New 102mm Exhaust Tips on my AWE Touring Exhaust

[The Machine]

So I guess I'll start this off with a little back story. I originally bought my AWE Touring Exhaust with 102mm tips used from a member on here, but he had painted the exhaust tips black due to the peeling of the polished finish. Once I took possession of the exhaust I had the AWE tips powder coated. After several attempts to get the tips powder coated correctly before I had the exhaust installed, the powder coater still dropped the ball on the color that I wanted. I wanted a more chrome/polished look like how they come from AWE, but when I picked them up they were basically a silver metallic type color. Not horrible, but not really what I wanted and I couldn't have the powder coater redo them again because the exhaust was being installed the next day and I wasn't going to be driving around with no tips on the car.

So fast forward to today. I feel like with the tips being powder coated and despite having ceramic coating them myself, the carbon building up from the exhaust still wanted to sink into the powder coat and wouldn't come as clean as I would have liked to when washing them. I didn't want to buy new tips directly from AWE because as I've found out recently they are charging about $70 per tip (102mm w/Black Diamond finish, I'm not sure of the cost for the polished finish) plus shipping so I wanted to find a similar alternative.

I wound up coming across these tips on ebay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-25-inlet-...97.m4902.l9144

I figured $143 was better than having to spend $280 plus shipping so I thought I might as well give them a shot.

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr



Upon arrival I did a test fit only to find that they wouldn't go over the Y pipe coming out of the muffler. It wasn't off by much so I decided to cut the ends of the exhaust tips.

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr


After cutting the ends, the clearance was a little better, but still wasn't quite enough for the tips to slide on freely so I rented a tail pipe expander tool from Auto Zone.

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr


Once I used the expander the tips slid right over the Y pipe perfectly!

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr


Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr


Once I completed everything I cleaned the exhaust tips up and put on two coats of 9H Mr. Fix ceramic coating.

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr



Final thoughts, I think the finish looks great and if you don't mind a little bit of work to make them fit over the Y pipe, they are a solid alternative to save some money instead of having to buy new AWE tips. Time will tell if they will have any issues with the finish fading or chipping, but hopefully the ceramic coating will help protect them from that.

[ModItNow]

That's awesome, good job. I need some new tips on my car too

Sent from my S9+

[Strong Man]

Really Good job!!!

[seandon_792]

That looks great. I do have a question about adjustability though since I typically prefer to have my tips extend slightly past the valence. Would these be able to do that?


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[The Machine]

That's awesome, good job. I need some new tips on my car too

Sent from my S9+

Thank you!

Really Good job!!!

Thank you!

That looks great. I do have a question about adjustability though since I typically prefer to have my tips extend slightly past the valence. Would these be able to do that?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks man! If you're looking for a little more poke beyond the valance these will be able to accommodate that. I like mine to be pretty flush with the valance and the way I had them on in the pic I was just showing how far they can go onto the exhaust. I'll have to fine tune fitment once I install them.

[The Machine]

Final install and adjustments complete.


Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr

[SteveYem]

Nice work, those new tips look good.
It's interesting that your muffler outlet "y pipes" are made from pieces of straight tube welded together. If I remember correctly my AWE Touring 90mm muffler outlets are made from bent sections of tubing, i.e. no sharp corners. Did AWE change the design for the 120mm tip version, or were your mufflers modified at some point?

EDIT: Also, how did you secure them to the y-pipes? Clamps or welded?

[The Machine]

Nice work, those new tips look good.
It's interesting that your muffler outlet "y pipes" are made from pieces of straight tube welded together. If I remember correctly my AWE Touring 90mm muffler outlets are made from bent sections of tubing, i.e. no sharp corners. Did AWE change the design for the 120mm tip version, or were your mufflers modified at some point?

EDIT: Also, how did you secure them to the y-pipes? Clamps or welded?

Thanks man! As far as I know that’s how the Y pipe looked from day one from AWE. I got the exhaust from member Dannydyn so maybe he could shed some more light on the subject as far as the Y pipe goes, but everything looks to be unaltered to me. I re-used the clamps from the AWE tips, but when I was test fitting I wound up shearing a bolt somehow so I had to wait for a replacement clamp to come before I could finish installing them. So for that one pic I just slid the tips on to show how they fit.

[SteveYem]

Thanks man! As far as I know that’s how the Y pipe looked from day one from AWE. I got the exhaust from member Dannydyn so maybe he could shed some more light on the subject as far as the Y pipe goes, but everything looks to be unaltered to me. I re-used the clamps from the AWE tips, but when I was test fitting I wound up shearing a bolt somehow so I had to wait for a replacement clamp to come before I could finish installing them. So for that one pic I just slid the tips on to show how they fit.

OK. Well that leads me to another question - my 90mm AWE tips have a split (like the ones you cut into your new tips) which has clamping flanges on either side of it, using a screw and nut to squeeze the split section acting as a clamp. It sounds like your AWE tips came with external (separate) clamps?

[ModdedEuros]

Really good job

[The Machine]

OK. Well that leads me to another question - my 90mm AWE tips have a split (like the ones you cut into your new tips) which has clamping flanges on either side of it, using a screw and nut to squeeze the split section acting as a clamp. It sounds like your AWE tips came with external (separate) clamps?

My AWE tips also have the same split, I think we have the same style clamps as well. I've always known them as a T-Bolt style clamp.

Untitled by gccgoalie33, on Flickr


After test fitting the tips the first time, when putting my AWE tips back on I was tightening that nut and it wound up shearing the bolt about half way up the threads. I ordered new t-bolt clamps which turned out to be too big, so instead of ordering new clamps again and waiting for them, I stole the t-bolt out of a new clamp and then put it in the clamp the AWE exhaust came with.

[The Machine]

Really good job

Thank you!

[Corradobrit]

Yeah, those T-clamps are a problem. Bought a set of 4 on Ebay and 3 of the 4 sheared on the threaded section. Got a set direct from AWE and so far they have held up.

[ShopVac]

Great work - looks fantastic.

[The Machine]

Yeah, those T-clamps are a problem. Bought a set of 4 on Ebay and 3 of the 4 sheared on the threaded section. Got a set direct from AWE and so far they have held up.

They seem heavy duty enough and I wasn't really wrenching on the one that broke that hard. But who knows how many times they have been adjusted or messed with before. I was just glad I was able to get it sorted out without having to buy new clamps again.

Great work - looks fantastic.

Thank you, sir!

[Corradobrit]

They seem heavy duty enough and I wasn't really wrenching on the one that broke that hard. But who knows how many times they have been adjusted or messed with before. I was just glad I was able to get it sorted out without having to buy new clamps again.



Thank you, sir!

The 3 clamps didn't shear while they were tightened. It occurred between 4-6 weeks later. Combination of winter weather, poor metallurgy and the tension caused the metal to fatigue and break. I was so lucky that the other 2 tips didn't fall off as they were only holding on by friction at the short flanges. The official AWE clamps seem to be better made although I do find myself checking the tips regularly now.

[The Machine]

The 3 clamps didn't shear while they were tightened. It occurred between 4-6 weeks later. Combination of winter weather, poor metallurgy and the tension caused the metal to fatigue and break. I was so lucky that the other 2 tips didn't fall off as they were only holding on by friction at the short flanges. The official AWE clamps seem to be better made although I do find myself checking the tips regularly now.

Wow man, I'm surprised the tips were able to hang on like that, you are really lucky. I don't blame you for regularly checking them after that. Once bitten, twice shy type deal.

I feel the same way when I get gas. I had an issue with water getting into the carbon canister and the pump would click off after .10 of gas would go in. I've since figured out the issue and it's fully rectified, but every time I get gas I'm always sitting there thinking, please don't click off please don't click off, lol.

[James D]

Looks great, I purchased a CF diffuser thinking that the 102mm tips would not fit... looks great nice job.

[The Machine]

Looks great, I purchased a CF diffuser thinking that the 102mm tips would not fit... looks great nice job.

Thanks man!

[esfyve]

Great solution. Luckily AWE was able to replace my exhaust tips under warranty, but they definitely needed to be coated before install. How is the Mr. Fix ceramic coating holding up? I'm debating between this and cquartz.

[The Machine]

Great solution. Luckily AWE was able to replace my exhaust tips under warranty, but they definitely needed to be coated before install. How is the Mr. Fix ceramic coating holding up? I'm debating between this and cquartz.

Thanks! So far I have had no issues being able to clean the exhaust tips. I try to keep up with them as best as I can though, even if I don't wash the entire car, I'll try to at least do the exhaust tips every two weeks. But so far so good, every time I clean them they look as brand new as the day I bought them.

Not sure if I mentioned this before, but I use Bar Keeper's Friend to clean the tips. It cleans and keeps the tips polished at the same time, great stuff.

https://smile.amazon.com/Bar-Keepers...friend+cleaner

[Dannydyn]

Great job.

AWE's customer service with regards to worn off finish is the absolute 5hit (ask me how I know).

[The Machine]

Great job.

AWE's customer service with regards to worn off finish is the absolute 5hit (ask me how I know).

Thank you!

Lol. I didn't even bother contacting them to try and purchase new tips for fear the same thing that happened to your finish would happen to mine. Figured I would give these tips a shot to see how they withstand the test of time. So far I'm very pleased with the finish.

[Dannydyn]

Thank you!

Lol. I didn't even bother contacting them to try and purchase new tips for fear the same thing that happened to your finish would happen to mine. Figured I would give these tips a shot to see how they withstand the test of time. So far I'm very pleased with the finish.

You saved a lot of time and aggravation dealing with these a55holes. They make great product. Too bad they won't stand by their word with regards to 1-yr warranty.

[esfyve]

Thanks! So far I have had no issues being able to clean the exhaust tips. I try to keep up with them as best as I can though, even if I don't wash the entire car, I'll try to at least do the exhaust tips every two weeks. But so far so good, every time I clean them they look as brand new as the day I bought them.

Not sure if I mentioned this before, but I use Bar Keeper's Friend to clean the tips. It cleans and keeps the tips polished at the same time, great stuff.

https://smile.amazon.com/Bar-Keepers...friend+cleaner

My only concern with that is the tips you got are polished steel, not chrome plated. Why tf AWE would go with chrome plating over polished steel? I have no idea. But chrome plating is a whole new ballgame and I'm hoping ceramic keeps it from pitting as most metal polishes cause pitting.

You saved a lot of time and aggravation dealing with these a55holes. They make great product. Too bad they won't stand by their word with regards to 1-yr warranty.

It took forever for them to get in contact with me. I bought through Urotuning (who has been super responsive and has really pushed AWE for a resolution). Eventually AWE got in contact with me, took about a week, and they are replacing them.

[Dannydyn]

It took forever for them to get in contact with me. I bought through Urotuning (who has been super responsive and has really pushed AWE for a resolution). Eventually AWE got in contact with me, took about a week, and they are replacing them.

I wasn't as lucky... they refused to replace them under warranty. I ended up spraying them matte black, before eventually selling the exhaust:

[JeriQo]

if i were to get ebay tips, 2.5 would be the inlet im looking for, correct?

[BillyS4]

if i were to get ebay tips, 2.5 would be the inlet im looking for, correct?

2.25 is a perfect fit.

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[doughboy17]

Can anyone with 102 mm/ 4 in. tips with the stock valence comment whether there is enough clearance between the tips and the valence to clean them with a cloth or would any polish/solvent just be deposited on the valence and eventually deteriorate it?

[The Machine]

My only concern with that is the tips you got are polished steel, not chrome plated. Why tf AWE would go with chrome plating over polished steel? I have no idea. But chrome plating is a whole new ballgame and I'm hoping ceramic keeps it from pitting as most metal polishes cause pitting.

I've been using Bar Keeper's Friend on all types of exhaust for years to clean them and never had any issues with it.

if i were to get ebay tips, 2.5 would be the inlet im looking for, correct?

2.5" inlet may be a little too large. 2.25" is the correct inlet size, but as you can see, I had to open the inlet up a little bit for these tips to be able to fit properly over the Y pipe coming off the mufflers.

Can anyone with 102 mm/ 4 in. tips with the stock valence comment whether there is enough clearance between the tips and the valence to clean them with a cloth or would any polish/solvent just be deposited on the valence and eventually deteriorate it?

I have this setup and I can only clean certain parts of each tip. The 4" tips really fill the valance up and it's hard to clean all parts properly. It is also hard to clean in between each tip as well. The only way to truly clean everything would be to take the tips off. Or to clean the majority of them you would have to lower the exhaust a little bit to clean the very tops of them. I'm not too worried about that though since the tips are tucked under the valance pretty well so any parts that are dirty are hidden anyway. Plus that's what the ceramic coating is for, anything that I can't readily clean, when it comes time to clean them fully the ceramic coating will make it that much easier to do.

[JeriQo]

I've been using Bar Keeper's Friend on all types of exhaust for years to clean them and never had any issues with it.



2.5" inlet may be a little too large. 2.25" is the correct inlet size, but as you can see, I had to open the inlet up a little bit for these tips to be able to fit properly over the Y pipe coming off the mufflers.



I have this setup and I can only clean certain parts of each tip. The 4" tips really fill the valance up and it's hard to clean all parts properly. It is also hard to clean in between each tip as well. The only way to truly clean everything would be to take the tips off. Or to clean the majority of them you would have to lower the exhaust a little bit to clean the very tops of them. I'm not too worried about that though since the tips are tucked under the valance pretty well so any parts that are dirty are hidden anyway. Plus that's what the ceramic coating is for, anything that I can't readily clean, when it comes time to clean them fully the ceramic coating will make it that much easier to do.

would a 4" tip be a direct bolt on stock mufflers? im planning on just clamping it rather than welding.

[The Machine]

I'm not too sure when it comes to changing out the stock exhaust tips as I've never personally looked into changing them, but here are a couple threads I found about that subject:

https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...k-exhaust-tips

https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...r-exhaust-tips

[Ornithology]

Great write up! Thank you. Will be doing this for sure.

[rockstar143]

I waited.
They have quantity of 1 available.
I'll sit tight, did write to the seller asking when they'll get more.
I don't hate what I've done with mine, but this is a nice solution, Chip.
Thanks for sharing!

[eurotuner123]

Thanks for sharing. I actually just purchased these tips for my AWE touring rear mufflers and they look great! I did notice that I did not have to modify them like the OP since they slipped over the y pipes freely. I actually had them welded in place since I didn't want to deal with those small cheap clamps.

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[rockstar143]

@themachine
how are your tips?
are they still nice?
can we see pics?
I like your tips.
I was thinking I'd like to get
your tips.