[ArtifactsinMotion]

Thanks folks! I think with the BMW Perf. being NLA, this seals my decision to go Dinan. Major props again to George!

 

[VpointVick]

This makes me really angry about that one time that I dashed into the U-Pick yard for that one little part and didn't have the time or the tools required to grab the Dinan exhaust that I was thoroughly surprised to find there.

I saw it two days later on one of the local Bimmer for sale groups for $500.
:censor:

 

[Obioban]

Lol. I had a bmw performance exhaust for a while because my dealer sold it to me for $50. I ended up giving it to a friend because I didn't have a car to put it on at the time.

They should have advertised it as the s54 swap muffler

 

[George Hill]

I'm still going through the data, but here's some info to start. Note: now that I have the files I realize with the correction factor being used at the dyno was set to STD which will read higher than SAE. I am correcting everything to SAE unless someone gives me evidence to the contrary.

Here is how the data was collected. We first started with the SuperSprint. We made a pull and the car put down 292.98/231.97 (HP/Tq). From there we cleared adaptations and made another pull, this time it did 300.73/232.79. From then on when we put a new muffler on we cleared adapatations and faults (the car never had any faults we just did it for consistency). The car was warmed up to operating temp and then a pull was made. After each pull we let the car cool down for 3 min before making the next pull. We repeated this until the power leveled off or started dropping. Some configurations we only pulled (3) times (never less though), others took 4 or 5.

Here's the initial order from highest to lowest HP output.

(Note: I will average all of the results over each run and then this may change slightly but this is the unofficial ranking as I know everyone wants to see these numbers and I'm not sure how soon I'll have everything fully compiled.)

Modified S2 with Dinan - 317.35/238.36
Modified S2 with BMW Performance - 315.56/238.16
Factory S2 with Stromung - 315.53/238.49
Modified S2 with 325 Muffler - 308.31/233.83
Modified S2 with No Muffler - 307.59/240.57
Modified S2 with 330 Muffler - 307.37/235.63
SuperSpring S2 & S3 Replacement - 306.48/235.32
Modified S2 with ZHP Muffler - 306.17/238.47
Modified S2 with E36 M3 Muffler - 304.23/236.41

The grouping is so close that I don't think there is a bad choice other than MAYBE the 325 muffler. The reason I say this is the 325 muffler had a noticeable whistle during a run we think it just couldn't handle the flow out the small tips. But also the power drastically dropped off on the 4th and 5th runs, maybe it was starting to overheat the exhaust or I don't know. I'm hoping someone might have a good theory on this.

325 runs:
1 - 303.06/234.11
2 - 307.06/234.28
3 - 308.31/233.83
4 - 301.57/233.86
5 - 299.03/233.44

***Another thing I noticed is the dyno graphs are going to 8400 and the car is still making power. The RPM was calculated by comparing the tach to the dyno drum rpm at various RPM. Looking at Dynojet's info it says the Torque is calculated using the engine RPM but looks like HP is purely a function of the drum, so it may mean nothing in the grand scheme of the data, but something to note.

 

[yjsaabman]

Very interesting that no muffler made the most torque. Usually you hear about back pressure helping with torque, but this is contradictory to that notion.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

 

[markseven]

Dude this is great info. I am very surprised with certain aspects of the ranking, and also very impressed with the BMW factory muffler performance.

These numbers are SAE?

When are you planning to post the Torques?

Thanks again for doing this homeskillet.

 

[George Hill]

Very interesting that no muffler made the most torque. Usually you hear about back pressure helping with torque, but this is contradictory to that notion.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

I did some exhaust test a few years back on my stock M3, that car also picked up HP from no muffler to a stock BMW M3 muffler.

Dude this is great info. I am very surprised with certain aspects of the ranking, and also very impressed with the BMW factory muffler performance.

These numbers are SAE?

When are you planning to post the Torques?

Thanks again for doing this homeskillet.

Yes, these are SAE.

317.35/238.36 (HP/Tq)

 

[markseven]

317.35/238.36 (HP/Tq)

Derp.

 

[Steve M3]

The Stromung was the only one run with a factory section two, correct? Do you feel the modified section two was positive or negative for hp/tq figures based on the results? Or would you say all of the results are so close that it is really hard to say if modifying section two for a muffler actually has an effect on the end results?

 

[George Hill]

The Stromung was the only one run with a factory section two, correct? Do you feel the modified section two was positive or negative for hp/tq figures based on the results? Or would you say all of the results are so close that it is really hard to say if modifying section two for a muffler actually has an effect on the end results?

Steve you are correct that the Stromung was the only one with a factory S2.

I wanted to run the S2 with no muffler but it just didn't work out with scheduling. When I swapped the exhaust systems I had to unbolt everything at the S1 to S2 flange and with Euro headers this is very tight. So we make a pull and I immediately get under the car (because of time). I have multiple burns because everything was so hot, I literally have to cup the cat with my hand to get the nut started on the bolts. We had to stop for lunch right after the Stromung pulls. So the exhaust had time to cool down by the time we got back, I could have swapped the exhaust cold or made pulls and swap it hot. It certainly would have been nice to know.

I've got another configuration I have been thinking about and the SS has an option to remove the resonator. We will be back to try more setups in the future and we will probably do the stock S2 no muffler at that time.

 

[Steve M3]

Steve you are correct that the Stromung was the only one with a factory S2.

I wanted to run the S2 with no muffler but it just didn't work out with scheduling. When I swapped the exhaust systems I had to unbolt everything at the S1 to S2 flange and with Euro headers this is very tight. So we make a pull and I immediately get under the car (because of time). I have multiple burns because everything was so hot, I literally have to cup the cat with my hand to get the nut started on the bolts. We had to stop for lunch right after the Stromung pulls. So the exhaust had time to cool down by the time we got back, I could have swapped the exhaust cold or made pulls and swap it hot. It certainly would have been nice to know.

I've got another configuration I have been thinking about and the SS has an option to remove the resonator. We will be back to try more setups in the future and we will probably do the stock S2 no muffler at that time.

That sounds downright awful, thanks again for doing this for the community.

Also, I'm feeling pretty good about my stock system with the Stromung thanks to this!

 

[czz]

S54 Swapped Touring with Stromung Exhaust

Will 2nd Steve M3. When I did my conversion several years ago, Stromung was the only choice for me as I wanted a bolt-on solution. I've always loved the sound; didn't realize it was on the louder end of the spectrum (nothing to compare it to). Of note, my "M3iT" ended up a daily driver. Now have almost 40k miles on the swap with no discernible degradation in performance.

 

[BH93]

Bringing this back to life...

I want to weld on the ZHP muffler onto the OEM S2 of the S54.
Do I need a sleeve of some kind if they are different pipe diameters? Or they are 60MM for both?

 

[George Hill]

I want to weld on the ZHP muffler onto the OEM S2 of the S54.
Do I need a sleeve of some kind if they are different pipe diameters? Or they are 60MM for both?

The ZHP muffler piping is smaller in diameter than the M3. The other issue is the M3 S2 piping is "D" shaped. What we did is cut the S2 and then slid the ZHP piping into the S2. Then cut the S2 length wise and crimped and folded it to achieve the correct diameter to weld it to the ZHP piping.

 

[Crossworth1]

The ZHP muffler piping is smaller in diameter than the M3. The other issue is the M3 S2 piping is "D" shaped. What we did is cut the S2 and then slid the ZHP piping into the S2. Then cut the S2 length wise and crimped and folded it to achieve the correct diameter to weld it to the ZHP piping.

Hi George,

Thank you so for sharing your research work on the s54 Touring exhaust system.

YJSaabMan has been gracious enough to send me the link to your post.
I was recently asking a similar question on s54 swapped Tourings.

S54 swap: silence exhaust note

Hi, I currently have a s54 (2000 with a facelift) Touring with the stock M3 exhaust from the donor. The resonator is from a ZHP. I am seeking advice if i can silence the s54 exhaust note closer to a stock e46 ZHP exhaust note. I am willing to sacrifice some HP loss to achieve a quieter...

www.e46fanatics.com

Does your shop offer an exhaust system that I can purchase for a s54 Touring?

 

[George Hill]

Does your shop offer an exhaust system that I can purchase for a s54 Touring?

Steve, I'm not really sure what you are asking. It appears that you have a stock E46 M3 setup all the way back, but with a ZHP muffler? Personally I don't think its going to get much quieter than that without chopping up the M3 portion of the exhaust.

 

[Bryson]

Hey @George Hill - I just installed SSV1 headers and a catted section 1 and now the rasp with my stock section 2 and e36 M3 muffler is killing me.

Can you comment on the sound level of the Dinan vs e36 M3 or any of the other stock e46 mufflers? It looks like there's no slam dunk option that is not loud and also flows enough for the airbox + headers, and I'm hoping the Dinan + SS resonated section 2 will give me what I'm looking for.

thank you!

 

[George Hill]

Hey @George Hill - I just installed SSV1 headers and a catted section 1 and now the rasp with my stock section 2 and e36 M3 muffler is killing me.

Can you comment on the sound level of the Dinan vs e36 M3 or any of the other stock e46 mufflers? It looks like there's no slam dunk option that is not loud and also flows enough for the airbox + headers, and I'm hoping the Dinan + SS resonated section 2 will give me what I'm looking for.

Personally, I think the E36 is nearly the worst option on the list, I would ditch it in a hurry. I honestly don't recall the sound levels of the two, but after seeing the results I would never run an E36 M3 (sorry if that's redundant, but that's how poorly I think the E36 muffler is, lol).

If I was building a car for myself I would run a Dinan muffler (I have been looking for a BMW Perf since we've done the tests and have found exactly 0).

 

[Bryson]

Looks like I can kiss another couple grand goodbye! Dinan and SS resonated it is. Thanks George

 

[George Hill]

Looks like I can kiss another couple grand goodbye! Dinan and SS resonated it is. Thanks George

Now with that said SS does make a conversion kit that replaces the Sec 2 & 3. We found it was not worth any power with the Euro Headers/Cats and stock tune (vs the other options), BUT maybe its worth considering with your SS headers and cats as I imagine you will back it up with a custom tune.