[tinfoiltuna]

Like many of us, when I got my M60i, I was disappointed with the sound of the exhaust. It does not sound like a twin-turbo V8 IMO. I put it on par with my ‘23 X7 40i with M-sport exhaust that I traded in for this. Although the M60i is my wife’s, I explained to her the pleasures of listening to a V8 roar and that our upcoming child will grow up more well-adjusted to modern life if she’s soothed on road trips with the rumble of eight cylinders.

Spent a good couple of weeks trying to figure out the best way to:

1. Make my V8 sound like a V8.
2. Ensure it doesn’t drone on the interior.
3. Not prevent me from going back to stock, or prevent me from passing state inspections, etc.
4. Sound loud, but not obnoxiously loud.

Just about every axle-back I could find was in the $3500+ range, until I noticed djrabbi RC Tuning’s custom axle-backs he’s posted here. Immediately took a liking due to reasonable cost - at $2250 retail at time of purchase - and especially given he’s “local” (a few hours away) from me. He posted a couple videos of his X7 M50i with the axle-back, and it sounded awesome but I admittedly was hesitant because of the dearth of reviews on forums and no M60i video, but there were a couple happy folks posting on Facebook and he answered the numerous questions I sent via email.

I had the exhaust installed yesterday at Eurowise Performance in Charlotte (fantastic folks, 10/10 in experience). Everything went smooth, though the exhaust tips I’m not a fan of. I’m getting the tips removed and regular trim put back on for the original OE look. Also note: cuts in the OE mid pipe had to be made to get this on, but it all fit perfectly - exhaust tips lining up beautifully. I chose to use the actuators provided by RC Tuning versus the stock ones, so I received a cool set of remotes to control open vs close.

How does it sound?

1. No drone and frankly very lightly noticeable when fully open, indistinguishable when closed. This was a concern of mine given it’s a road trip car, and that’s been totally allayed.
2. Outside of the car, valve open, it sounds like… you guessed it…. a V8 Nice low tone like you’d expect. Especially noticeable at WOT, or mid-high throttle. At idle you still get a deeper tone but it’s quiet enough that it’s not noticeable.
3. Cold start sounds fabulous. Though the volume isn’t that much louder than stock, Ravi mentioned that after about 500 miles on his M50i it really opened up. I could see that - clearly something is burning off the exhaust, as after a rowdy couple runs, you could smell oil or something burning (no, not any of trim or part of the car).

Honestly, pretty happy with this. Especially if it opens up a bit with a few miles. All in all it was less than $3000 installed - worth it. If anything just for a good remote start on a cold day listening to the rumble as I approach.

See all the videos and links below - I promise a couple additional ones which I didn’t get today: more revs, a drive by, and interior at 75mph or so. If anybody is on the fence and looking for another recording or something else just shout out, I’ll do my best.

Thanks again to djrabbi, I appreciate it man!

Videos & Pics Here (note - it’s hard to capture the difference in sound, especially volume, with just my iPhone - and the recording for stock was a day we were at almost 30 Fahrenheit vs close to 70 when cold starting RC tuning.. believe, difference is big):

View post on imgur.com

[SMKS]

Originally Posted by tinfoiltuna

Like many of us, when I got my M60i, I was disappointed with the sound of the exhaust. It does not sound like a twin-turbo V8 IMO. I put it on par with my ‘23 X7 40i with M-sport exhaust that I traded in for this. Although the M60i is my wife’s, I explained to her the pleasures of listening to a V8 roar and that our upcoming child will grow up more well-adjusted to modern life if she’s soothed on road trips with the rumble of eight cylinders.

Spent a good couple of weeks trying to figure out the best way to:

1. Make my V8 sound like a V8.
2. Ensure it doesn’t drone on the interior.
3. Not prevent me from going back to stock, or prevent me from passing state inspections, etc.
4. Sound loud, but not obnoxiously loud.

Just about every axle-back I could find was in the $3500+ range, until I noticed djrabbi RC Tuning’s custom axle-backs he’s posted here. Immediately took a liking due to reasonable cost - at $2250 retail at time of purchase - and especially given he’s “local” (a few hours away) from me. He posted a couple videos of his X7 M50i with the axle-back, and it sounded awesome but I admittedly was hesitant because of the dearth of reviews on forums and no M60i video, but there were a couple happy folks posting on Facebook and he answered the numerous questions I sent via email.

I had the exhaust installed yesterday at Eurowise Performance in Charlotte (fantastic folks, 10/10 in experience). Everything went smooth, though the exhaust tips I’m not a fan of. I’m getting the tips removed and regular trim put back on for the original OE look. Also note: cuts in the OE mid pipe had to be made to get this on, but it all fit perfectly - exhaust tips lining up beautifully. I chose to use the actuators provided by RC Tuning versus the stock ones, so I received a cool set of remotes to control open vs close.

How does it sound?

1. No drone and frankly very lightly noticeable when fully open, indistinguishable when closed. This was a concern of mine given it’s a road trip car, and that’s been totally allayed.
2. Outside of the car, valve open, it sounds like… you guessed it…. a V8 Nice low tone like you’d expect. Especially noticeable at WOT, or mid-high throttle. At idle you still get a deeper tone but it’s quiet enough that it’s not noticeable.
3. Cold start sounds fabulous. Though the volume isn’t that much louder than stock, Ravi mentioned that after about 500 miles on his M50i it really opened up. I could see that - clearly something is burning off the exhaust, as after a rowdy couple runs, you could smell oil or something burning (no, not any of trim or part of the car).

Honestly, pretty happy with this. Especially if it opens up a bit with a few miles. All in all it was less than $3000 installed - worth it. If anything just for a good remote start on a cold day listening to the rumble as I approach.

See all the videos and links below - I promise a couple additional ones which I didn’t get today: more revs, a drive by, and interior at 75mph or so. If anybody is on the fence and looking for another recording or something else just shout out, I’ll do my best.

Thanks again to djrabbi, I appreciate it man!

Videos & Pics Here (note - it’s hard to capture the difference in sound, especially volume, with just my iPhone - and the recording for stock was a day we were at almost 30 Fahrenheit vs close to 70 when cold starting RC tuning.. believe, difference is big):

View post on imgur.com

Very nice sound. Question does this exhaust give you an option to close the valve inside? Also it seems the tips are sticking out of the wall about 3 inches from factory? Or was that modified?

[djrabbi]

Originally Posted by SMKS

Very nice sound. Question does this exhaust give you an option to close the valve inside? Also it seems the tips are sticking out of the wall about 3 inches from factory? Or was that modified?

Yes you can close and open with my remotes

I did tell the OP that tips looks janky at best. I don’t recommend tips on these cars, takes away the luxury portion. I think he is removing them and going back to oem look

[tinfoiltuna]

Originally Posted by SMKS

Very nice sound. Question does this exhaust give you an option to close the valve inside? Also it seems the tips are sticking out of the wall about 3 inches from factory? Or was that modified?

Yeah there’s a remote to control the valves, and the tips are being removed today. I didn’t realize it came with tips (shipped directly to shop), but the shop saw them and assumed the should install. Not my cup but hey - if you’re looking that style, you have the option!

[tinfoiltuna]

Alright, took a couple more videos inside and outside with the OE trim, and a few (very slow - not trying to be a jerk) almost-drive bys. Check it out!

View post on imgur.com

[itiongo]

It might just be the sound that was captured, but that OEM exhaust sounds like a 40i exhaust. Perhaps comfort mode is active? The pre-LCI exhaust is quite loud on a drive by, even on comfort mode.

[tinfoiltuna]

Originally Posted by itiongo

It might just be the sound that was captured, but that OEM exhaust sounds like a 40i exhaust. Perhaps comfort mode is active? The pre-LCI exhaust is quite loud on a drive by, even on comfort mode.

You aren’t wrong. There is a pre-LCI M50i in my neighborhood and it’s got some growl. This M60i stock sounds almost exactly like my LCI 40i did, no hyperbole.

[avi8tir]

Originally Posted by itiongo

It might just be the sound that was captured, but that OEM exhaust sounds like a 40i exhaust. Perhaps comfort mode is active? The pre-LCI exhaust is quite loud on a drive by, even on comfort mode.

Dead on accurate. I think it might sound less aggressive than the 40i. I have an M50i and drove my moms M60i over the holidays... such a disappointment when it comes to the exhaust.

[tinfoiltuna]

Originally Posted by itiongo

It might just be the sound that was captured, but that OEM exhaust sounds like a 40i exhaust. Perhaps comfort mode is active? The pre-LCI exhaust is quite loud on a drive by, even on comfort mode.

I didn’t answer your question - I don’t remember exactly but I’m 90% sure the OEM filming was comfort mode. It’d be more fair to compare sport OE vs aftermarket. But honestly it doesn’t make a whole lot of difference, as evidenced by folks forcing valves open and not noticing much difference.

Not going to lie, tempted to try catback or remove resonator. I can’t though, this is a baby hauler. This is the right balance.

[Bandit67]

Can you take a drive-by and a 0-60 takeoff video....so we can really hear this new exhaust? DjRabbi did a drive-by on an M50i....would love to compare w/the S68 engine.

Thanks for posting this btw! I'm considering my options now too....

[tinfoiltuna]

Originally Posted by Bandit67

Can you take a drive-by and a 0-60 takeoff video....so we can really hear this new exhaust? DjRabbi did a drive-by on an M50i....would love to compare w/the S68 engine.

Thanks for posting this btw! I'm considering my options now too....

I'm definitely not skilled in the art of taking these videos.... my poor wife.... but did attempt a drive-by today, check it out (there are two videos - make sure you click the arrow):

View post on imgur.com

I'll see if I can't get a launch 0-60, video taken from behind, when the rain clears up a bit.

[Bandit67]

Thank you so much for posting these tinfoiltuna! Look forward to the launch video at some point.

People like you are why I LOVE this forum! So helpful and willing to share with others!

Thank you again!

[tinfoiltuna]

Originally Posted by Bandit67

Thank you so much for posting these tinfoiltuna! Look forward to the launch video at some point.

People like you are why I LOVE this forum! So helpful and willing to share with others!

Thank you again!

My pleasure. Just giving back, I've appreciated the help from folks here. Looks like it's supposed to be sunny tomorrow.

I did snag another interior video, sport individual, iconic sounds off. You can definitely tell a difference versus stock, though my wife can't. The volume difference is marginal, it's the tone where I tell the most difference. Unlike my first aftermarket exhaust - Roush on my '11 Mustang GT 5.0 - which was the definition of obnoxious (but loved to death).

View post on imgur.com

[tinfoiltuna]

Alright, probably will be last of the videos for a while but got two launches in (one launch control and one to-the-floor + a couple toggles of the valve open/closed). It's definitely gotten louder the past two days, let's see where it ends up.

View post on imgur.com

[Bandit67]

Sounds great! Enjoy it...and thanks again for sharing!

[mayorblurps]

Awesome! I have been eyeing djrabbi's offering for a while. Nice mix of more growl without being ridiculous.

I also considered cutting out my muffler suitcase. But the Indy beemer shop where I got my tires said they would advise against it. Even cutting the muffler out, they said BMW could and would nix any warranty issues that might come up. So I'm skittish about it, especially with only 3k miles on the odometer.

How risky is it to do aftermarket exhaust when it comes to factory warranty stuff? I'm mostly concerned about engine, suspension, brakes.

[djrabbi]

Originally Posted by mayorblurps

Awesome! I have been eyeing djrabbi's offering for a while. Nice mix of more growl without being ridiculous.

I also considered cutting out my muffler suitcase. But the Indy beemer shop where I got my tires said they would advise against it. Even cutting the muffler out, they said BMW could and would nix any warranty issues that might come up. So I'm skittish about it, especially with only 3k miles on the odometer.

How risky is it to do aftermarket exhaust when it comes to factory warranty stuff? I'm mostly concerned about engine, suspension, brakes.

If you are concerned with warranty issues then I wouldn't mod the car at all. Exhaust is least likely to throw any issues with warranty. You will have more issues with modifying suspension or brakes being voided.

BMW can void your warranty for having too wide wheels, wrong tires, lowering, aftermarket pads/rotors... list goes on.

[Blue87]

Sounds really good and the flush tip looks great! Appreciate you taking the time to share.