Sound and Fury
For instance, I have (wife) a 997 C2S/Cab/Sport Exhaust because of the really nice sound. We passed on a 997 Turbo because of the wimpy sound. The difference in performance was not important. If you go to any of the Porsche boards like the Renntech 911 Turbo, you’ll see that the number one topic after showing off the degree of owners personalization is the weak engine sound and how to get an after market fix. Interestingly, Porsche owners mostly consider their rides like the other German cars as very conservative as opposed to the Italians.
I had a CL550 that had absolutely NO SOUND. I added a Brabus sport exhaust that took care of the problem very nicely. The sound ended up very close to the 63 version. What caused me to trade to the CL 63 was the 030 wheels that were originally pointed out by Barolo. By the way where is he?
The sound of the CL 63 after 8000 miles has gotten even better. I talked to Renntech engineers and my dealer and they think that I blew out a baffle in the muffler. It really is impressive.
To me the most important feature a sport/exotic car is the beautiful other worldly style that the best of the breed exhibit. After that build quality (including engine), and exhaust sound are equally tied. Performance differences between these cars are meaningless.
So, I would like to hear from others about what they think. Would you buy or not buy a car based on how it sounded?
For instance, I have (wife) a 997 C2S/Cab/Sport Exhaust because of the really nice sound. We passed on a 997 Turbo because of the wimpy sound. The difference in performance was not important. If you go to any of the Porsche boards like the Renntech 911 Turbo, you’ll see that the number one topic after showing off the degree of owners personalization is the weak engine sound and how to get an after market fix. Interestingly, Porsche owners mostly consider their rides like the other German cars as very conservative as opposed to the Italians.
I had a CL550 that had absolutely NO SOUND. I added a Brabus sport exhaust that took care of the problem very nicely. The sound ended up very close to the 63 version. What caused me to trade to the CL 63 was the 030 wheels that were originally pointed out by Barolo. By the way where is he?
The sound of the CL 63 after 8000 miles has gotten even better. I talked to Renntech engineers and my dealer and they think that I blew out a baffle in the muffler. It really is impressive.
To me the most important feature a sport/exotic car is the beautiful other worldly style that the best of the breed exhibit. After that build quality (including engine), and exhaust sound are equally tied. Performance differences between these cars are meaningless.
So, I would like to hear from others about what they think. Would you buy or not buy a car based on how it sounded?
I read one review that said above 6K it's the sound of shredding 100 dollar bills!
Totally worth the price of admission.
But louder isn't necessarily better; IMO, it's an art form to engineer a car to have a sound that's at once intimidating but elegant....
Am enough of a sound junkie that I rarely drive w/any iPod playing (or other noise/music), but always have windows/roof closed to best appreciate a "filtered" exhaust note w/o wind/road noise....







