new to the forum and Mercedes in general as well, I recently got a 2014 CLS550 , has been my dream car for the longest time and was able to afford it , I have a decent amount of knowledge when it comes to cars but this being my first German car on top of that my first car with turbos , I’ve been debating on removing the exhausts and going with a straight pipe set up (leaving the cats because I live in California) I’ve seen many clips of this thing sounding amazing but I wanted to know if going straight pipe would have any performance losses coming with it, I know about the back pressure and all that good stuff but I’ve seen some mixed feelings about it , some say it would help some say it won’t help it’ll hurt, granted not on this car or engine but what better place to find information than the dedicated forum and ask , any advice and help is appreciated !
Honestly I would not do it. The sound will get annoying after a while. If it is power you want a simple ECU tune brings the cls550 to 540bhp and 700+ torque
Honestly I would not do it. The sound will get annoying after a while. If it is power you want a simple ECU tune brings the cls550 to 540bhp and 700+ torque
I’m heavily considering the Renntech tune for power , I know I won’t gain 105 HP from a straight pipe, but looking for a good sound without it hurting the performance it currently has
Mine is straight piped and I live in California as well. It sounds incredible and there is no drone inside the car. In fact it's barely noticeable unless you're on the throttle. If you're on the fence about taking all the resonators off then take all of them off except the ones that are next to the cats. It'll give you some sound, but it won't be as loud as an actual straight pipe.
As far as the tune, I'm running the Weistec tune. It's really, really good. I don't know where you are in California, but I went with them because their headquarters is in Anaheim and it's local.
Mine is straight piped and I live in California as well. It sounds incredible and there is no drone inside the car. In fact it's barely noticeable unless you're on the throttle. If you're on the fence about taking all the resonators off then take all of them off except the ones that are next to the cats. It'll give you some sound, but it won't be as loud as an actual straight pipe.
As far as the tune, I'm running the Weistec tune. It's really, really good. I don't know where you are in California, but I went with them because their headquarters is in Anaheim and it's local.
Good luck on whatever you do and enjoy your car!
oh I didn’t know there was someone local, I’m in Los Angeles , I like the idea of renntech being just a switch to turn the tune on and off as you please , with the rumors of tuned ECUs not passing smog coming soon , unless you have someone willing to do it under the table , did anyone at weistech mention or did you ever notice any decrease in performance when straight piping without a tune ? I’m not worried about the noise I love the noises , just any adverse effects on generally performance
I'm not sure about the ECU not passing. I heard if you delete the cats, then it won't pass, but just a tune should be fine. I'll know for sure later this year when I have to get tags. And I can probably find someone who can slide me through if I can't pass. No decrease in performance, just a lot of increase in sound lol. It felt faster, but I'm sure that's because it was louder lol. But no, I've had no problems with performance before or after the tune after the exhaust.
I just did the centre (resonator) mufflerectomy. Mines the 2014 CLS500 4.7 Twin Turbo. Sound is perfect. Quiet at idle, but there is a significantly noticeable difference in sound when accelerating.
I live in CA as well and have been doing research on everything you’re talking about. I’m hoping I can help with your decision.
After looking at half a dozen tunes, I’m going with Weistec. Even though more expensive than most, they have a great rep and Ricky at Weistec has been very helpful and I value that a lot. Also, Weistec’s stage 1 tune is CARB legal, which means it’ll pass smog in CA without having to go back to stock. That’s huge and something no other tune I’ve come across can offer.
Regarding the exhaust, being in CA, I’d advise against going straight pipe. If you’re concerned about smog, then just leave it be. Or, just delete the mufflers instead. That’s the route I may be taking.
Start with a res delete. You may just be happy with that for sound. You’ll have ZERO drone issues.
I have ECC tunes (EuroCharged Canada but changed their name to ECC now) and had it done by a shop in Orange County. Slav (owner of ECC) is at the top of the food chain for tunes.
Almost went with Weistec, which I think is at the top as well, but ultimately decided with ECC. As mentioned, Weistec is the only CARB approved tune that I know of so if you’re only going stage 1 tune, this might help you from needing to go back to stock tune for smog.
I’ve done tunes, BlackBoost intakes, res delete, and couldn’t be happier. Might consider downpipes but CLS 63S is still under warranty.
I did a resonator delete like Beer_Bandit (cut the box out and replaced with stainless steel straight pipes) - car sounds awesome without being obnoxious. Low RPM has a little more V8 grumble to it and if you step on it in 2rd or 3rd in Sport mode it sounds exactly like I think a 4.7L V8 should. Even get a little turbo whoosh when slowing down from a rev. I would start with modifying the resonator either to X-pipe or straight pipe and cut out the secondary cats next if you want more sound. Could also do electronic cutouts if you want a straight-pipe feel with the ability to toggle back to regular. I would leave the mufflers alone unless you were to get high-flow ones but that's just my opinion
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