I got my Slim last month and I had some Ness Magnaflow Lowdowns installed. I noticed some pitting in the chrome. There was also a spot where the dealer tried to clean them up and you can see where the polish was used. So they contacted their rep and he was going to replace the shields. With concerns about having more issues with chrome I said I would pay the difference to get black. That was a no go. Then we noticed there was an exhaust leak by the trans. It was discoloring the trans cover. Polish took it off. So I dropped the bike off at the dealer for them to check out the exhaust leak. With some adjustment they were able to fix the leak. But then they ran into trouble with getting the exhaust to seat in the cylinder heads. So they are waiting to hear back from the rep again.

I told them I don't want these pipe anymore. I do like the sound of my pipes. They are not too loud. I like the new Ness Legacys. (black) So I wonder if the Legacys will be similar in sound. But everything really depends on if they can get credited for the pipes. They also told me a guy just stopped in there with a set of black pipes and the coating was coming off. Makes me hesitant to stick with Ness pipes.

I like the sound of Bassanu but it is hard to tell if they are loud watching them on youtube.

G/F likes the look of the black Vance and Hines short shots. How loud are they with the quiet baffles?

Opinions would be great.

Thanks
Eric

 

Loose those Ness pipes and get something else.

Ness is infamous for quality issues.

 

Arlen Ness & Magna Flow just started making mufflers together being the first to get them
may not to good. There is always a few production problems on start up with quality control.
Try to contact Magna Flow to get the problem solved, also let them know at Arlen Ness about
the bad chrome, and your more then likely part of a bad batch of first run of mufflers.

 

Well a little bit of an update. The HD is still waiting on a call back from the Drag rep. From the sounds of it, he has been less then helpful. So I got ahold of someone at Ness and they said Magnaflow is responsible for warranty since they make the pipes. So then I contacted Magnaflow. Just my luck the guys who usually handle the warranty stuff are out on the road. But they said that returning the chrome and replacing them shouldn't have been an issue. Sounds like it falls on the Drag rep again. So the HD dealer is going to be contacting Magnaflow. My bike has been at the dealer for a week now. Irritating.

 

Have you thought about doing the work yourself? Changing pipes is not difficult.

 

Pipes were purchased when I bought the bike. I don't have much experience working on bikes. Simple things I will give it a shot.

 

I'm watching with interest. I like the idea of Lowdowns in black on my 2005 Night Train.

Seems like the other options for that style are pretty loud (Crusher Maverick, V&H Shortshots, Rinehart 2-into-2, S&S Power Tune). I liked the idea of the look without the extreme sound.

Any input on those other options for the same style? Or, since this change is not happening for awhile, would it be better to just see if the quality control improves on the Lowdowns?

Thanks.

 

It seems like the problem was the Drag rep. The HD dealer said they were going to contact Maganflow direct. I am big on customer service so I am interested in seeing how Magnaflow handles this.

I like the look if the Lowdowns. And I am shocked they are not super loud. My last bike was a SG with Big Radius pipes and the BR seemed louder. Could just be that the BR are aimed towards the ground. With the Lowdowns I can have a conversation with my g/f on the back. If I had to change pipes completely I was going to go with Vance and Hines Short Shots with quiet baffles.

 

Right after I wrote my last reply the HD dealer called me. I got a different story that is not the Drag rep. It was someone at Magnaflow that is the difficult one. So I should be getting another phone call this morning hopefully with an answer about what will happen.

I was also told they have had no problems with a couple of other sets of black Lowdowns that they have installed. The problem by the trans is where two pipes come together and they can't get the clamp to clamp enough to close it up.

 

So the parts Manager called me back. He was told by someone from Magnaflow that their hands were tied. So the manger said he would credit me for my pipes (dealerships expense) because he was tired of dealing with them, He said if I wanted the black pipes he wouldn't charge me for the upgrade. They will be here tomorrow and the bike should be done fairly quickly since they don't have to retune it, Not to pleased with the way Magnaflow handled it. But I am happy with the dealer. I just hope there are no issues with the second set. I will post a pic once I get the bike back. But go figure, rain the next two days.