jamesmcd 0 Report post Posted Sunday at 03:19 AM Hey all, I’ve acquired an NZ New 2009 335i (E90) and I’m looking into doing catless downpipes. My understanding is that being a 2009 car it’s ok. Could I get some suggestions as to what kit I should buy? And where from? Nothing extravagant... I’ll get a local euro mechanic to do the swap out. Many thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KwS 1,105 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:18 AM Is it an N54 or N55, obviously one lacking a turbo means a different downpipe. There has been a lot of discussion on here, so worth doing a search. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jamesmcd 0 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:44 AM It's an N54, twin turbo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasera94 3 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:08 PM I bought a pair off Aliexpress which were mandrel bent for like $300-350 shipped. installed myself on jack stands and went well without issues. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jamesmcd 0 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:37 PM 28 minutes ago, jasera94 said: I bought a pair off Aliexpress which were mandrel bent for like $300-350 shipped. installed myself on jack stands and went well without issues. I was thinking about Amazon or eBay. Is the popping and extra noise enjoyable or does it get old fairly quickly in your experience? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blake12 13 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:49 PM (edited) I got VRSF ones delivered for under $400 nz from their website. Keep in mind that the mechanic fee will likely be upwards of $4-500 depending on how easy it is. They are c**ts to put on. I paid 8 hours labour to get mine installed with some sparkplugs . do it yourself if you can be bothered. I could never hear my rattly wastegates but as soon as the downpipes went on I could here them really loud on idle and cold start. The reason for running catless downpipes is so you can up the boost and run MHD stage 2 or higher. With a stock exhaust there is basically no difference to sound, definitely no pops and bangs or anything. It's just a slightly deeper sound with them on, but not louder with stock exhaust. You do hear the turbos spool abit louder with catless dp's. You can flash burble mod if you want pops and bangs - at your own risk. If all your after is pops and bangs you don't need downpipes, just flash the burble on aggressive. You'll likely mess your cats up pretty quick and some people argue it's terrible for your turbos. If it sounds like my view on the downpipes is negative, it's not, they are great bang for buck and really open up the car for tuning potential. I just don't think there is any point in them if your not going to run MHD 2/2+, or a custom tune. Putting that much boost through the car WILL show other weaknesses if there are any. Edited Sunday at 08:52 PM by blake12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jamesmcd 0 Report post Posted Sunday at 08:53 PM Is there any power advantage to putting on catless pipes? I’m actually not a big fan of the pops – I was worried that catless would cause this. Would keep stock exhaust and I don’t see myself doing any other mods at this stage. Maybe a better air system in future. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KwS 1,105 Report post Posted Sunday at 11:10 PM I have catless dp with standard exhaust on my e91, and without burble tune there are no pops at all. Has a nice sound to it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jamesmcd 0 Report post Posted Sunday at 11:42 PM Any issues with Check Engine lights or other fault codes? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasera94 3 Report post Posted yesterday at 03:58 AM 7 hours ago, jamesmcd said: I was thinking about Amazon or eBay. Is the popping and extra noise enjoyable or does it get old fairly quickly in your experience? No pops or bangs without MHD stage 2 - (Which you would need new spark plugs and coil packs for.. in most cases.) without that they did not sound much different to stock. No Engine light for 500 or 700kms I believe? They also caused a tad more turbo rattle. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KwS 1,105 Report post Posted 21 hours ago 4 hours ago, jasera94 said: No pops or bangs without MHD stage 2 - (Which you would need new spark plugs and coil packs for.. in most cases.) without that they did not sound much different to stock. No Engine light for 500 or 700kms I believe? They also caused a tad more turbo rattle. Even stage 2+ (which mine is on) doesnt pop and crackle without turning up burble tune. The stock exhaust does a good job of containing that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blake12 13 Report post Posted 4 hours ago (edited) On 12/17/2018 at 12:42 PM, jamesmcd said: Any issues with Check Engine lights or other fault codes? Not with MHD tune. It disables the check. Without it you will have a light show but it shouldn't matter. The sound wont be an issue at all on stock exhaust. They claim power increase just from the downpipes, but I didn't notice much. Just seems like the turbos spool up abit easier. If your not on MHD start with that. The difference from stock to 1+/2 is massive. Feels like a different car, and a true animal. If you just want power, your order of mods depends on how much you want but generally : stronger chargepipe and MHD 1/1+ bigger intercooler if you are on 1+ doing alot of pulls in hot weather, or tracking downpipes and MHD 2/2+ . You should be nearing 380-390hp at the wheels here. Then probably e85. I have downpipes and chargepipe installed, but am just back to running the standard MHD stage 1 tune now. I find it more than powerful for daily driving. I found I started wishing for a LSD and better suspension at stage 2, and decided to reign it in because it's a cruiser, not a track car. Edited 4 hours ago by blake12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
