sparacing

True, but I stated that up front. But to be clear, the resonator or the removal of it, is the primary cause of drone....not the cats. Secondly, the greatest volume of sound came after I removed the resonator.

I did the downpipes about 6 months ago (catless) and the sound was better, but not great.

It wasn't until I had the resonator removed that I noticed a substantial increase in sound...which is what everyone else has experienced as well....including the OP.

Just my experience and $0.02....if it's been helpful, great...if not, I hope someone else can help!

deyainrdy4ds

just to make sure, a resonator delete will still pass emissions tests, correct? ive done it before but i also deleted cats so i knew i wasnt gunna pass lol dont want to deal with that mess on this car

sparacing

It should....the resonator is there to smooth out the exhaust sound, lower the volume, etc. The cats are responsible for the emissions.

citizensane

Intend to do this in a month (once my warranty runs out) and hoping someone can post who has removed the resonators AND passed their State's emissions test (preferably MO's)

Makes sense it wouldn't have an effect--but I have done things that made sense on the front end--only to have regrets later
thanks!

citizensane

Out of warranty and ready to do this. Do I need to supply the straight pipe parts to the muffler shop? Or do they have something in stock that works?
I have to get them--where?
thanks

pgolfco

I have had no issues whatsoever with drone and most importantly, no check engine lights either.

pgolfco

It cost me less than $150 to do it and a qualified muffler shop will have the necessary pipes to weld into place after they cut out the resonator.It was super quick and easy and I the car was finished in less than hour.

pgolfco

Exactly, no emission problems, thus no check engine lights. It's a very solid and cheap mod with AWESOME results. It also saves a ton of money versus actual exhaust replacement.

pgolfco

Correct, it shouldn't cost anymore than $200. My resonator was removed and pipes welded in it's place for under $150. Cats and mufflers were not touched.

pgolfco

Correct, the resonator is the large box. It is simply cut out and two pipes are welded in it's place. The cats and mufflers are not touched. The sound is amazing and it's dirt cheap (and quick) to complete.

I can't imagine spending $2000-$4000 for upgraded exhaust just for sound when this mod is such a better alternative.

If you want to spend a bunch of money on an exhaust for a horsepower gain, that's a different story. To each his own.....

citizensane

EXCELLENT!
Can't wait to jump on it this week

citizensane

Just got this done--at a local Midas shop for $150. Took 2.5 hours or so.
I have read comments like "no big deal"--"minimal change" etc etc

I will tell you that this is a significant exhaust sound change. It is VERY noticeable--and I am having a tad bit of buyer's remorse--but believe that's because I'm used to the quieter sounds with the resonator on.

I came out of a 2012 Audi S5 with a naturally aspirated V8--and had been missing the throaty exhaust sound that car put out. I can tell you that this resonator delete mod has put my CLS in that same class and perhaps even more. It is as aggressive as I would ever want in any car. When you jump on it from a low speed--you HEAR it--windows up or down.

Thought I'd report in on my experience.

Again--this owner can't imagine paying a bunch of money for an even louder exhaust sound (which I would not want anyway)

mikeg4572

Maybe consider an X pipe to quiet down a little.

citizensane

getting used to it--but it is borderline obnoxious (at certain times)

"X-pipe" Is this something I"d have to buy and supply to the shop?

and how much do you think it would quiet it down.

I'd have to guess that if I could end up 1/2 way between the OEM and this straight pipe set up--that could be ideal (in my world)

Thanks !

mikeg4572

Some shops carry them. They are pretty cheap, you can find them from some popular racing stores, like Jegs or Summit Racing.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/j...iABEgIGg_D_BwE

citizensane

Have you done this mod? (either the cross pipe or straight)

Can you guesstimate what the resonating effect of the X pipe would be vs the straights? In other words--do you think it's half way between with resonator and straight pipes?
Subjective I know--
thanks

MBmemphis

Ok so this may be a dumb question from someone new to all this, but here goes..... I am planning on perhaps a CPU upgrade and aftermarket exhaust in a couple months. Goals are to keep things fairly simple and get some more horsepower out of this engine as well as improve the exhaust tone/sound/volume. So does removing the resonator improve flow and give any additional power or is it just for sound? Also, do you guys recommend doing aftermarket muffler as well?? or is this all that is needed?

citizensane

No disernable increase in power with the resonator removal--and the sound can be borderline obvnoxious. thinking about installing a sound baffle in the trunk against the rear seats to muffle it

Quick Silver

Anyone else worried about the new welds rusting and then contaminating the rest of the exhaust pipes? I've never had a problem with factory welds but for some reason every time I've had a custom exhaust, no matter which shop I took it too, a couple of years later the welds and surrounding pipes would be rusted through. Maybe it's been the redneck shops I have used who didn't use the right type of weld or didn't "treat" the welds after making them, I don't know. Hopefully someone with a better understanding of metallurgy and welding can chime in.

0mercy

Hey Spararacing,

Did you lower your car? If so which tuner did you get the hardware from? How many inches did it drop and how much cash? Also, what did the shop charge to put the catless downpipes on?

0mercy

Hey Pgolfco,

Did you get any drone in the cabin or was the noise feedback relatively the same? Also did you get any error codes to pop up on the dash? I'm thinking about doing this when I get home in a few days.

citizensane

I haven't heard any "drone". It really growls at low RPM under heavy throttle--borderline obnoxious. Think some of it is lack of insulation between the trunk and cabin (back seats are not sound proof enough)

0mercy

That's F'in awesome.... I'm getting it done ASAP and posting a video and pic.

citizensane

Not necessarily touting it
It is borderline hot rod sounding

0mercy

I know what your saying bro but that's what I'm looking for. I have a S class for the quiet day at the park or Sunday drives. But I bought the CLS63 to do one thing and one thing only and that's destroy every and anything in it's pathway including people's eardrums. If the drone inside the cabin is horrid then I'll just reinstall the resonator. But the way I see it is if my buddy cut the resenator off of his Dodge Hell Cat and has little to no drone the Mercedes should easily have twice the insulation and sound proofing prohibiting extreme outside noises. But one thing is for sure.... we will see how it goes in a few hours LOL!