Any Remus equipped smarts in Texas

Dustoff44 · 10-09-2009, 06:42 AM

I need to hear another smart with the Remus.

I recently had my Remus exhaust installed on my 2009 smart fortwo by Progressive Auto Sports Houston, TX. I waited for several months for the exhaust to arrive. When it was installed I was shocked that I could hear the car in the waiting room. The car was still in the back of the shop. I was going to buy the Remus from Smart Madness in CA but I needed installation. Remus recommended Progressive for the install and purchase. They did their job well. I asked for them to order the Remus and they gave me an installed price.

I was following different cat-back systems on the SCOA forum. The Remus was described as closest to OEM, less noise, no drone, etc,
My wife will not ride in the car anymore.
She loved the smart and would frequently drive it to work...
I can't hear my radio
Kenwood DNX5120 Alpine PDX5 amp, JL Audio sleathbox, Infinity component speakers
Normal listening volume was 10 and is now 20 I can only hear voices and treble, all the midrange and bass is lost in the drone of exhaust.

I really think the exhaust is way louder than represented
It has a dull drone until 3,000 rpm. described by the tech at progressive as a "farty" kind of sound then it gets really loud. Too loud for conversation in the car.

I have owned and or driven many performance cars in the past : Porsche 924GTR, Ferrari 512BB, BMW 633CSI. SCCA H-Pro frog eye Sprite, Sunbeam Tiger. Mercedes ML55. Lexus SC430
I also play Bass so I am used to high volume level onstage.

I think Serge's comment of closest to OEM convinced me to buy the Remus. I now think Serge is deaf...

Dustoff44 · 10-30-2009, 02:50 PM

Found the noise source...
Cold air intake was not connected to the throttle body.
I can say without a doubt that sucking unfiltered air directly into the throttle body inlet makes a car sound really bad.
Remus now sounds great much quieter and the power has also picked up

TMACK · 10-30-2009, 03:04 PM

Jeez, Dustoff44: didn't the shop kind of notice this simple but obvious problem?
How long did you drive around before doing a trouble shoot?

Dustoff44 · 10-30-2009, 03:24 PM

It's been over a month, but the car sounded so bad that It wasn't being driven. They started looking for leaks and or lose connections on the exhaust system immediately. Remus was about to have the exhaust sent to Smart Madness for testing. Duffy at Max Moto (U.S.A. Remus distributor) suggested going back to the stock intake, when removing the Cold AIr intake the mistake was found.

TMACK · 10-30-2009, 04:29 PM

Fascinating.
So tell me, now that you've fixed, do you like the upgrade exhaust?
Is the sound level acceptable?
Most importantly, (to me), have you noticed performance gains?
I ask because I'm looking at like mods.

Dustoff44 · 10-30-2009, 05:52 PM

Absolute power increase. Revs quicker and higher. Exhaust note now as advertised just a bit louder than stock until about 4,000 rpm then it really wakes up. I highly recommend the Remus. If price is a real issue I'd do the "Forge" (evilution) silicon intake pipe and the aFe or K&N filter route.

jetfuel · 10-30-2009, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dustoff44

. Revs quicker and higher..

..glad you found the source of the noise..
...can you explain/elaborate on the higher revs?..I can see quicker...

jetfuel...here to learn

gryphon · 10-30-2009, 06:15 PM

If you haven't done so already, you may want to look at this thread in reference to what gets you the most bang (or not) for your buck.

ECU Upgrade - Test Results

To be found in Smart Car Technical-Smart Car Modifications

Dustoff44 · 10-30-2009, 07:11 PM

It used to slowly rev to about 6,000 rpm, now it goes right to 7,000 rpm except 5th gear which stops the revving at 90 mph