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What are the stock(ish) full exhaust options these days?

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    What are the stock(ish) full exhaust options these days?

    My cat has a hole in it, and I've wanted to replace it anyway as it's a hack up of an aftermarket cat into an eta exhaust using 2" pipe. I'm not going to be modding the car so a full custom exhaust would be a waste, I just want an exhaust with "i" stock performance (or mildly better) and sound. Stock exhausts from part outs or upgrades seem to be rare in the classifieds, unfortunately.

    You used to be able to get the D.E.C. cat but it seems to be out of production and Pelican (ECS) is selling their remaining stock for exorbitant prices. There's the Magnaflow, which apparently is only a direct fit for auto cars and at least one member got one that was bent improperly, not to mention the price has tripled in the last few years. RockAuto sells a Davico cat with the stock "i" outlets, it doesn't have an O2 bung, it collects into a single pipe of unknown diameter, and there's all of one thread about it.

    So far the best I've come up with is the Ireland shorty header and some universal cat, and then get a competent shop to weld up the cat and add outlets that will allow mounting a stock-fit catback like the Ireland one. Only problem is, those headers never seem to be in stock when I look. Alternatively I could have someone hack a universal cat on to the eta pipe, which does appear to be 2.25" above where it was chopped - not great, not terrible from what I've read.

    What else is out there? Am I missing anything?

    EDIT: Found one more, AB Catalytic in Canada makes a full direct fit. Various sellers on ebay selling either as the AB Catalytic brand or their own brand. I can find no one online with direct experience with these on the E30 though so if anyone does, please post up.

    And another: OEM Industries, although the description says Y pipe despite the model clearly running dual pipes to the cat? Again, various ebay sellers.
    Last edited by natefoo; 10-18-2023, 08:38 PM.

    #2
    I'm in the same boat, looking for a bolt on option for a cat or even an easy delete at this point. I was gonna order the Magnaflow but you mentioning the fitment issues for manual cars is turning me off as that's the 3rd time I've read that.

    Are you sure the Davico doesn't have an O2 bung? If you look at the second pic on RockAuto it looks like there's a hole where the two pipes join?

    Haven't seen the OEM or AB ones until now but they look the best so far next to DEC. I'd be willing to try one if I knew the sellers were legit. Beats paying 2 grand for a cat...

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      #3
      Unfortunately you’re SOL. The aftermarket versions of stock cats for these cars are of garbage quality (noisy, poor fitment, don’t look right, etc) and you’re stuck shelling out $2000+ for a OEM cat. Alternatively you’ll have to learn to be patient and wait for a good used example to pop up on Ebay, FB marketplace, etc

      I had a cheap Bosal cat (repliacted stock cat) on my old Eta (OEM one was NLA) and not only was it loud, the shop struggled to fit it on.
      Last edited by ZeKahr; 10-20-2023, 05:10 AM.
      1986 325e Schwarz (sold)
      1989 325iX Alpineweiß​ (daily)


      Greed is Good

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        #4
        e30rik After more research, I think they all have the auto trans bracket. I just realized my existing exhaust isn't even bolted to the trans for the same reason.

        I missed the second picture of the Davico and was just going off the comments on the linked r3v thread, but it looks like you're right about the O2.

        ZeKahr From what I can tell it's just a toss up. Some people have had ok experiences with the Magnaflow, and the DEC was generally well liked, but not always perfect. Seems like sometimes you'll get one that fits fine, other times you won't.

        I guess I will be the guinea pig, I've ordered one of the AB Catalytic ones from one of the sellers who does appear to at least be a real business with a real physical presence and a 15 year history on the wayback machine. Supposedly ebay also guarantees the fit, so will fully refund you if it does not - we'll see how that goes in practice.

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          #5
          It's hard to tell for sure but the bracket on the Davico looks like it's further forward than the Magnaflow. I haven't taken a close look at mine yet so I'm not sure how it's supposed to look. The one you ordered looks like it actually has two brackets in the picture which would be nice and make a lot of sense.

          Can you send the link to the one you actually bought? Hopefully it works for you. If not, I'll probably just get the MF. Even paying to have someone make it fit properly would be better than dropping 2k.

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            #6
            The cat arrived and looks decent to me. It's not exactly as pictured in the listings or catalog though. Mine is two pieces and collects to a single 2.5" pipe at the cat inlet. The cat has the stock dual outlet setup. It came without hardware, so I'll have to buy a clamp (or you could weld it, if that's your bag). The cat side of the 2.5" pipe slips over the header side, so it's actually a little over, like 2-5/8" OD. I don't know what the inside of the Magnaflow looks like but this one appears to have a very stock looking flow structure, so don't expect any gainz.

            I gave it a test fit tonight and it seems good, but I haven't gotten everything bolted together yet since I stupidly forgot to buy gaskets. I have no idea what on the chassis/trans this is supposed to bolt to, I have nothing near either of the mounting brackets.

            If like me you aren't coming from a stock exhaust, you will need the cat-side flange on the straight pipe, #22, and possibly other hardware - the Ireland catback comes with the donut (#24) and ring (#23).

            I ordered from Calnorth Auto Parts (website) (ebay) via ebay. They shipped 2 days after purchase and it showed up 3 days after that. I bought off this listing but they have multiple listings, I'd say make sure you get one that covers your specific year to ensure you get the ebay return guarantee.

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              #7
              More photos.

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                #8
                So how was the outcome?

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