Exhaust that will work well on M20 and S52

[Staszek]

So this may be silly and I might not do it, but the 1990 325i I bought exhaust system is shot, it sounds like I am driving a fairly loud lawn mower.

I am budgeting now and collecting parts to do the S52 swap, this is a project car that will not get driven much, but I do need to get it around a little while I am working on the interior and exterior.

I prefer to get an exhaust set up that is meant more for the S52 but I can use temporarily on the M20 until its pulled.

Not sure if this the right section for this, but any suggestions would be helpful, or tell me I am crazy its not worth the work and just deal with it :D

I have been working on cars for a long time, but this project is by far the most ambitious I have ever done so I am taking it super slow.

[E36M3LX]

So this may be silly and I might not do it, but the 1990 325i I bought exhaust system is shot, it sounds like I am driving a fairly loud lawn mower.

I am budgeting now and collecting parts to do the S52 swap, this is a project car that will not get driven much, but I do need to get it around a little while I am working on the interior and exterior.

I prefer to get an exhaust set up that is meant more for the S52 but I can use temporarily on the M20 until its pulled.

Not sure if this the right section for this, but any suggestions would be helpful, or tell me I am crazy its not worth the work and just deal with it :D

I have been working on cars for a long time, but this project is by far the most ambitious I have ever done so I am taking it super slow.

i would go with a full 3.5 inch set up with borla muffler and a vibrant resonator and/or vibrant race cat if youre worried about the smell. i have full 3" with long tube headers but was recommended 3.5" by my tuner(rk tunes). my s52 is putting down 238whp/224wtq with only e85, exhaust and intake.

[Staszek]

i would go with a full 3.5 inch set up with borla muffler and a vibrant resonator and/or vibrant race cat if youre worried about the smell. i have full 3" with long tube headers but was recommended 3.5" by my tuner(rk tunes). my s52 is putting down 238whp/224wtq with only e85, exhaust and intake.

Thanks, I dont want this car to be a full on race sounding car, I want it to be able to have fun on the track, autocross and also if I want to drive it on a nice day for along trip to be semi comfortable. So basically close to BMWs overall philosophy. It will lean more toward track with suspension, brakes, tires and engine, but I want the sound to be more quiet during normal cruise and a growl when it opens up at WOT.

[E36M3LX]

Thanks, I dont want this car to be a full on race sounding car, I want it to be able to have fun on the track, autocross and also if I want to drive it on a nice day for along trip to be semi comfortable. So basically close to BMWs overall philosophy. It will lean more toward track with suspension, brakes, tires and engine, but I want the sound to be more quiet during normal cruise and a growl when it opens up at WOT.

i recommended the borla with vibrant stuff because it is one of the quietest aftermarket exhaust set ups available. good luck!

[Staszek]

Thank you for the recommendation!

[jt223539]

I have a Borla muffler, that then connects to a Vibrant stealth muffler. Great sound when full throttle, and tolerable when not.

I would recommend those parts to anyone. Also I think 2.5" piping is more then suffienct for a DD.

There is a thread around this sight that has some great exhaust related information for the 24v swap.

As for a exhaust that will work for both, I think you could have a exhaust built that just requires the changing of the front section where it connects to the headers.

[Staszek]

I have a Borla muffler, that then connects to a Vibrant stealth muffler. Great sound when full throttle, and tolerable when not.

I would recommend those parts to anyone. Also I think 2.5" piping is more then suffienct for a DD.

There is a thread around this sight that has some great exhaust related information for the 24v swap.

As for a exhaust that will work for both, I think you could have a exhaust built that just requires the changing of the front section where it connects to the headers.

Thank you all for your help!

[GunMetalGrey]

3.5" seems to be way overkill, and is from an exhaust velocity standpoint.
2.5" is good, as well as easier and cheap.
We run 2.5" on a friends ~300hp s52 (High Comp Head 11.7:1 , 3.5" MAF, Shrick Cams, Pistons, CNC port/polish etc.) and have used 2.5" on stock m50's. I run 3" on my m50 turbo.

[Staszek]

3.5" seems to be way overkill, and is from an exhaust velocity standpoint.
2.5" is good, as well as easier and cheap.
We run 2.5" on a friends ~300hp s52 (High Comp Head 11.7:1 , 3.5" MAF, Shrick Cams, Pistons, CNC port/polish etc.) and have used 2.5" on stock m50's. I run 3" on my m50 turbo.

If I plan on going FI with the S52 in the future would 2.5 be too small.

[digger]

2.5" will be too small with FI 3.2L

[GunMetalGrey]

If I plan on going FI with the S52 in the future would 2.5 be too small.

If you go FI spend money on a new exhaust. You will lose power down low with a 3.5" exhaust

[Staszek]

Sounds good. I probably wont go FI for a while so I will just stick with 2.5 for now and if I get to FI down the road I can swap it out then.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[Staszek]

So I was thinking of running this.

Since it will be temporary I want something that will work for now and not sound obnoxious.

Vibrant 7013 Oval Ceramic Core Catalytic Converter
Vibrant 1148 Streetpower Black flat oval muffler

Both of these are 2.5"

[Northern]

I'm planning OBD2 headers/downpipes into 3", vibrant vband -> vibrant ultraquiet resonator -> vibrant streetpower muffler.

Car is getting M52 installed once the snow melts, and semi-committed to FI down the road.

[Staszek]

I'm planning OBD2 headers/downpipes into 3", vibrant vband -> vibrant ultraquiet resonator -> vibrant streetpower muffler.

Car is getting M52 installed once the snow melts, and semi-committed to FI down the road.

Nice yea this whole package that I listed costs less then $200. I will probably go remus down the road when I do everything right but I just dont want it to sound like a Semi truck for now as I am moving it back and forth to work on it.