Choosing The Right BMW Exhaust

Wayne Levy
February 22, 2008

Bestselling BMW exhaust suppliers are Ansa exhaust, Eberspaecher (OEM), Bosal exhaust, Borla, and Supersprint. Enthusiasts can also find BMW brackets, BMW flange nuts, BMW mounts and BMW hanger brackets. It is recommended to typically replace the exhaust system gaskets whenever you replace or repair the exhaust system or BMW muffler. BMW exhaust has a tuned high fow design that reduces backpressure to provide a significant boost in engine output. Additionally this boosted performance results in a deeper exhaust note that is distinctly unique.

The Power Sound control within the outlet lets you modify a perforated baffle to fine-tune the exhaust note to your exact specifications (e.g. slightly mre aggressive or more muffled). The system utilizes factory installation points, so installation is not difficult. They are manufactured in Europe from the finest stainless steel and are often backed by lifetime warranty.

These systems are designed for high performance while adhering to noise and emissions restrictions. These three requirements are sort of mutually-exclusive, meaning there's a bunch of hard work that goes into the exhaust. To start with, there's the choice of exhaust pipe material.

On higher-end cars, you'll see stainless steel, while mild steel is used on more economical makes to save money. Now the method of bolting the parts together must be considered. Most OE BMW exhaust systems are welded rather than clamped to make leak-free joints.

The challenge lies is in producing the exhausts and catalytic converters as free-flowing as possible while still enabling them to do their jobs; namely, decreasing noise and additionally cleaning up the exhaust gasses, respectively. The OE BMW exhaust is a great performer, too. However if you do not mind a slightly more aggressive exhaust, consider upgrading your OE BMW exhaust with an aftermarket high performance exhaust. This will produce increased hp, your engine will rev more freely, and you'll get the sweet note of a free flow exhaust system.

A set of BMW headers can add nice gains in hp to your car, although probably the most accurate way to phrase it is that the headers will allow your car to utilize the HP that it already has in the best possible way. When your car emits exhaust from the engine, if you are not using a performance headers, chances are that your car is spending precious HP to push that exhaust.

Wayne Levy is a master technician with over 7 years experience working on BMWs and currently manages the BMW parts department for a specialty BMW performance shop.