Audi Abandoning Fake Exhaust Pipes

Many of the latest automotive trends seem designed to hurt the feelings of enthusiasts and appease various government ordinances. A prime example of this is companies quieting down exhaust noises and piping simulated sounds into the cabin. This has gradually evolved into automakers hiding the exhaust ports altogether, sometimes replacing them with plastic veneers that do nothing while looking the part. But it hasn’t gone over well with drivers, encouraging some brands to walk the practice back — including Audi.

Speaking to Auto Express earlier this week, Audi stated that “all PPE [Premium Platform Combustion] cars will have ‘hot’ tailpipes; functional tailpipes” moving forward.

If you’re confused about some of the above language, several of the brand’s newer models actually hide exhaust tips behind the rear bumper. A few other manufacturers have also done this, often installing fake exhaust ports into the rear bumper (see the Volkswagen Tiguan below). It has actually been a minor trend on the Chinese market for years. But Western shoppers have proven likely to tolerate it.

From Auto Express:

The trend of moving the exhaust exit pipes beneath the car and fitting exhaust-like trim to the bumpers has been met with near-universal disdain, however. The changes Audi is making are the result of “customer feedback”, the spokesperson told us. “It’s for the design”.

While there’s no confirmation the new Audi “hot tailpipe” design policy will manifest itself on the maker’s smaller, MQB-based models, all of the larger PPC-platform Audis will get functional exhaust tips going forward. That starts with the A5, and will presumably include the forthcoming Q5, A7 and Q7 models, plus any future successor to the A8, which is likely to be badged A9.

In a similar vein, the decision to remove the fake pipes from its petrol models means that Audi’s EVs will feature a cleaner rear end, free from ICE-mimicking visual trickery. This is already the case with the Q4, Q6 and Q8 e-tron models, and is expected to carry over to the forthcoming A6 e-tron due soon.

There are actually a few reasons automakers were doing this. Noise ordinances can vary quite a bit, even inside of a single market, and many cities have recently passed laws defining limits on what constitutes noise pollution. A lot of vehicles are likewise pivoting to smaller engines to adhere to emissions regulations or adopting hybrid powertrains. Sadly, some motors just sound better than others even when automakers expend some effort tuning the exhaust note.

The end result has been an influx of adaptive baffles and limiters that are designed to keep the car as quiet as possible until you’re driving them hard on the open road — and synthesized engine sounds designed to placate the driver.

With not much in the way of noise coming from the back of the vehicle, there’s little point to having exposed exhaust tips. Not having to finish them off and instead using plastic look-alikes also saves the manufacturer money.

Your author is sympathetic to both sides of the fence here. While I actually enjoy trying to identify every single vehicle by sound as it cruises by my home, there are certainly times when quiet is preferred. I also would rather have a healthy amount of intake and exhaust noise on most of my own vehicles, but have always opted for more muffled pipes because I know that my neighbors aren’t likely to be thrilled when I fire up a car or motorcycle that rattles their windows. It also helps you draw less attention from the police when you’re doing something interesting.

That said, many modern vehicles are becoming devoid of emotion thanks to how they’re being packaged. Smaller engines paired with electric motors may make for some thrilling acceleration with improved fuel economy. But the sensation isn’t as memorable as something less complicated featuring a thumping exhaust. Faking the entire exhaust system is just the end point the above has led us to.

Regardless, the trend seems to be dying due to consumer criticism. Frankly, it’s doubtful it even would have been an issue were it handled differently. Past decades saw hidden exhaust tips being relatively common and the industry took little heat due to the fact that it wasn’t using faux ports. They were simply situated in a manner that made them harder to see without crawling under the vehicle.

[Image: Volkswagen Group]

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