Mk7 Exhaust Tech. How to get the sound you want.

[GTI Jake]

This is going to sound dumb, but wanted to ask and make sure. I was able to pick up an AWE DP and Switchpath. I want to get a resonator welded in. Is the Vibrant 17950 the one I want and will it fit in a 7.5R? The shop I talked to was concerned that it might not fit because of the driveshaft.

It’ll take extensive modifications to both the downpipe & catback. I’ve seen some reputable shops really drop the ball on AWD cars so if you go that route make sure they’re going to take the time & effort to do it properly.

https://golfmk7.com/forums/index.ph...to-get-the-sound-you-want.345407/post-7817330

The production version ended up tucked significantly tighter to the car since the cut out in larger on the drivers side along the driveshaft.

These pictures are 3.5” tubing so even tighter than 3”.

 

[j255c]

My car is getting a bit too droney on the highway. I have an IE Downpipe and stock everything else. Should I weld in a 17930 and keep the stock resonator too? Or is the only thing people are doing is removing the stock resonator and replacing with this unit? Would it matter if I ran both the vibrant and stock resonator? 2-3100 in 5th and 6th sucks.

Car is a 2018 R- not sure if there are fitment issues with the driveshaft?

 

[Subliminal]

My car is getting a bit too droney on the highway. I have an IE Downpipe and stock everything else. Should I weld in a 17930 and keep the stock resonator too? Or is the only thing people are doing is removing the stock resonator and replacing with this unit? Would it matter if I ran both the vibrant and stock resonator? 2-3100 in 5th and 6th sucks.

Car is a 2018 R- not sure if there are fitment issues with the driveshaft?

You want the 17950 instead, see first post: https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/inde...st-tech-how-to-get-the-sound-you-want.345407/

 

[j255c]

You want the 17950 instead, see first post: https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/inde...st-tech-how-to-get-the-sound-you-want.345407/

You want the 17950 instead, see first post: https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/inde...st-tech-how-to-get-the-sound-you-want.345407/

Will this fit with a Golf R? I drive in the winter so it must have decent ground clearance.

 

[GTI Jake]

Will this fit with a Golf R? I drive in the winter so it must have decent ground clearance.

There’s a picture of exactly what you’d want directly above your post (actually the 3.5” version).

You get what you pay for, so yeah if some side of the road muffler shop does the installation you’ll most likely have ground clearance issues as there is definitely limited space on AWD MQB cars.

 

[j255c]

Will the 17950 work with clearance if I was to replace the OEM resonator with it on a Golf R? Above it seems to be placed more in the mid pipe section.

 

[GTI Jake]

Will the 17950 work with clearance if I was to replace the OEM resonator with it on a Golf R? Above it seems to be placed more in the mid pipe section.

No, the OEM resonator is about 2” tall with a cut out for the prop shaft. These Vibrant resonators are 5” OD.

The outer case is the same size on the 17930, 17950, & 17970 (3.5” version pictured above).

 

[j255c]

Will find a competent shop to weld in the 17950 in the mid pipe section.

 

[doctorGolfR]

Will find a competent shop to weld in the 17950 in the mid pipe section.

Local shop did it for me on my R last year and I haven’t had any ground clearance issues although it is now the lowest point on the underside of the car.

I’m stock height on 245/40r18’s but even with a mild drop, like the Eibach Pro Kit, I still think it wouldn’t have clearance problems. Any lower than that and it might scrape, though.

 

[j255c]

Local shop did it for me on my R last year and I haven’t had any ground clearance issues although it is now the lowest point on the underside of the car.

I’m stock height on 245/40r18’s but even with a mild drop, like the Eibach Pro Kit, I still think it wouldn’t have clearance problems. Any lower than that and it might scrape, though.

I’m debating going to a stage 1 tune and selling the downpipe.

 

[doctorGolfR]

I’m debating going to a stage 1 tune and selling the downpipe.

Yeah, I'm not going beyond stage 1 to avoid the down pipe drone headaches on this platform. I'm still chasing down some 3000K-4000K RPM drone on my current setup (i.e. OEM down pipe - > Vibrant 17950 -> Nameless cat back exhaust). I have all the materials ready for a J pipe along with some length info (somewhere between 38" - 41" total) from another member on the forums who achieved a drone-less setup on his Golf R with an aftermarket exhaust. Just been too busy to focus on that last bit of drone.

 

[Maiden69]

Yeah, I'm not going beyond stage 1 to avoid the down pipe drone headaches on this platform. I'm still chasing down some 3000K-4000K RPM drone on my current setup (i.e. OEM down pipe - > Vibrant 17950 -> Nameless cat back exhaust). I have all the materials ready for a J pipe along with some length info (somewhere between 38" - 41" total) from another member on the forums who achieved a drone-less setup on his Golf R with an aftermarket exhaust. Just been too busy to focus on that last bit of drone.

Take whatever muffler that cat back has and replace it with a Borla/Vibrant muffler. That is the source of your drone. A lot of this noname brands use minimal dampening material in their mufflers, causing them to vibrate/reverberate creating drone. I had a no-name set up on my 2011 Camaro SS, LT headers no cats with resonators and it was stupid the amount of drone I had. I cut off the mufflers and replaced with Dynomax Stainless welded and the drone was completely gone. You should have almost no drone if you have the OEM downpipe with a 17950 and a decent muffler. That is Jake's no drone recipe.

 

[j255c]

Yeah I’m going back to stage 1. Downpipe for sale shortly.

 

[doctorGolfR]

Take whatever muffler that cat back has and replace it with a Borla/Vibrant muffler. That is the source of your drone. A lot of this noname brands use minimal dampening material in their mufflers, causing them to vibrate/reverberate creating drone. I had a no-name set up on my 2011 Camaro SS, LT headers no cats with resonators and it was stupid the amount of drone I had. I cut off the mufflers and replaced with Dynomax Stainless welded and the drone was completely gone. You should have almost no drone if you have the OEM downpipe with a 17950 and a decent muffler. That is Jake's no drone recipe.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Nameless isn't a "no-name" set up despite their brand name haha: https://shop.namelessperformance.com/catback-exhaust-2015-2017-golf-r/

I'm not going to replace the mufflers on their system as that makes no sense.

The added Vibrant 17950 resonator to this current system worked wonders (for tone mostly and some for drone). This decision was made after reading every single page on this thread.

Most people would be extremely pleased sound-wise with where my exhaust set up has landed. I just happen to be very sensitive to drone and want no drone whatsoever. I even thought the stock exhaust with valves open on "Race" mode had drone in the same 3000K-4000K RPM range--that's how sensitive I am to this stuff.

Something I've come to realize after HOURS of reading, riding around in cars, and watching videos is that all of these exhausts drone on this platform. It's just the nature of the engine. And that's okay because we all have different goals and different tolerances. I want tone/volume but NOT drone. I liked the slightly better throttle response of the 3" piping over the stock 2.5" piping. I like the rounded tips (and the entire fit/finish of the Nameless cat back). Etc., etc.

Only something that's targeting the drone range (like a J pipe) will truly eliminate drone. It's tried and true and what I'm doing next:

 

[Maiden69]

Nameless isn't a "no-name" set up despite their brand name haha: https://shop.namelessperformance.com/catback-exhaust-2015-2017-golf-r/

Thanks, had no idea that was a brand. At that price, the mufflers better have some sort of baffling, but at that size, the effect will be minimal at anything above 2000rpm. I have done a few J pipes, mostly on V8's and the results is a high pitch exhaust note. The drone is caused by low frequencies, so cancelling those frequencies will leave you with a mid-range and above exhaust note. I think the only J pipe exhaust I heard that sounds half ass decent is the MBRP exhaust, and it sounds like utter garbage if you remove the cats. You can try, I think last time I did calculations for this car the length of the pipe was almost 52" long, while in a V8 most of the ones I have done are less than 30".

The thumbnail for the video you posted have a coiled pipe... the "engineers" that suggested J pipes for exhaust strongly suggest not doing that and advise the use of only one 90 degree bend at the most. The more bends you add the less effective the 1/4 wave resonator will be. I think the logic was that it messed with the calculations so you had to lengthen or shorten the pipe to find the right spot for the frequency you want to cancel.