Hi, i have a 2004 clk320 and need some-help on how to make the car sound
more louder. I have no idea on what to do. Either to take out the cat and make a straight pipe to a aftermarket muffler. But the problem with that is i think the cat sensor will bring the check engine light on.... Any recommendation would be great as to how and from where i should buy these stuff.

 

Just removing the resonator (I believe the 04 320 would have one) and replacing the OE muffler with an aftermarket one should make it louder.

I recommend NOT removing any CATS. Depending on where you reside and laws for vehicle inspection you may be able to get away with it. You could however replace the CATS with high flow ones (100 - 200 CEL). If you have both primary and secondary CATS, I suggest doing one or the other, not both.

If you're planning to have the car tune, talk to your tuner about the replacement of any CATS beforehand.

I also suggest going in steps of removal/replacement. All "loud" is not the same. Untamed/controlled in some way, sound can drift into the "noise" subcategory, even for the owner....

 

Thanks a lot really appreciate the tips and suggestions. I might just remove the resonator. I don't need the car to sound crazy. And yea I plan not to remove the cats since I really don't need the check engine light on all the time. My dad doesn't wanna help me since he hates doing these types of stuff but I'm just going to use his shop and tools anyways. Thanks again.

 

I removed the resonator on my CLK350. Not loud but you will notice it on idle. I'm still not sure if I want to replace muffler. Magnaflow seems too loud.

 

Just a suggestion. The muffler is very expensive (I know the mufflers on my CLK are close to 2K each), so save it in case you sell the car for the next owner.

 

They make by-passes with O2S bungs or have the muffler shop doing the work add it to the straight pipe

 

I saved my resonator and if I take off muffler, I'm saving that too.

 

I just did this on my clk500 . I am sure its a diffrent sound for the v6 but its still the same. what i did was i got an exhaust cutout with wireless remote . you can find them on ebay for about $100 have a muffler shop weld it in and your set . you can turn it on when you want the sound and off when you don't . I removed the resonator because on the v8 it takes away the high pitch sound . Don't waste your money by just cutting out the resonator you will not really hear it.

 

Cut outs are nice. Will this affect smog? I'm in CA. Too many laws here. Lol. Do you get any kind of exhaust smell? Did you install near the rear or where the resonator was?

 

as long as you do not touch the cats you will have no issue with smog . if you remove the cats then you will have smog issues . everything after the cats like the resonator and exhaust are there just to suppress the exhaust sound. I installed it right behind the sway bar . but you can mount anywhere you like. i just did it there so i can have an option to do a dual exhaust . There is no smell or any issue . Personal i like this because i drive on the highway a lot and when the drone gets too much i can switch it off .