I find the "switchable" switch useless. If I want it loud, I just hit the dynamic button. (Which is almost always). If I want it quiet through the neighborhood or it's droning on the freeway, I just switch dynamic off.

Generally, droning is just an issue for MTs since they rev much higher than ATs at highway speed.

 

+1 Never understood the point of the switch either.

 

As explained earlier, if correct, I think the switch is to quiet the exhaust only from the default of loud. Without the active exhaust option, his model won't have the ability to do any "switching" or loud only. OP seems to want the ability to run both loud and quiet which in his case, only the function will enable him. This is not the case in models with AE standard i.e. models where AE is controlled by the Dynamic switch.

This is how AE was explained to me from a Jag salesman. Can someone please clarify as I am slowly learning the subtle differences between models.

 

I think you missed Unhingd's and my point. If you want quiet, just take it out of Dynamic mode on an AE car. You don't need an extra switch to do that. The only explanation for the switch in an AE car is to make it loud in standard or rain/snow mode, which doesn't make an awful lot of sense to me.

OP was only talking about AE cars with and without the switch to control AE. But, Dynamic mode on or off does the same thing.

You're right that base cars, which I had without AE, are loud all the time because they have no valves, but that's not what OP was asking about.

 

Foosh, on AE cars putting it into dynamic mode doesn't do the same thing as activating the switch. In dynamic mode the valves aren't open 100% of the time, you still need to accelerate heavily for the valves to open.

The only way to have the valves open permanently is to activate the switch - then the car will sit there at idle / when pulling away with the exhaust rumbling away. Its totally different to engaging dynamic without the switch activated.

 

Thanks for the clarification. I didn't have an AE car so was only going with what others have said, that valves were always open in Dynamic mode. If that is not the case, I now completely understand the reason for the AE on/off switch.

 

Correct. Valves are not always open in dynamic. The exhaust functions the same way in/out of dynamic, with the only thing making it louder being the higher shift points throughout the RPM range.

 

Not true, at least on the MT cars with AE. As soon as you press the Dynamic button, the light on the exhaust switch turns on. As soon as you turn the dynamic mode off, the light on the exhaust switch goes out. The only purpose for the exhaust switch is to isolate the noise function from the other dynamic functions, As I said before, useless.

 

You can also isolate by toying with the my dynamic settings. For that reason, it's less than useless. It's almost - an inconvenience. A burden. A switch in the way that could be repurposed for say fogs.

 

I never use it. I put in dynamic when I want to foul around and exhaust goes with it.

 

I am with Unhingd on this. On my R, when you switch to dynamic the exhaust button lights up, back to Normal and it turns off. I have used the button a few times when my wife is along, staying in Normal for the more compliant ride she prefers, but opening up the exhaust for me. However, that is not as loud as dynamic sport.


Larry

 

+1. Currently that fog switch is very poorly placed. Have to use the braille method to find it and hope you don't pop the hatch.

 

Maybe the cars equipped with the button behave differently and putting into dynamic automatically engages the exhaust button.

On the earlier automatic V8S cars (2014) without the switchable exhaust button, putting the car into dynamic did not open the exhaust valves.

I know specifications started changing with the R models (was the exhaust button standard on the R?) so maybe the behavior of dynamic mode changed as well

 

I don't use Dynamic the way some here do. I use Dynamic because I want the steering and suspension settings, and wish I could customize the exhaust setting in Dynamic too. That is, I would like to engage Dynamic and not have it automatically turn on the exhaust every time.

As it is, I usually drive with customized Dynamic, exhaust off. I just have more buttons to press as part of my pre-flight preparation. The loud button makes a difference even if I'm loafing around town, and drones on the freeway.

 

My car is always in 'Loud' mode, it was a must have option when I was shopping. I'm actually wondering if there's a way to set this as the default instead of turning it on all the time.

 

On my car, putting it in dynamic allows the valves to open, but only after the revs have built up; then they stay open into the next gear, as long as you stay on the throttle. But you can always get pops and burbles on decel.

 

On mine, the valves open on high rpm/throttle even if both dynamic and open exhaust are turned off.

 

No matter which variation you have you can get into the mode you need with two flicks at most. It's not much of a concern.

 

Valves will always default to open in Dynamic Mode. At which point you can use the switch to manually close the valves.


Theres some misinformation being posted about the Active Exhaust System. This page will answer pretty much all your questions about the Active Exhaust System although its important to note the last paragraph.

 

Edit.