An idiots guide to an aftermarket exhaust required

Snelly55

Snelly55

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Hi,

I had never heard of the word farkle until joining this forum as have never really tweaked any of my motorbikes or had an interest in doing so. With my GS though, there are so many blingy improvements that can be made that I am finding myself drawn into purchases I would not have previously considered! All the minor things I have changed on my bike have been definite improvements and am now thinking about changing the exhaust.

I have spent plenty of time reading through the threads I can find here on the subject but am no further forward in choosing one really. I get that the benefit of the change is an improvement in engine sound, a minor performance boost and enhanced appearance but over and above that, am still lacking enough knowledge to make an informed decision on what to go for.

I could really do with reading an article or two on the subject of aftermarket exhausts and particularly, recommendations on what to choose and why. Full system or end can? Which brand? Which material? Euro 1/2/3/4/5? How much to spend and so on.

Apologies if this exists already on the forum and I haven't found it but it would be great if any of you could point me in the right direction.
 
Where to start

The simple reality is that you may save a bit of weight which IMO is always a good thing but performance increase for just changing the end can is very negligible
The whole exhaust, losing the Cat is a different matter but often involves re mapping to gain any BHP

My honest opinion is it should be taken as a cosmetic upgrade rather than a performance one Most do sound better but for full on loud the baffles need to be out

For a GS I would recommend a Yoshimura for quality looks and sound

My Pikes peak has a nice Homologated Termignoni system that still has a cat but its a bit smaller than the standard 1260. There is available a different end can labeled the Pikes Peak special edition ( Termignoni D193)
It looks ok but sounds no different weighs no less and for 700 quid I won't be bothering

The can on a GS is a huge and hideous thing IMO and should be changed

My mate has a KTM SDR with a full Akra system that looks bloody lovely, sounds fantastic and costs about £2K

We tested his bike against my standard 1290GT on all sorts of roll on tests and there certainly wasn't £2k difference if any at all
Oh and he has just taken it off s the Insurance went from 200 quid to 800 because of it
 
It’s only ever going to be cosmetic without going for a full system, the standard can is easily modified to be “straight through” if a bit more noise is required.

I’d avoid carbon because of big power pulses from the boxer twin.

I have a HP Corse fitted to mine just because it’s different from the crowd. Hand made in Italy and imho looks good.

The defacto thing to do is fit the Akrapovic. Buy a used Euro 3 which will fit all LC 1200/1250s.

Pay up to around £500 for a Euro 3 used Akrapovic, use it for two or 3 years, keep it mint, sell it back on here for £400 ish.

If it’s power, all the restriction is in the cat, so a full system decats and gets rid of the flappy valve.

Even though I have a can on mine, for looks and a bit more noise, the stock can is actually pretty good, not overly heavy and £500 on a used Akrapovic would also get you a tunnel ticket and a few days quality riding in Europe (when it’s permitted).
 
Akra on mine with Baffles out.
 

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Euro3 Akrapovic here on my 1250 great piece of kit !
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Some one will correct me if i'm wrong,

But as fair as i know euro 1,2,3 etc, are just emission target levels applicable at point of sale

All new bikes i believe have to be euro 4 or 5 at point of sale for emmisions regs

sign the paperwork, take the bike of the forcourt and it all ends there

Unlike cars, emissions are not tested for bikes, only noise & condition.

So it can be a straight through length of pipe, if you so wish ;)

so you can get the bike home and put on what you want
 
Santa-2512 said:
Some one will correct me if i'm wrong,

But as fair as i know euro 1,2,3 etc, are just emission target levels applicable at point of sale

All new bikes i believe have to be euro 4 or 5 at point of sale for emmisions regs

sign the paperwork, take the bike of the forcourt and it all ends there

Unlike cars, emissions are not tested for bikes, only noise & condition.

So it can be a straight through length of pipe, if you so wish ;)

so you can get the bike home and put on what you want
Click to expand...

You are in essence correct AFAIK

But the euro 12345 thing affects the way an Akra fits ( This is relating to Akra end cans only) a EU2 can won't fit onto a EU4 bike for example
 
I will be honest, I try Akra and Schnitzer, both very nice look good, but I go back to original as it is very good, I just paint it black.
 
Well if its idiots you want, ask Nutty and his flyboy boyfriend Arsey, they seem to know everything there is to know about GSs, sure they will keep you right. :p:D
 
I think after market exhausts are the most overrated overpriced waste of money. Surely there’s better ways to spend around the best part of £1000 or more. In the old days 70s 80s there was good reasons to change systems where a worthwhile gain in performance could be obtained. Sometimes they were lighter too. The cost of Genuine new systems was very high and it was cheaper to buy an after market item when corrosion set in. Also the exhaust is vulnerable in the event of an accident so a cheap performance can can be used to replace damaged items. When I see a bike with a zorst I wonder why was the old probably perfect one replaced. Or is there something to hide? JJH
 
JJH said:
I think after market exhausts are the most overrated overpriced waste of money. Surely there’s better ways to spend around the best part of £1000 or more. In the old days 70s 80s there was good reasons to change systems where a worthwhile gain in performance could be obtained. Sometimes they were lighter too. The cost of Genuine new systems was very high and it was cheaper to buy an after market item when corrosion set in. Also the exhaust is vulnerable in the event of an accident so a cheap performance can can be used to replace damaged items. When I see a bike with a zorst I wonder why was the old probably perfect one replaced. Or is there something to hide? JJH
Click to expand...

You forgot how much they annoy the neighbours on a Sunday morning!
For me, standard is quiet and perfect. Does not attract attenion.
 
JJH said:
I think after market exhausts are the most overrated overpriced waste of money. Surely there’s better ways to spend around the best part of £1000 or more. In the old days 70s 80s there was good reasons to change systems where a worthwhile gain in performance could be obtained. Sometimes they were lighter too. The cost of Genuine new systems was very high and it was cheaper to buy an after market item when corrosion set in. Also the exhaust is vulnerable in the event of an accident so a cheap performance can can be used to replace damaged items. When I see a bike with a zorst I wonder why was the old probably perfect one replaced. Or is there something to hide? JJH
Click to expand...

I have nothing to hide.Maybe i have nothing better to do with my money.
 
JJH said:
I think after market exhausts are the most overrated overpriced waste of money. Surely there’s better ways to spend around the best part of £1000 or more. In the old days 70s 80s there was good reasons to change systems where a worthwhile gain in performance could be obtained. Sometimes they were lighter too. The cost of Genuine new systems was very high and it was cheaper to buy an after market item when corrosion set in. Also the exhaust is vulnerable in the event of an accident so a cheap performance can can be used to replace damaged items. When I see a bike with a zorst I wonder why was the old probably perfect one replaced. Or is there something to hide? JJH
Click to expand...

Don't forget the weight saving bit tho; an 18st, 4 stone overweight bloke might save 3lbs on a new exhaust. :beerjug:
 
I have just put a Mivv speed edge on mine, a lot cheaper than most, baffles out and it sounds awesome
As mentioned your not gaining anything power wise with just an end can but looks and sound are much better than the standard
 
RedRick Esq. said:
You are in essence correct AFAIK

But the euro 12345 thing affects the way an Akra fits ( This is relating to Akra end cans only) a EU2 can won't fit onto a EU4 bike for example
Click to expand...

The Akra off my 2015 RT fits my 2019 1250RT fine. Of course not sure about the GS
 
For the 1200/1250GS there is only One exhaust that is very well made and gives you more power in the mid-range and sounds very good as in deep with DB-killers removed...Akrapovic EU-3 ! You can get it from Akrapovic with a sticker or from BMW with the HP-Akra logo etched on it...As for header pipes I would not mess with it because the bike gets really loud and you probably have to mess with the ECU to see any gains...
 
I have been reading the German Motorrad magazine for around 20 years. On their long-term test machines (of all makes) they always try out a variety of slip-on exhaust end cans and dyno them.

From memory, Akrapovic are the only manufacturer to consistently match or beat the power output of the original system whilst saving weight and without being excessively noisy - and we are talking maybe +1 BHP at max revs.

On the other hand some poorly designed end-cans can lose up to 5 BHP at max revs, but I suspect most would be so thrilled by the extra noise that they would not notice this.
 
Forget about weight savings, and forget about power increases. An end can won’t give noticeable differences of either.

But an Akra or whatever else will sound and look better, which is the main reason why people change, if they’re honest. ;)
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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