E550 De-cat
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
From: Q8
2007 E500 Designo Brabus B8 / 1991 500E (Sold)
E550 De-cat
Hi,
I Just closed the deal on a 2007 E500 (E550) Designo. Pretty excited to see what the 387HP 5.5L block can do, and how it compares with my 500E.
I was between this and an E63, but opted for the E500 on the bases of practicality, parts and maintenance. I don't do race tracks, just pure straight line sprints at most. So I don't need $2K front rotors to stop. Nor do I like to wait weeks for all those AMG specific parts (plus the $$$$).
I will be moding this E500, mainly performance to get it upto 440-450HP. I have sourced a Brabus Sport Exhaust system and the Chip tuner. But would like to ask about Catalytic converter deletion, Has anyone do this on the E550?
How much HP/Torque should I expect? Any source for the cat replacement pipes?
Would like to hear how other E550 owners modded their cars, any comparison races with other cars (SRT/M/AMG) ?
I Just closed the deal on a 2007 E500 (E550) Designo. Pretty excited to see what the 387HP 5.5L block can do, and how it compares with my 500E.
I was between this and an E63, but opted for the E500 on the bases of practicality, parts and maintenance. I don't do race tracks, just pure straight line sprints at most. So I don't need $2K front rotors to stop. Nor do I like to wait weeks for all those AMG specific parts (plus the $$$$).
I will be moding this E500, mainly performance to get it upto 440-450HP. I have sourced a Brabus Sport Exhaust system and the Chip tuner. But would like to ask about Catalytic converter deletion, Has anyone do this on the E550?
How much HP/Torque should I expect? Any source for the cat replacement pipes?
Would like to hear how other E550 owners modded their cars, any comparison races with other cars (SRT/M/AMG) ?
Member
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 201
Likes: 1
From: Los Angeles, CA
2008 E550
I've had fully modded cars in the past.. you could spend $10k on the E550 and it won't get much faster. If you want to do work on the car go for an E55/63, even if you need to go back a few years.
You can do a powerchip for $599-899, for a whopping 10-12hp.. not worth it.
You can upgrade to most W211 exhaust, most I've seen just switch to the AMG quad + valence. Still will not give massive gains no matter what you do to it.
You can add a sprint booster for "Fake speed".. others claim waste of money, but many like.
K&N's are popular, but many over oil and mess up expensive air intake parts and sensors.
Can't touch the suspension, can't really add a LSD to the rear diff..
If you are looking to mod, I'd really suggest another car... this car is fine as is and should be driven not raced around town.
You can do a powerchip for $599-899, for a whopping 10-12hp.. not worth it.
You can upgrade to most W211 exhaust, most I've seen just switch to the AMG quad + valence. Still will not give massive gains no matter what you do to it.
You can add a sprint booster for "Fake speed".. others claim waste of money, but many like.
K&N's are popular, but many over oil and mess up expensive air intake parts and sensors.
Can't touch the suspension, can't really add a LSD to the rear diff..
If you are looking to mod, I'd really suggest another car... this car is fine as is and should be driven not raced around town.
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 73
Likes: 0
From: Canada
2007 E550, 2007 GL450
Pretty much echo MB4Tronic's post. There isn't really much you can do to get a substantial performance increase from an E550 without spending serious money (Kleeman/Renntech). An ECU remap will push you over 400 HP, with a slight increase in torque...but do you really need it? How much performance do you want?
The E550 in stock form is no slouch, especially if you are talking straight line launches. The 5.5L M273 develops a lot of torque early in the RPM band and you really feel it hit on launch. If you want more performance, I'd say trade it in/sell it and go for a comparably priced E55 or E63.
I can't comment on deleting the cats, but I would wager the car's ECU won't like that too much (think constant CEL's). Nor will you find much info on modded E550's...there are a few threads where owners have done the ECU remap, but that's about it. Some nice cosmetic mods out there (rear diffuser, quad exhaust) but not many engine mods.
However, based on your post you're looking for practicality and lower maintenance costs as well as performance. If that's the case, you've already found it. Just enjoy!
The E550 in stock form is no slouch, especially if you are talking straight line launches. The 5.5L M273 develops a lot of torque early in the RPM band and you really feel it hit on launch. If you want more performance, I'd say trade it in/sell it and go for a comparably priced E55 or E63.
I can't comment on deleting the cats, but I would wager the car's ECU won't like that too much (think constant CEL's). Nor will you find much info on modded E550's...there are a few threads where owners have done the ECU remap, but that's about it. Some nice cosmetic mods out there (rear diffuser, quad exhaust) but not many engine mods.
However, based on your post you're looking for practicality and lower maintenance costs as well as performance. If that's the case, you've already found it. Just enjoy!
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
From: Q8
2007 E500 Designo Brabus B8 / 1991 500E (Sold)
Thanks for the replies guys,
Looks like I'm back to the 500E scenario, not much to do for more power.
I keep my cars for a long time, and I keep them in optimum condition. Thus efficiency and reliability is a must. The E500 are still the choice for German long distance cruisers.
I don't like the E55 forced aspiration nor the E63 high rev/high compression combo. the sh**y feeling you will get when paying for an engine rebuilt, far exceeds the one after a 15 second race.
I am looking for 430-440HP. should keep me in front of any SRT8 & SS. maybe even not too far from a heat-soaked E55.
Anyone ran against one of these cars? for comparison of course
Looks like I'm back to the 500E scenario, not much to do for more power.
I keep my cars for a long time, and I keep them in optimum condition. Thus efficiency and reliability is a must. The E500 are still the choice for German long distance cruisers.
I don't like the E55 forced aspiration nor the E63 high rev/high compression combo. the sh**y feeling you will get when paying for an engine rebuilt, far exceeds the one after a 15 second race.
I am looking for 430-440HP. should keep me in front of any SRT8 & SS. maybe even not too far from a heat-soaked E55.
Anyone ran against one of these cars? for comparison of course
Last edited by 195910; Apr 18, 2011 at 09:25 PM.
