Tuning the BMW i8 is a dangerous and possibly futile exercise. Some cars should just be left alone and not meddled with, the plug-in hybrid from BMW being one of them. That’s probably why tuners haven’t gone to extensive lengths to offer kits for the i8. However, some people want to stand out even more and one key area where the car could use some improvement may be the exhaust mostly because on top of the rear axle sits and hums a 3-cylinder turbocharged 1.5-liter engine. That’s not exactly what you’d call a “great sounding mill” even though it is not too shabby. During our test drives we actually kind of liked the way the i8 sounds and it does bare a certain resemblance to the 3-liter inline 6-cylinder mills BMW is so famous for.
However, due to the 3-cylinder layout, creating a custom exhaust that doesn’t sound like a lawnmower is a tricky challenge. The guys from Heinz Performance seem to think they achieved this ambitious feat. They recently posted a video on Youtube with a BMW i8 fitted with a custom exhaust, which they claim to be an improvement over the stock one.
The price you’d have to pay for it is 4,900 Euros which is a bit steep if you ask me but then again, you’d probably have to love the way this thing sounds if you’re interested in buying it. While we can’t really speak for the sound this exhaust makes (to each his own), we do like the way the car looks like with those triple exhaust tips at the back. They do resemble the Ferrari 458 Italia and don’t look bad at all.
However, if that’s not for you, there are other choices out there as well, that change the way the car sounds like without altering its design. Turner Motorsports has one on offer and you can hear it in the second video posted below.
