Dinan free flow exhaust... how's it sound? (more)

[Dean323i]

anyone have the Dinan exhaust on their otherwise stock e46 323i? How does it sound? I know that sound is very subjective, of course... but is it much different from stock OEM? I am looking for a nice sound, not too loud or overtuned.
THanks

[Ultimateone]

Curious also..

[Dean323i]

I had the Dinan installed yesterday.
I haven't noticed any performance gains, and I doubt I ever will, but the improved sound is worth price of admission any day. Very nice rumble and burble, especially when starting the car and at downshifts. Plus, it looks nice too

[EdgarFan659]

Hey cool! Do you have a pic of your car? How much did the exhast plus the installation end up running you?

[Dean323i]

hi
no pictures yet, but I will get on it. The tips are very nicely polished with "DINAN" etched on each. They stick out past the rear valence a few inched, but not past the bumper. The muffler itself is very clean looking and is visible as well. The fit is great... no rubbing or anything as it exits the valence. So far, no rattles or anything, but I've only gone 50 miles or so. We'll see how it holds up.
It was about $730 parts, labor, and tax. When I initially inquired, the guy told me that the BMWCCA discount applied to the Dinan parts. He later discovered he was wrong about that, but he stuck to his word (good guy) and gave me the discount.

[328isRob]

Did you look into any of the other mufflers? AA, Supersprint, Remus, Motzart, etc? Just wondering why you chose the dinan.... their perfromance is good but not better than a bunch of others and their price is the highest.... was it just the name that made you choose....?

[Dean323i]

Hi
Yes, I considered a bunch of others. First and foremost, I was seriously considering the Active Autowerke. It has gotten great reviews both in the press and from BMW owners on the boards (www.e46fanatics.com in particular). The price was ok $550 +/- plus about $50 shipping... so about $600 total. I saw one on a car like mine (e46) and I found it to be too big and shiny... kind of flashy in my opinion. So because of that and the fact that it wasn't that much less than the Dinan I ruled it out. I also considered the Supersprint, but I was told that it is about as quiet as stock. So, no good. Turner Motorsport is really pushing the Borla, but I could track down no one who had one on their e46 and most everything I read about Boral kept noting their business is mostly American muscle cars, rather than foreign performance cars. And, it was only a little less than Dinan. I looked at B&B TriFlo, but was convinced it would be too loud for me.
Due to a misquote by the dealer, I was able to get the Dinan at my BMWCCA discount! They caught their mistake, but honored the original quote. So, the Dinan ended up being about the same cost as the otehrs. Independent of that, though, I would have gone Dinan because of that company's "relationship" with BMW... piece of mind. I am glad I did, as it sounds, looks, and performs very nicely.
Good luck!

[J328is]

I also installed a Dinan exhaust on my 96 328is. Just from the looks and the sound that it produces is worth the money...I also installed a Dinan cold air intake with the exhaust. The exhaust is not too loud and it produces the low end sound as oppose to that annoying high-pitched noise that come from the little civics! The intake makes a great sound also!