Downpipes - 034, Milltek, Redstar, etc. What to look for?

[trophies]

I have a stock 2019 RS5. I want to adjust the tone slightly but not get crazy rasp. I have decided to start with downpipes and from there, do the RES-X delete or a full exhaust...

I am looking at the 034 downpipes but also considering other options, questions is...whats the real difference? Armytrix makes some sport option ones, Redstar has some, Milltek..

Is there really much of a sound difference? I know the 'farts' are something you cant avoid at WOT, dont want the obnoxious crackling when idling off rev or downshifting either..

[B6_Dolphin]

Well, if the aftermarket DPs for the B9 RS5 are anything like the IE ProCore Catted DP I recently installed on my '21 SQ5 Sportback, one thing to be prepared for when running a stock tune with the aftermarket DP and stock mufflers is the increased noise during cold starts. If the RS5 and SQ5 cold start logic is similar, the turbo wastegates will be commanded up for at least the 1st 30 seconds to promote "light-off" of the converter, for emissions purposes.

With the exhaust going through the wastergates, the less honeycomb core in the aftermarket cats (or no honeycomb if catless) will make the exhaust much louder than running the stock cat. Don't get me wrong, I love the performance with less backpressure on the turbo(s), but you'll need to get used to more noise out the tailpipe at cold starts and just off idle.

The guys with APR/034/IE tunes can chime in... does the aftermarket tunes dispense with 30 second(ish) light-logic (open WGs) for emissions?

[initiala4]

I have a high flow catted pipe on sports exhaust. It will be a little bit louder. However most high flow cats I have seen with stock or stage 1 tune will have a CEL unless tuner disables it. I opted out of that, and got a high flow cat that will have a CEL. So far so good @ 4000km, no CEL no smell!

[FLOS5IN]

I run 034 downpipes. I had them on with a resonator delete before switching out to a full custom exhaust. I thought they provided a nice tone without being aggressively loud, even with my current setup. Cold starts are louder, but as long as you maintain a valved exhaust, with the flaps closed it's not going to wake your neighbors. You will need a tune to code out the CEL, but any tuner can provide that. Also, they say there's no power increase with downpipes, but there is certainly more flow and you can feel it.