it's been a month since I bought my 2012 C63. It's pretty well optioned - in fact I can't think of any of the available options it does not have, but not having a 2012 option list available, I cannot be sure. It had 26,900 miles on it when I bought it.

Anyway, here are my impressions so far:

- Terrific engineering. The MB people thought of even tiny details (e.g. the warning rumble when you drift across a lane dividing line only sounds when the turn signal is not on, the intermittent wipers action adjusts to the amount of water hitting the windshield)

- The exhaust is too quiet (even on startup)

- It's an "exterior" sleeper - The exterior gives an observer no clue that the car is "hot" unless they get close enough to see the width of the rear tires or the small AMG symbols

- It's an "interior" sleeper too - If driven conservatively in Comfort mode, a passenger would have no clue that the car is hot

- The exhaust is too quiet

- The steering is delightfully reactive and nimble

- With the swoopy hood and tapered frontend, it's impossible to see the 4 exterior corners of the car, and what you DO see is several inches inboard of the actual wheels, so after one misstep in a crowded downtown area, I am being very careful on parking in order to avoid curb rash and cutting corners too close (see my recent posting on "Curb rash need not be permanent")

- The exhaust is too quiet

- It's a 5 year old car, with admittedly only 27,XXX miles on it now, but everything seems to still work! And, casual observers often remark that they assumed it is brand new. That says a lot about Mercedes materials and design standards

- The front seat is about the best I have had in any car (and that's many, many cars over a half century)

- The exhaust is too quiet

- The burble on downshifts is nice but way too quiet (at least with a stock tune, and I can't get a performance tune or I will jeopardize my 4 year extended aftermarket warranty

- If you drive in Comfort mode, and drive conservatively, you'll rarely see more than 1600 rpm!

- I must be driving way too conservatively compared to others, as I have averaged 17.2 miles per U.S. gallon (13.7 L / 100 km for us Canadians)

- The exhaust is too quiet

- I have never had so many strangers stop to remark on and complement my vehicle - and my history includes 4 Corvettes, 4 hot Mustangs (including one supercharged), a Lincoln when they were still classy cars, and many, many pretty hot and attractive motorcycles). I guess what they say is true: Classy always looks good

- The C63 actually enables my 5'10" adult son to sit comfortably in the back seat - something which he could not do in our last car, a 2016 Mustang GT. This is despite the fact that the 2 cars are equal in length and width, and the C63 is only a fraction of an inch higher from pavement to top of roof, AND the C63 has a sunroof and the mustang did not! No kidding! This is magical.

- The suspension is a little on the stiff side but not a "problem". I like "firm".

- The suspension is clearly very high quality - You feel the softened bump once, with no repetivie bounce or bounces

- The exhaust is too damn quiet

- The surefootedness in rain is uncanny, in cruising, acceleration, and braking. Very impressive.

- Darn that quiet exhaust!

You might have detected that I think the exhaust is way too quiet. True confessions time: My last car, the 2016 Mustang GT had a Roush kit on it (cold air intake, catback exhaust, and tune), and when you started that car it would make the C63 sound like a little girl. The burble on decel was absolutely intoxicating compared to the C63. And under WOT, you'd swear a WW2 plane was taking off. Likewise, my Harley Breakout has a built engine with performance exhaust and when I ride it, the number one sensory satisfying part of the ride is the soundtrack. The C63 soundtrack is just way too subdued.

In fact, in my condo building, when I had the Mustang, all the neighbors, including the gals, used to remark on how much they loved the sound of my car. Now, with the C63, nobody mentions the sound anymore!

I value that aftermarket warranty too much to risk giving the warranty company an excuse to deny coverage if an expensive repair materializes, but man, the car really really needs a better soundtrack.

Yeah, I know that I can get more sound by using the M setting and paddles, but that feels like forcing the soundtrack, and it's also not the way I like to drive. I am pretty subtle in my driving in terms of acceleration and braking, but I just want to hear a satisfying soundtrack. Maybe a catback exhaust could be argued to be non-contributory to warrantable repairs??

Jim G

 

Glad to see you are enjoying the car Jim!

As for the quiet exhaust....I used to think my car was plenty loud with a stock exhaust. Then I took a canyon drive the other day behind a buddy who had a C63 with full headers and straight pipes, just mufflers left on. Made my stock C63 sound like a house cat and his like a lion.

After that, I am going to be removing my secondary cats and resonator soon. That should liven it up a bit.

Also, just my advice, throw a little caution to the wind and get a tune. I was worried about a tun voiding warranty and this was back in 2013 when my car was brand new with 5 years of warranty left. Best choice I ever made was getting the Eurocharged tune for this car, completely changes it.

 

I would say, start off with a resonator delete and secondary cat delete replaced with a H-pipe and a straight pipe respectively. If you are not still satisfied after that, then aftermarket exhaust would be the way to go.
A tune will change the characteristic immensely, the difference is day and night but I can understand your concern about warranty.

And damn, 17 mpg is impressive. even my grandma cant guarantee that.

 

I hate the wipers tbh

 

Which of the multiple exhaust changes possible for a C63:

1. Make the soundtrack more audible and pleasing without crossing the line into obnoxious? I don't need THAT much more volume, but stock is just TOO quiet.

2. Can be done without touching the secondary cats? If I do end up doing something, I would not want to touch anything to do with emissions

and

3. Are easily and inexpensively reversible in case I don't like the change, and in case I end up selling the car in the future? (Most dealerships hate aftermarket exhausts and lower their offers on trade-in cars that have them)

Jim G

 

I had the same kind of requirements.

1) Based on research, secondary cats and resonator delete are the way to go if you want to keep stock sound just up the volume a bit. (If I am wrong someone please correct me because this is what I am going to do with my car)

2) I think at the very least on an exhaust work for this car to improve it, the secondary cats are the first to go always.

3) If you do the above and save the parts, its easily and inexpensively reversed later on when you want to sell/trade in the car.

 

My issue with removing the secondary cats is that it crosses the line from merely upping the volume and changing the sound, which would be hard to justify a warranty refusal on, to "altering the emissions system", which DOES have warranty implications, even if weak.

Jim G

 

Just remove the resonators then. That should increase volume 15% IMO (for reference, on my scale removing secondary cats would increase volume 50%, and headers 100%)

 

15% is a decent thing to try! A few questions:

1. Is is simple "plug and play" where you remove the 2 resonators and 2 tubing sections take their place via bolt-in or clamps or?

2. Where do you buy the pieces that replace the resonators?

3. What is the ROUGH cost, parts and labor to have it done at a muffler shop? (I live in a condo where zero work on cars is allowed, and being a condo association council member, I have to set a proper example, so don't even suggest DIY )

Jim G

 

To increase the sound from stock, simply remove the secondary cats and straight pipe it. Yes, I know you do not want to do anything to impact emissions, but this is the way to go - trust me. Removing the resonator does not sound as good as removing the secondary cats.

 

Your best mod for increased sound without changing the sound, just making it 20-30% louder is a secondary cat delete. It is post O2 sensors, so won't impact your emissions testing, MHD makes one and a guys name Mike makes one (Mike's power pipe just search).

I have Mikes, it requires on cut and then you just clamp it on in place of the secondary exhaust, totally reversible, just remove and clamp in the original piece using the provided clamp for where you make the cut. Makes the car 100% better sounding. Pipe is I think 525 and took me an hour to install at home, you might need new oem clamps (3 of them) if they are rusty.

Removing the resonator will make it a bit louder also, but it changes the sound to me, but would leave your cats intact.

 

Secondary cats are not a legal emission component.

Straight pipe the secondary is more of a raw sound (I did this 5 yrs ago). H-Pipe the secondary (a buddy went this route) is a little more refined at lower RPM. Both sound identical at high RPM.

IIRC, a resonator delete will introduce some drone. Can someone who has done it chime in?

 

Drone would be a no-go for that mod. The car is too sophisticated overall for me to tolerate a drone.

Jim G

 

"Drone" is entirely subjective. There is no agreed universal definition, it's a stupid concept. It's a 6.2L engine, as you remove exhaust restrictions it gets louder. Resonator delete sounds great, it's dead easy to do, and easily reversible. Nothing to lose.

 

I agree that "drone" is not well defined. I have always thought it is the irritating "thrum" ("continuous rhythmic humming sound" per dictionary) that you hear that makes you wish you weren't in the car!

Jim G

 

I've never recognized this 'drone' thing in my life in any car I've owned, driven or ridden in. More exhaust noise of any kind is always better IMO.

 

Dyno operators and tuners sometimes experience it and can have a very bad physical reaction to it.

I know a very respected motorcycle tuner and racer, Micah Shoemaker in New Braunfels Texas, who owns and runs the Aprilia / Moto Guzzi franchise there. Micah has told me that there are some motorcycles whose sound is so irritating that he physically gets sick and has to suspend the tuning for a few minutes, despite wearing hearing protection (the vibration penetrates your body). He says the worst ones are the 15,000 rpm 600 cc Japanese sportbikes.

I myself have had one motorcycle that had a discomforting effect on me at precisely the wrong rpm range: about 2300 rpm, which was about 65 mph with a driveshaft powertrain that prevented gearing changes. I loved everything else about that bike, but could not ride it on the highway for more than a short time because it felt so bad to me and exhausted me. It did it with 2 different exhaust systems. Micah attributed that to an inversion problem. On the dyno, the battery visibly vibrated in that rpm range.

Sound harmonics are very complex. Good sounds are called music to the ears. Bad sounds make you very uncomfortable.

Jim G

 

Exactly. Everyone's ears are different. That's why you can't make a blanket statement like "removing resonators causes drone", or "sounds bad". You have to hear it for yourself. I like it. On the other hand, I can't stand the sound of old rotary Mazda drag cars. They drive me nuts. To others it's music. It's a completely subjective thing.

I'm just saying that you have to either ride in one with resonators removed, or watch a video and decide for yourself.

 

Get a Mike's power pipe. It replaces the secondary cats. There are no sensors after the secondaries, so it has no effect on emissions system.
Car will sound awesome.

 

do the Canadian cars come from the factory with ROW boxes? no charcoal filters?

 

Maybe to someone who doesn't understand what causes it? Yes there is. It's physics and exactly why the resonator was developed in our exhaust system.I know this is not an official document but this guy actually explains it very well.

https://www.performancetrucks.net/fo...-drone-489463/It's very distinctive when it happens. Picture someone cranking the volume up to 11 once you hit a certain RPM range.

 

Nice post @ JimG. I've owned mine for just under two weeks and I completely agree with almost everything you said lol. The car feel great and they've done a decent job at trying to subdue the massive weight of the of car. You're right, it's light on its feet but I still feel the mass on weight transfers.

As for the conversation regarding 2nd cat deletes or resonators; I believe removing the 2nd cats would be the best option for keeping the tone but increasing the sound. The concept of resonators is exactly that, resonance. Resonance by definition is the state or quality in a sound of being deep, full, and reverberating. Resonators simply oscillate those frequencies coming from the engine. By removing these, you would essentially be removing the component that gave us the tone we all fell in love with, in the first place. Personally, I have not done it yet, as I've only had the car for a little under two weeks. But, from research on these forums and through common knowledge of how parts function and interact with each other, this is the conclusion I've come to. I anticipate on making threads in the future on my experiences with the parts I add to the car.

 

Wow! That posting you referenced on how to build a resonator is impressive! I copies and pasted it, including diagram, into my library! Thanks!

Jim G

 

1. No I get it. Some people it doesn't bother. (see: all ears are different)
2. I get resonant frequencies. As you change things along that exhaust path however, it change the dynamics of the system. A resonator tuned for the frequencies of the stock system is surely less effective or not at all once you change other parts of it.
3. Interesting article.
4. I've never once noticed on any non-resonatored car I've ever been in the "volume cranking to 11" when a certain RPM hits. That's just silly. I've driven 10hr stretches in my car, only stopping for gas, and I didn't hear any evidence of this 'drone'. It is not fatiguing or wearing or exhausting or anything of the sort. I think people are trying to make something out of nothing. Cars have engines that make little internal explosions - what did you expect. They make all sorts of noise. So what. You can't muffle everything, and some people don't want to either.

Like I said above, it's still entirely subjective. Yes, there may be resonant frequencies that the OE resonator seeks to diminish on an OE system. That doesn't mean that those resonant frequencies are "unpleasant" "sound bad" or "drone" to every single human being on the planet.

Some people love to stand next to those rotary drag cars and revel in the noise. There's plenty of science behind the production of that 'resonant noise' too. Doesn't mean that's the end-all-be-all explanation as to why some people prefer it, some people are bothered by it, or some people are neutral about it. It is 100% an opinion. There is no science or physics that says when a certain resonant frequency of the exhaust occurs that all of a sudden human heads are going to explode. So there's a frequency - I don't hear anything but sweet music.

Sensitive-eared people who moan and complain about drone are people that I generally don't ever associate with. On purpose. So maybe I just don't want to understand this elusive phenomenon that nobody can define exactly.

What I do know is that everyone's preferences are different. That's why some don't like the headers sound, while others love it. You need to actually hear it and decide for yourself. Jim here wants more noise, but doesn't want to touch the emissions components, change the 'AMG sound', or install headers or anything that might jeopardize his warranty. The resonator delete is the ONLY thing that will accomplish his goal here. Otherwise just enjoy the stock sound. There simply aren't any other options that meet his criteria.

 

Plenty of exhaust threads if you think its too quiet haha

Glad you are enjoying the car!