pic above. The piece from the exhaust is supposed to have a larger ball flange so that the ring clamp will secure it and seal it to the cat. The flange on the Remus one is much smaller than the stock one and basically fits right against the stock one and looks as if it was designed to be welded together. Once it was welded in place, we were able to adjust the passenger side further back to match the drivers side. Here are the pics fully installed:





Again, please excuse the dirty car and crappy pics. I will wash the car tomorrow and get some better pictures.

As promised, here is the sound clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7pZQJKxmlI

The exhaust needs to be burnt in. I drove around tonight and the sound is definitely settling in. It is a deeper tone than stock, but not invasive at all. There is no droning at speed nor when I lift off the pedal. It gives a slightly louder growl when you put your foot down. Overall, I'm very happy with the sound and look of the exhaust. If you are looking for a more subtle exhaust mod that sounds great and doesn't attract attention like the grapefruit shooters on Honda's, then this is your exhaust. Just keep in mind that it is not a bolt on installation. I'd buy this again if it came down to it. Cutting and welding are required. In summary:

[+]: Great sound!
[+]: Very subtle and not overly loud.
[+]: No droning at speed or when lifting off the gas.
[+]: Great look with stock valence!
[+]: Remus tips are gorgeous on the car!
[+]: Priced much better than other options out there.

[-]: Shipping across the border - expect ridiculous brokerage fees thanks to UPS shipping.
[-]: Packaging needs to be better. Cardboard just doesn't cut it. Luckily this is a well made and robust exhaust.
[-]: Cutting of existing passenger side exhaust between cat and muffler is required!
[-]: Welding is required to attach drivers side muffler to the OEM cat.
[-]: Ceramic paint chips off easily!
[-]: Don't notice the exhaust at all unless you go up and look at Remus embossed logo on tip or notice that the tip is not angled like the stock one.

I hope I answered everyone's questions regarding the Remus exhaust. If not, post it up and I'll do my best to answer it!

f8al

Very nice job on the install and the write up!

And FINALLY a sound clip!!! Too bad I have lousy laptop speakers, I can just barely hear the subtle rumble you speak of at :17 and :24. I also agree with your positives:

[+]: Very subtle and not overly loud.
[+]: Great look with stock valence!
[+]: Remus tips are gorgeous on the car!
[+]: Priced much better than other options out there.

Thanks for taking the time to do a thorough write up and review, I feel much more comfortable about adding this to my ever growing list of mods...

envyxc350

Post another sounds clip, sounds very very quiet. looks good tho

C300Sport

Thanks for the great write up. We have been waiting a while for this one. I am surprised at just how quiet it sounds. If you can, post a couple "under loud" clips as it sounds like it will only "growl" when you get on it pretty good.
Congrats on the system!

tanktube67

The exhaust looks very nice, it will get lauder in a few weeks.

Illusive

I'll try and get a better sound clip today after I give her a wash. It is slowly burning in and the sound is rounding out to a deeper, more noticeable tone. That, and I'm using a P&S camera so sound quality isn't that great. It definitely sounds nice IMO! I only revved the car up to 4k. I'll play around with the placement of the camera to get a better sound clip and post it up later tonight.

rodrigoc350

sounds a little bit quiet to me i prefer the meisterschaft actually i am looking forward to buy it and with the quad tail pipes with the c63 diffuser i like it most it's more rough but great job by DIY

Illusive

Thanks. It's definitely not for anyone who wants something that will get them noticed. It is not a flashy exhaust nor is it a loud one, but it does provide a more refined and deep tone than stock. Big thing for me was that I didn't need to get the C63 diffuser. That is just adding to the cost of the exhaust for me. Again, to each his own!

Didn't get a chance to wash the car until late tonight so I won't be able to make another video until tomorrow. It is definitely starting to burn in and is a bit more noticeable under load. Still nice and quiet when I let go of the pedal. I can faintly hear it over my music now when I'm at speed. I'll see if I can capture it tomorrow, but I'm not sure if my P&S camera is sensitive enough to pick it up.

joe_yoh

Thanks for this post guys.