The Mercedes-AMG C43's Exhaust Tips Are Still Fake, But I'm OK With That

Despite being a frequent complainer of fake exhaust tips, I've reconciled with the C43's falsies
The Mercedes-AMG C43's Exhaust Tips Are Still Fake, But I'm OK With That

There’s something about fake exhaust tips that really riles me. It is, I think, partly because the practice seems a little dishonest, and partly because a lot of them look so cack close up. And sometimes not that close up.

I know why car makers like to fit them. The peashooter-spec exhausts on many modern cars would look a little embarrassing without a little dress-up, after all, and designers like the back ends of their cars to look powerful and shporty. In some instances, they also act as heat shields, which is handy if you don’t fancy melting your rear bumper.

Don't be fooled by the new Audi S6 TDI's exhaust pipes!
Don't be fooled by the new Audi S6 TDI's exhaust pipes!

This does little to assuage my rage, however, particularly when it comes to cars like the new TDI Audi S4/5/6/7 and SQ5, whose real pipes don’t even point the right way. Despite being swept down towards the ground, Audi has added fake quad tailpipes that are entirely blanked off. It’s morally wrong.

You can probably imagine my delight, then, when it looked as though Mercedes’ updated range of AMG C43s had switched to proper, real quad tailpipes instead of those trapezoidal ‘things’ on the earlier cars.

The new C43's rear pipes may still be fake, but they look heaps better than this arrangement
The new C43's rear pipes may still be fake, but they look heaps better…

More like it, I thought, until I took delivery of ‘our’ C43 estate long-term test car, a close-up inspection of which revealed I’d been duped. They’re as fake as Donald Trump’s tan, making me so upset I wanted to walk around the car shouting ‘SHAME!’ like those nuns on Game of Thrones.

Lies!
Lies!

A few months into C43 ‘ownership’ however, I’ve decided I’m OK with the arrangement. That’s mostly because they actually look real, unlike what was fitted to the pre-update cars. They’re reminiscent of the quad tailpipes AMG used to stick on its cars, and crucially, they’re actually functional, with a metal shroud fitted to the other side of the bumper effectively feeding through exhaust gases; an important point as firstly it’s nice to know they actually do something, and secondly because it saves any potential embarrassment over wayward exhaust clouds on a cold start.

The Mercedes-AMG C43's oval pipes are much more agreeable than the weird trapezoidal arrangement on the C63 and C63 S
The Mercedes-AMG C43's oval pipes are much more agreeable than the weird…

I’d love to be in a world where every performance car has a dirty great set of stainless steel pipes poking out from under the rear bumper, but that’s just not reality. If a set of fake ones can pass the test above, however, I reckon they’re OK.

Do you agree?

Comments

Anonymous

C43 AMG shouldn’t exist

06/16/2019 - 08:06 |
26 | 18
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Just my opinion, no need to get butthurt.

06/16/2019 - 08:06 |
6 | 12
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

well I thought so the same way but my dad recently bought a 2017 model and it is really nice, especially because the exhaust note is amazing imo. Also it was less expensive than an Audi A6 Quattro with less features and less hp. But I get your point

06/16/2019 - 10:33 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Any reason why you feel that way?

Does that mean you think that the likes of the BMW 340i and Audi S4 shouldn’t exist either?

06/16/2019 - 12:59 |
14 | 2
Basith Penna-Hakkim

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

A C53 AMG exists so what is the point of a C43

06/19/2019 - 00:39 |
0 | 0
Tomislav Celić

I’ll be honest

Fake vents and exhaust tips are okay. Actually they are more than okay. I don’t want to see brown exhaust tips with the 3 mm diameter.

Same with vents/grilles. I don’t want to see a car with 1 m2 front end and a 1 cm2 grille.

It causes no harm, and actually makes cars look better (not good, better).

06/16/2019 - 08:14 |
10 | 8

learn to write ²,³,¤,€,¼,½,¾,‘,’,¥,×,¡.

06/16/2019 - 08:53 |
2 | 4

Mercedes should just put REAL nice exhaust tips on their cars none of this fake bs

06/16/2019 - 10:47 |
12 | 0
DL🏁

Thats kinda half-fake, which I am ok with
Full-fake like on the SQ5 or something should be made illegal

06/16/2019 - 08:19 |
8 | 0
Anonymous

There should’ve been a A class with a 6 cylinder for the last generation.

06/16/2019 - 08:29 |
4 | 4
Wogmidget

I’m more annoyed by their putting quad pipes, fake or not, on a sub-eight-cylinder car.

06/16/2019 - 09:02 |
4 | 8

Well then I’m guessing you hate the new WRX over anything

06/18/2019 - 11:56 |
2 | 0
Anonymous

I drove one but i didnt like the car itself no comfort the engine didnt pull like what you expect no space in it and all for way to much money

06/16/2019 - 10:24 |
0 | 0
BMWfan

Nope, I still hate them. But I didn’t know about the Audi S TDI cars… a complete dealbreaker for me. It’s a shame because they’re such great cars. I was surprised to see that, it’s not very Audi-esque… looks like something a French car maker would do 🤦🏻‍♂️

06/16/2019 - 13:23 |
4 | 2
Lord Saucius The Divine

True.

06/16/2019 - 13:55 |
0 | 0
Martin Burns

It’s echoic of our contrived and illusionary world. Commercial deterioration. This is about our slow decay.

A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right…

A poignant warning the world continues to ignore despite that wisdom being over 250 years old

06/16/2019 - 15:26 |
32 | 2

I didn’t expect this kind of poetry and literary eloquence here on CT 😂😂

06/16/2019 - 19:17 |
22 | 0

It’s a brave new world.

06/17/2019 - 08:15 |
2 | 0
White Comet

doesn’t matter how good it looks, fake exhaust is gay. Period.

06/17/2019 - 07:50 |
6 | 0

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