Which mod for a bit more growl and a bit more grunt?

[ionofchios]

Hi guys,

I’ve had my 3.0si coupe for about 6 months now and have done quite a few things to it: Bilsteins all round, new wishbones, new bushes in important places, new fluids, CDV delete, wheel alignment and a bunch of other things. Now I’m thinking it would be nice to get a bit more audible snarl out of the exhaust (nothing silly, but something I can actually hear, unlike now), and a bit more power (not much, but something I can feel). Is there a simple and not too expensive mod, or mods, that would do this? Recommendations please!

[DPG]

Sound Generator mod (foam removal)

Bypass pipes

GruppeM

New Exhaust

Remap for power but you probably wont see great gains.

[dunks]

DLV backbox mod.

[Chris1981]

A bit more power might be a struggle on the 3.0si unless you go down the supercharger route to be honest... but that said depending on mileage/condition of engine a good service or a few part replacements may help, vanos solenoids or vanos unit in particular. There's a few people on here that have benefited from an overhaul of the vanos system. not something i've done myself but now i'm on 97k I'm considering a refresh to see if it has any impact.

I've had extensive exhaust work done on my coupe and it's insanely loud... actually it's too loud but it's a lot of fun!!

I've had the front silencer removed and replaced with a Y-Pipe and a running a very small free flowing back box, it gurggles, pops and bangs and sounds incredible at high revs.... i originally had a much quieter back box with this Y-Pipe system but wasn't happy so got this smaller one made up, the car was so much more responsive after fitting the free flowing box and revs quicker than it did previously! That could just be due to the first box being too restrictive though!

IMG_1093.JPG (171.21 KiB) Viewed 1951 times

There's also the DLV exhaust mod that a lot of people have... I've heard this in the flesh and it's way nicer than standard and a lot cheaper than a full system so may be worth considering as it's not over the top, certainly a nicer note than stock with the added bonus of pops and bangs. If you do a search on the forum you'll probably find a link or 2 to videos of the modded back box.

I did the sound generator mod and although it does increase noise i didn't like it, was a bit too much and sounded artificial (just my opinion) so have put them back in... there's 2 foams in there so you can play around and try to get a bit more noise and see if it suits you. Outside of that there's induction kits, off the shelf for the 3.0si engine is a bit limited and very expensive, the AFE kit is around £600 new but gives the engine a nice growl.

The other thing you could try for a bit more performance is an LSD, expensive and won't increase power but will help you get the power down better.

[philbo909]

As above, drop Mike a pm, his boxes give a bit more of a meaty sound, crackle and pops. Leave the sound generator as it is, it's not a nice sound when both are out, too boomy in the Coupe imo

[ionofchios]

Thanks, guys! I’ve been reading around about DLV and listening to some videos, and looks like just the sort of thing I would want. Only issue is I am in Finland, so exchanging old back box not so easy. I’ll ping and ask if there’s any possibilities.

[ionofchios]

Leave the sound generator as it is, it's not a nice sound when both are out, too boomy in the Coupe imo

Yes, had a go with this last weekend and I agree. Removed both inserts and it sounds kinda odd, though not so bad if you have windows open and it mixes with exhaust note. I will go to one foam plug and see what that’s like, but it is not really any kind of substitute for actual exhaust tones.

[mmm-five]

Thanks, guys! I’ve been reading around about DLV and listening to some videos, and looks like just the sort of thing I would want. Only issue is I am in Finland, so exchanging old back box not so easy. I’ll ping and ask if there’s any possibilities.

Road trip?

[philbo909]

Road trip?

Might be worth checking this thread op viewtopic.php?t=25214
A proper exhaust upgrade is cheaper than the postage/fuel

[Yorkie Z]

Thanks, guys! I’ve been reading around about DLV and listening to some videos, and looks like just the sort of thing I would want. Only issue is I am in Finland, so exchanging old back box not so easy. I’ll ping and ask if there’s any possibilities.

Just get your local exhaust shop to do the job, it's very simple. I'm sure DLV will share what's needed.

[bz4kev]

DLV backbox mod.

+1 best mod to date

[wonkydonkey]

What does Mr ducklakeview charge for these backboxes of his? I imagine the cost of posting a backbox up to him to do an exchange is about as much as the saving you'd make for the exchange.

[Mr Tidy]

James, as you are in Somerset MachineMonkey in Oxfordshire might be a better option for you.

I'm pretty sure I've read about him doing a similar job, but he does it on your car IIRC rather than an exchange service.

But it would just give you an excuse for a decent drive in your Z4!

Or you could just send them both a pm and go from there.

[wonkydonkey]

Thanks Mr Tidy, good to know there are forum-based options

[Tcochrane92]

A bit more power might be a struggle on the 3.0si unless you go down the supercharger route to be honest... but that said depending on mileage/condition of engine a good service or a few part replacements may help, vanos solenoids or vanos unit in particular. There's a few people on here that have benefited from an overhaul of the vanos system. not something i've done myself but now i'm on 97k I'm considering a refresh to see if it has any impact.

I've had extensive exhaust work done on my coupe and it's insanely loud... actually it's too loud but it's a lot of fun!!

I've had the front silencer removed and replaced with a Y-Pipe and a running a very small free flowing back box, it gurggles, pops and bangs and sounds incredible at high revs.... i originally had a much quieter back box with this Y-Pipe system but wasn't happy so got this smaller one made up, the car was so much more responsive after fitting the free flowing box and revs quicker than it did previously! That could just be due to the first box being too restrictive though!

IMG_1093.JPG

There's also the DLV exhaust mod that a lot of people have... I've heard this in the flesh and it's way nicer than standard and a lot cheaper than a full system so may be worth considering as it's not over the top, certainly a nicer note than stock with the added bonus of pops and bangs. If you do a search on the forum you'll probably find a link or 2 to videos of the modded back box.

I did the sound generator mod and although it does increase noise i didn't like it, was a bit too much and sounded artificial (just my opinion) so have put them back in... there's 2 foams in there so you can play around and try to get a bit more noise and see if it suits you. Outside of that there's induction kits, off the shelf for the 3.0si engine is a bit limited and very expensive, the AFE kit is around £600 new but gives the engine a nice growl.

The other thing you could try for a bit more performance is an LSD, expensive and won't increase power but will help you get the power down better.

You need to clean your car, it's filthy!!