GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Stock exhaust... loud?!?

VAG Parts Bin

Drag Racing Champion
Location
Mt. Lebanon, PA
Car(s)
97 GTI & 17 R
I feel silly posting this, but I've never heard my car while in motion from the outside. The ONE time my wife drove it, I was in the passenger seat. I have a mechanically stock Mk7 Golf R with the stock exhaust that has the flaps coded open. I've been told time and time again by my wife, my kids, the neighbors, my mother, etc., that they can hear my car from afar. My mother jokes with me that "the kids are right, we can hear you coming long before we can see you!"

Sure, there is a little bit of a grumble at idle, but to me the exhaust tone seems tame but maybe I am missing something since I've never heard it in motion w/o sitting it..

Thoughts ...?
 

Spoolin

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Asheville, NC
Car(s)
2015 Golf R
I'm often surprised how loud it is when I get out and hear it idling. Sometimes I think about getting an aftermarket exhaust, but I think the OEM catback is pretty great for daily driving. It's probably just me getting older, but whenever I've upgraded my exhaust on a daily driver, I've ended up regretting the extra volume/drone when cruising and not going WOT.

I am almost at 70k miles, so maybe it's gotten louder since it was new. If it was a weekend car, I'd probably want a louder exhaust. Oh yeah, my wife and kids have made the same comments.
 
Last edited:

JC_451

Autocross Champion
Location
NJ, one of the nice parts.
Car(s)
2017 GTI Sport
It's not loud, there is just a lot of sound dampening going on so when you step out of the car it seems louder. As far as them hearing the car they just know what time you get home and can guess that the car they hear is yours.

Unless you're ripping down your block at 6k rpm this is just pure coincidence.
 

jmblur

Autocross Champion
Location
Massachusetts
Car(s)
2017 Golf R
It's not loud, there is just a lot of sound dampening going on so when you step out of the car it seems louder. As far as them hearing the car they just know what time you get home and can guess that the car they hear is yours.

Unless you're ripping down your block at 6k rpm this is just pure coincidence.

My dog knows I'm home at least a couple blocks away. It's a distinct exhaust note but I wouldn't call it loud either.
 

Charlotte.:R

Autocross Champion
Location
Charlotte
Car(s)
'18 Golf R 6MT
I think it's quiet too.....but I visited my buddy over the weekend and he was outside in the garage when I got there. Said he heard me from a couple streets away and asked me if I had an exhaust. It's a residential area and I wasn't speeding, rolling through at 20 mph in 2nd gear.

IDK, my wife says I can't hear worth a shit (or else I've just tuned her voice out) so I'm probably not the best to judge sound.
 

JWTS

Ready to race!
Location
WA
with the flaps open, it's a good bit louder than most cars with a stock exhaust. Obviously "loud" is relative. If you're comparing it to an aftermarket exhaust, it's not loud. If you're talking about it to a bunch of guys on a car forum obsessed with modding their cars, it's whisper quiet...
 

GTI Jake

Autocross Champion
Location
Charlotte, NC
with the flaps open, it's a good bit louder than most cars with a stock exhaust. Obviously "loud" is relative. If you're comparing it to an aftermarket exhaust, it's not loud. If you're talking about it to a bunch of guys on a car forum obsessed with modding their cars, it's whisper quiet...

Even most “loud” mk7 are quiet inside, because these cars actually have some sound deadening.

Hearing you car from outside is definitely louder than from inside, which is probably why some of the guys with absolutely horrible sounding straight piped mk7 dont understand while everyone’s laughing at them (Car enthusiasts) and or covering their ears and crying (everyone else).
 

Nissanskylinen1

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Toronto
Car(s)
'16 R w/DCC & Nav
I come from owning a G35, and I would call the Golf R whisper quiet, even under load.
I miss tunnels and narrow built up streets where my exhaust note would reverb. Highway on-ramps are also not the same anymore.

I think a catback is due.
 

Golfs everyday

Autocross Newbie
Location
USA
G35Coupes were one of the best looking and sounding cars from Nissan. I bought one new back in 2004 and kept it over 12 years before trading it in. Even kept the exhaust stock even though I mod cars all the time and exhausts are one of the first things I change when I don't like the sound (like a stock Golf-R)
 

ck23

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Austin, Tx.
Car(s)
19 R (DSG) - Lapiz
My wife says the same, but it's more of a deep tone that I think resonates well. It's not necessarily that the car is loud per se, I think the deeper sound waves carry more. You can hear my car from a few houses away when you're inside. My exhaust is stock as well, FWIW.
 

Al_in_Philly

Autocross Newbie
Location
Philadelphia USA
My wife says the same, but it's more of a deep tone that I think resonates well. It's not necessarily that the car is loud per se, I think the deeper sound waves carry more. You can hear my car from a few houses away when you're inside. My exhaust is stock as well, FWIW.
You're exactly right about lower frequency sound waves carrying further (and through materials, like glass and walls).
 
Top