A.W.E. saga continues....
05-01-2009 | 12:53 AM
#16
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 781
Likes: 1
Guys keep in mind that there are always going to be a bad set of some hardware out there from the thousands of sets I am sure they have sold. I just hope that Todd or Mike at AWE take care of the OP to make him whole.
As far as $5k on an exhaust system...OUCH!!. My whole exhaust system cost me only $2500.
My exhaust consists of X51 headers, AWE cats (newer HJS 200cpi) and Borla mufflers.
Dave
As far as $5k on an exhaust system...OUCH!!. My whole exhaust system cost me only $2500.
My exhaust consists of X51 headers, AWE cats (newer HJS 200cpi) and Borla mufflers.
Dave
05-01-2009 | 11:25 AM
#17
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 15,358
Likes: 183
From: Tampa
Guys keep in mind that there are always going to be a bad set of some hardware out there from the thousands of sets I am sure they have sold. I just hope that Todd or Mike at AWE take care of the OP to make him whole.
As far as $5k on an exhaust system...OUCH!!. My whole exhaust system cost me only $2500.
My exhaust consists of X51 headers, AWE cats (newer HJS 200cpi) and Borla mufflers.
Dave
As far as $5k on an exhaust system...OUCH!!. My whole exhaust system cost me only $2500.
My exhaust consists of X51 headers, AWE cats (newer HJS 200cpi) and Borla mufflers.
Dave
I had Borla on a lot of differents Vette's before...Boral makes an outstanding product.
05-01-2009 | 04:09 PM
#18
Thread Starter
Rennlist Member
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 4,136
Likes: 469
From: In a van down by the Ottawa River ...
05-01-2009 | 05:31 PM
#19
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 781
Likes: 1
How are you liking the Borla mufflers? Have you had any other muffler on the car before to compare?
I had Borla on a lot of differents Vette's before...Boral makes an outstanding product.
I had Borla on a lot of differents Vette's before...Boral makes an outstanding product.
I am loving my Borlas. Much more aggressive sounding than the AWE's that I had before.. I do have the AWE 200cpi HJS cats with X51 headers and the car sounds awesome. I posted some videos of the interior sounds awhile back. They are lighter than the AWE's and they come with nice tips to begin with so that also makes them a bargain.
Dave
05-01-2009 | 07:31 PM
#20
Banned
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 15,022
Likes: 12
From: Back in the OC
In the first pic it sure looks odd to see such a short weld bead right there in the middle of the seam. I don't know if that's all the engineering called for, one short weld bead in the middle. But now that I think about it, it could also be that the engineering (if it was good engineering) may have called for a continuous weld throughout the seam, and the shop guys may have just ground down the welds too much in order to pretty up the seams, in violation of the engineering. That's just a guess. But if so, that means they probably do that to all their cans, meaning there are probably more like these in the field that are cracked or may crack soon just like seen here. That's just pure speculation of course.
The exhaust system in any motor vehicle sees the most vibration of any component. The intense pressure pulse waves from the exhaust ports set up tremendous vibration when they collide with the internal baffling components of exhaust systems, creating a severe vibration environment for welds. Welds by their nature are brittle compared to the parent material that's being welded, and are vulnerable to geometry stress risers that can easily precipitate a stress crack that spreads along a seam, as seen in the photos.
It will be interesting to hear what AWE says about this failure.
05-01-2009 | 09:16 PM
#21
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 781
Likes: 1
Judging from the pics, I'm not so sure it's a manufacturing defect. It could very well be the engineering design.
In the first pic it sure looks odd to see such a short weld bead right there in the middle of the seam. I don't know if that's all the engineering called for, one short weld bead in the middle. But now that I think about it, it could also be that the engineering (if it was good engineering) may have called for a continuous weld throughout the seam, and the shop guys may have just ground down the welds too much in order to pretty up the seams, in violation of the engineering. That's just a guess. But if so, that means they probably do that to all their cans, meaning there are probably more like these in the field that are cracked or may crack soon just like seen here. That's just pure speculation of course.
The exhaust system in any motor vehicle sees the most vibration of any component. The intense pressure pulse waves from the exhaust ports set up tremendous vibration when they collide with the internal baffling components of exhaust systems, creating a severe vibration environment for welds. Welds by their nature are brittle compared to the parent material that's being welded, and are vulnerable to geometry stress risers that can easily precipitate a stress crack that spreads along a seam, as seen in the photos.
It will be interesting to hear what AWE says about this failure.
In the first pic it sure looks odd to see such a short weld bead right there in the middle of the seam. I don't know if that's all the engineering called for, one short weld bead in the middle. But now that I think about it, it could also be that the engineering (if it was good engineering) may have called for a continuous weld throughout the seam, and the shop guys may have just ground down the welds too much in order to pretty up the seams, in violation of the engineering. That's just a guess. But if so, that means they probably do that to all their cans, meaning there are probably more like these in the field that are cracked or may crack soon just like seen here. That's just pure speculation of course.
The exhaust system in any motor vehicle sees the most vibration of any component. The intense pressure pulse waves from the exhaust ports set up tremendous vibration when they collide with the internal baffling components of exhaust systems, creating a severe vibration environment for welds. Welds by their nature are brittle compared to the parent material that's being welded, and are vulnerable to geometry stress risers that can easily precipitate a stress crack that spreads along a seam, as seen in the photos.
It will be interesting to hear what AWE says about this failure.
Dave
05-02-2009 | 03:33 PM
#23
Race Car
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 3,897
Likes: 11
From: Suburban Philly
05-02-2009 | 08:18 PM
#24
Track Day
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 16
Likes: 0
I'm sorry to hear you're having a problem with AWE. I've never had issues with their products or customer service (granted my stuff is also from their Audi line), and I really hope they step up and make it right. Mike, John, and Todd are all good people, so hopefully a favorable solution comes out of this.
05-02-2009 | 08:52 PM
#25
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 6
From: Dana Point, CA
05-02-2009 | 09:17 PM
#26
Racer
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 400
Likes: 0
From: San Jose, California
