nqcowboy

I am slightly disappointed with the lack of sound from the E500 exhaust and the the fact that the exhaust is hidden behind the rear bumper. I am looking to do some customs exhaust mods to get a nice V8 Rumble with some nice oval tips !

My E500 is a lease so I am not willing to drop $2000 on an exhaust system such as an AMG or Brabus etc. However I am leaning towards doing something like Epower has done in an earlier post. That is getting a custom exhaust/tips such as a magnaflow for around $500. I could then get the old exhaust switched back on lease end. I am looking for any recommendations on mufflers that would give a nice sound for the right price.

JWS3

The E is a luxury car. Few over 25 yrs old want to hear a loud & obnoxious exhaust note. For every person like you who wants it louder there are probably 5000 who do not.

Harris

Right on!

nqcowboy

I don't recall mentioning in my post anything about loud & obnoxious. I did say I was looking for a nice "V8 rumble" which the E500 does not have. A nice throaty sound can be achieved without being loud or obnoxious. I take it then that you find the sound of the CLK500 or the SL500 or SL55 or E55 to be loud and obnoxious.

I would also disagree with the 1 in 5000 statement. If you take some time to read the posts on this board you will see that there is a significant amount of E owners that have chosen to mod their stock exhaust systems to both achieve a nice sound and look.

Harris

Your post should be "I am going to do some exhaust mods to my car so that it will have the V8 rumble that I had hoped for". The way that you initally expressed yourself was like you're blaming Mercedes for not building an exhaust that is not "rumble" enough to your taste.

And what you dont seem to understand is the W211 is a luxury car and MB is never famous for perfomance. I bet over 90% of the E-class owners are over 40 yrs old. Why would MB want to build a rumble exhaust to satisfy people like you (sorry, I have to agree that you are the 1 of 5000).

I think I have been on the board long enough that I have NOT found a "significant number of E owners that have chosen to mod their stock exhaust systems to both achieve a nice sound and look." nor do I find any W211 with aftermarket exhaust on the streets.

slytoksy

Go for the Brabus exhaust system-You won't regret it!It has a very deep satisfying rumble that screams V8

Cal

You may also be able to replace the resonators with straight pipes or another resonator that is more free-flowing. Interesting, but even some 5-series owners find their exhausts too quiet as well. I guess you really have to step up to //AMG and ///M cars to hear your exhausts more.

jwmciti

The sound is pretty good BUT I totally agree that the exhaust system should have extendedc chrome nice pipes -
even the new BMW has it.

My personal feeling is that it gives it some flair-and I also lease and not dropping cash into a new system

nqcowboy

In no way am I blaming Mercedes for anything. I knew what I had when I drove the vehicle off the lot. I just wish that MB had done a little more to distinguish the E500 from the E320 for the 2003 model. Eg. doing something with the pipes and having a different wheel pattern would have been nice. I just think the E500 looks much nicer with exposed tailpipes.The way I look at it, if cadillac and lexus etc can have a nice rearend then why can't I.

I do understand that I am driving a luxury car and I love my car. I am just looking some cost effective suggestions to get the sound I am after without dropping the big bucks. In no way am I trying to pimp the car out so that it is the noise that turns heads and not the style of the car.

I still think if we count the members of this W211 forum we will get enough numbers to skew that 1:5000 ratio.

nqcowboy

my thoughts exactly !

alewifebp

I too was hoping that the Appearance package (formerly known as the Sports package as well all know), would display some appearance and sport by having exposed exhaust pipes. Many other manufacturers do this in many different price points, so it is a little suprising.

As to the sound, I agree, it doesn't sound that aggressive, but I didn't really expect it to.

Now if anyone has seen and driven the SL, I know, totally different car, but it has exposed exchaust, really nice exhaust note, and is super quick off the line.

nqcowboy

I agree about the Sport package. They could have included the exhaust as part of that option or at least given us the AMG package as an option, which is still not available yet in the US.

Concur on the SL. I have the advantage of having my Father-in-law as a MB salesperson, so I get to frequent the dealership anytime I want and to test drive the goodies without any hassles.

EPower

Even if you (and I) are the 1 in 5000, then just think, you are way ahead of 4,999 of 5000 MB owners in the world! I strongly recommend an exhaust upgrade...it really completes your V8 powered sport sedan. For the life of me, I really don't know why people who seem to mock your plans to upgrade the exhaust system didn't buy the E320 instead of the V8.

Anyway, my experience with the Magnaflows for nearly a year now has been great. The Magnaflow part numbers are 11376 for the mufflers and 35167 for the tips. There are many other tips to choose from, but I am pretty sure these are the only Magnaflow mufflers that will fit the E. The price for the parts will total around $400, and then just find a good muffler guy to install...enjoy!

p.s. it won't sound obnoxious, unless like you stated, you find the E55 or SL55 obnoxious.....

nqcowboy

EPower - Thanks a bunch. I had read your posts and liked your setup. I am getting some work done on my truck tomorrow so I will have a chat with guys at the exhaust shop to see what they can do for me.

So what if we are the only 2 in 5000. As long as I am happy with my car then thats all that matters because at the end of the day I am paying the bills.

nqcowboy

Harris - I just got this sentence from your company website.

"Our company places heavy emphasis on INDIVIDUALITY - every Mercedes-Benz owner has his own tastes and style."

It seems hypocritical that you can make the comments you have yet your company represents modding/tuning of stock MB vehicles including the W211 E500.

btseng813

I have a E500 with a Brabus exhaust. I totally love it. It has a V8 rumble that you would love! It's not like AMG rumble, but has a very nice growl to it. I know your car is a lease, but there are used brabus exhaust up for sale on ebay or classified. Check those out! It's cheap and they are usually in good condition. I never bought a used one, but I think it will serve it's purpose for you. The brabus exhaust is the way to go, especially when you punch it in 2nd gear with the windows down! Better than listening to music!

Harris

I think you have missed my point. In nowhere have I suggested what you wanted to do is no good. I am just concurring JWS3's view. I dont think making the exhaust of the E500 louder is something that most W211 owners would do (I think you would agree with that too). I think you are 1 of the 5000, did I say being unique is no good? I have 1 of 3 Special Edition LMs on a Mercedes in the entire planet and I am so happy.

My comment was not meant to be negative. I was trying to point out that your original post was not expressed properly. I apology if you view it differently. If there are no customers like you, company like mine will be shut down very soon.

vtec26

nothing wrong with individuality, but this forum does not have an accurate cross section of w211 owners. i'm sure that ratio will be too les than 1 in 5000 on this board, but in reality the ratio might possibly be more than 1 in 5000.

jwmciti

I am 44=out of all the 300 hp I tested i liked the sound of the 300
sort of grumbling quiet elegance

just wish they put chrome tail pipes- would have made the car look soooooooo much sharper

and i lease
so that ends that

stupid move of ther part- but to "each his own"

HELL ONA HARLEY

Mod to you hearts delight.... Louder exhaust, chrome tips, bigger rims, tinted windows, brembo brakes, body moldings etc.... Its all good. However I don't understand doing mods to LEASED car no matter how cheap, unless your planning on purchasing it down the road.

nqcowboy

I see your point totally and for me it is a hard decision to make to mod a leased vehicle. That is why I want to at least minimize the costs if I do this. But you could also look at it another way. If MB offered an exhaust package/option I would probably have ordered that with the car and subsequently increased the overall cost of the car and the monthly lease price anyway. So I would still be paying for it over the term of the lease.

If I can get something in the $500-750, then I think that is worth it for the pleasure over a 39 month period. I try not to spend to much time justifying a cost like this. The way I approach things like this is if I can walk into a casino and drop $500 on a craps table or go to a nice restaraunt and spend a couple of hundred without questioning the cost then I shouldn't start trying to be logical about costs like this.

Silvergt02

i just sold my 2002 mustang GT with flowmasters on it.

Im looking foward to the quiet benz

Silvergt02

i just sold my 2002 mustang GT with flowmasters on it.

Im looking foward to the quiet benz

TREZ63

Oh come on. I totally understand the Lease mod. I would much rather do it to a leased car than to one that I own. Its hard to sell a Moded car but you can always return the leased one. I keep cars no longer than 3 years anyway, leased or not, so leasing works out best for me and makes no difference. I would very likely have to remove the mods anyway if I wanted to sell it. In the case of a muffler its likely you can fit it to your next car.

I heard a Z4 exhaust the other day and I was very impressed. It was stock and sounded great.

Silvergt02

im a little confused that I see so many modded e class cars to begin with.

They are 4 door sedans. NOT sports cars. A CLK or an SL with mods I can understand a little more.

Just my opinion and Im not putting down anyone who does mod their E...Mod on if you like