4" PWG Shuenk catless downpipe review for e82 n55

[Trevor6mt135i]

**Update**
I could not find much forum information on this downpipe, so i figured i would do my own review on it.

To start, this product is an absolutely beautiful piece of art and i'm bummed it has to be hidden under the vehicle. Man does it sound good! My car has a completely factory exhaust/intake (other than golf-tee mod). Only the downpipe has been added, and wow. What a difference it made!

Doug Harper from Shuenk has been great to communicate with. I've gotten quick replies and very useful information as he answered my questions.

Review pros/cons
Pros:
- Beautiful transitions
- Sound
- Welds
- Packaging
- Customer service
- Perfect fit
- Easy to install (no bell housing bracket)
- Factory o2 locations
Cons:
- Lack of hardware/gaskets
- Small blemishes
- Price

Discussion of cons:
Lack of hardware/gaskets -
I was really bummed to not see hardware/gaskets included in the package. Due to the time of delivery and time i got off work. I had 30 minutes to run to the hardware store and get some bolts, nuts, and washers. I ended up getting some that were almost too long, but was able to make them work. Thankfully this car isn't my daily driver, so i will just replace them in a few days when i have the time.

Lack of hardware/gaskets -
I totally did not expect for this to come with a new turbo-downpipe gasket.
I was expecting to get a new downpipe-midpipe gasket along with hardware to bolt everything together. The lack of this caused me to drive to the hardware store for bolts and have to reuse the factory midpipe gaskets. No big deal whatsoever, but still a con in my opinion.

Small blemishes -
You will see a picture of the downpipe-midpipe flange with red circles. There were a couple of blemishes on the flange where the gaskets would sit. This caused a little bit of a raised surface. A few easy swipes with some sand paper corrected this issue no problem!

Price -
At $381.74 shipped, this is a costly downpipe compared to some of it's counterparts (VRSF and CTS TURBO for example).
I'm not sure that since it is a newer brand(?? I don't know) that it is causing cost to be raised to pay for initial R&D?
Either way, for no gaskets/hardware, it's a bit of a hefty price.

Overall opinion:
I am 110% satisfied with my purchase. I am thankful that Scott recommended this product.
Although I am VERY satisfied with my purchase, i don't know if it would be worth me spending ~$382 again on a downpipe with no hardware/gaskets. I think the price is a little high considering some of the market as well as other products from Shuenk. To me, it doesn't make sense that a piece of pipe is 25% of the cost of an entire "stage 2" turbo upgrade that includes a brand new manifold, turbo, DV, and inlet (not sure if core has to included or if that is a whole new unit).

To summarize:
I would recommend everyone to buy the product. It fits perfectly and sounds amazing.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Congrats OP

[Info@mad-us.com]

Op,

Looks very similar to ours.

[Trevor6mt135i]

Hey mad-us,

Yes they are very similar. Is yours a 4” for a PWG?