BMW X5 M F85 and X6 M F86: the second-generation S63, the exhaust system guide
The second generation of BMW M SUVs, the X5 M F85 and X6 M F86 share, from 2015 to 2018, the same 4.4-litre biturbo S63 V8, with 575 hp and 750 Nm. Their factory exhaust has two flaws: it muffles this engine and weighs heavily at the rear. The same lighter Rog valved exhaust fits both models; this guide reviews each option to help you decide.
Your valved exhaust for BMW X5 M F85 is configured from your VIN, and the BMW Valved Exhaust page brings together all our BMW systems.
Your Rog exhaust for the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86
Price shown on the product page, in your currency
Configure my exhaust- Vehicles
- BMW X5 M F85 (2015-2018) ; BMW X6 M F86 (2015-2018)
- Engine
- BMW X5 M F85: 575 hp ; BMW X6 M F86: 575 hp
- Exhaust
- Valved cat-back, built for your VIN
- Material
- 304 stainless steel or titanium
- Front section
- Optional: catted downpipe with 200 or 100 cells, or decat
- Valves
- Rog remote, or factory control if your vehicle has it
- Lead time
- 20 working days from order confirmation to delivery
- Warranty
- 3 years, parts and workmanship
Closely related versions have their own guide: BMW M5 F10 4.4TT, BMW M550i N63 G30 4.4TT, BMW M6 F06 / F12 / F13 4.4TT, BMW M850i G14 / G15 / G16 4.4TT.
The 575 hp S63: the V8 shared by the X5 M F85 and X6 M F86
The S63 is a 4.4-litre V8 with its two turbos housed in the V, between the cylinder banks. For this second generation, BMW M reworked it extensively: it produces 575 hp and 750 Nm in both the X5 M F85 and the X6 M F86, with massive torque available very early and a thrust that does not fade all the way to the top of the rev counter.
Mechanically, the X6 M F86 is an X5 M F85 with a coupé silhouette: same engine, same base, hence a shared Rog exhaust. It replaces a heavy factory exhaust that is stingy with sound with a lighter system that you control. The V8 regains its presence with the valves open, the SUV its calm with the valves closed, and neither the engine nor the ECU is modified.
What makes up the exhaust on your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86
An exhaust system is best understood in two parts. Here is what each one does, and what Rog replaces.
The cat-back is the complete exhaust system
It is everything you can see under your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86, from the outlet of the front section to the tips: pipes, silencer, valves. Routing, silencer, valves: this is where the sound is shaped, and where we focus our research and development.
The front section, where the catalytic converter sits
On your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86, it is the downpipe, the pipe leading from the turbo. It contains the factory catalytic converter: the second restriction in the exhaust, after the silencer. Changing this part remains a choice: it pays off mainly with an ECU remap, which turns the freed-up flow into power.
Your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86 in figures
What an exhaust changes straight away is the sound, the engine's breathing and the weight at the rear. For more power, add an ECU remap.
BMW X5 M F85
Power
Torque
BMW X6 M F86
Power
Torque
Published factory and Stage 2 figures.
With or without an ECU remap, the exhaust fits and works. But it is an ECU remap at an approved tuning centre that truly unlocks your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86, and that is what we recommend.
The S63 responds strongly to remapping: at Stage 2, both SUVs are rated at 715 hp and 890 Nm. Such an increase puts strain on the transmission and cooling, and the result depends on each car and on the tuner. The Rog exhaust, which does not touch the ECU, is devoted to the V8's voice.
Configuring your exhaust, step by step
4 choices, in the same order as the product page configurator.
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Step 1 of 4: Material: stainless steel or titanium
Titanium costs more than stainless steel; the price of each version is shown on the product page, in your currency.
304 stainless steel
- Weight
- Baseline
- Sound
- Full and rounded
Durable, corrosion-resistant, with a rounded, full sound: the most popular option.
Titanium
- Weight
- Around 40% lighter
- Sound
- Metallic, crystal-clear
For the same design, it weighs around 40% less than stainless steel. A more metallic note at high revs and a look all of its own, from brushed to blued.
Both materials age well: 304 stainless steel copes with winter and salt, and titanium does not rust. Stainless steel or titanium: what really changes.
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Step 2 of 4: Front section: downpipe and catalytic converter
Optional: the downpipe on your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86, with its catalytic converter. Sound rating out of 10, valves open: the factory exhaust sits at 3.
Cat-back only
Included
7/10Factory emissions control
Nothing changes at the front: the cat-back alone is already enough to change the car.
200-cell sports catalytic converter
8/10Road use and inspection
The everyday compromise: emissions control is still there, and breathing improves noticeably.
100-cell sports catalytic converter
9/10Inspection: depends on local rules
One step further: more flow, a more aggressive sound, reduced emissions control.
Decat
10/10Track use
Everything unleashed: maximum flow and unrestrained sound, for the track.
Sound intensity, on a scale of 0 to 10
- 10/10Decat downpipe + Rog cat-back
- 9/10100-cell sports catalytic converter + Rog cat-back
- 8/10200-cell sports catalytic converter + Rog cat-back
- 7/10Rog cat-back only, factory catalytic converter retained
- 3/10Factory exhaust, for comparison
Valves open. With the valves closed, every configuration becomes discreet again.
What about the engine warning light? With a sports cat, it can come on with some engines: the sensor placed after the catalytic converter measures a different level of emissions control from the original. It is not a mechanical failure, but a warning light should never be masked or cleared without dealing with its cause: the right answer is a catalytic converter suited to the engine, with a map by a tuner who takes it into account. The decat version, for track use only, almost always triggers it. If this happens to you, write to us and we will point you in the right direction. Passing vehicle inspection with a sports exhaust.
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Step 3 of 4: Valves: Rog remote or factory control
Two ways to control the valves on your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86.
Rog remote
The simplest solution: a control unit in the boot and a remote, open or closed at the press of a button, whatever mode you are in. A question while fitting? We will get back to you.
Factory control
- Only for vehicles fitted with factory valves
- Controlled by the drive modes
Does your vehicle have factory valves? The exhaust keeps their existing control: the drive modes operate the valves, as before, with no added electronics.
On a long journey, what matters is the absence of drone at a steady speed. With the valves closed, the exhaust keeps the cabin calm; the show is still there whenever you ask for it. More about exhaust drone.
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Step 4 of 4: Tips: the visual signature
Match the tips to the style of your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86, understated or bold. A particular finish in mind? Send us a photo and we will look at it together.
- Chrome
- Gloss black
- Blued titanium
- M Performance Carbon Black
- M Performance Carbon Titanium
- M Performance Carbon Forged
The Rog sound signature on the S63 of the X5 M and X6 M
The S63 has a gruffer voice than American V8s, less round, with a tight rumble that hardens at high revs. On the standard X5 M and X6 M, it is so well filtered that the driver mainly feels the thrust; the sound, for its part, remains a polished rumble, out of all proportion to the engine's strength.
On this model, two characters at the same price: the straight pipe for the raw sound of your engine, unfiltered, or the resonator for a rounder and slightly softer voice. Either way, the exhaust stays fully sporty.
With the valves open, the Rog exhaust lets the V8 be heard from the moment it starts, then a deep, continuous wave with every acceleration, punctuated by crackles when you lift off. With the valves closed, the F85 and F86 regain the discretion of a large family SUV, for long journeys and town driving alike.
From order to fitting
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Configuration
You choose the options for your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86 and enter its VIN, found in box E of the registration document or at the base of the windscreen.
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Check
We confirm compatibility with your car before we build it.
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Manufacturing
Made to order, for your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86.
-
Delivery
Free, insured delivery, with tracking sent on dispatch.
-
Fitting
Clamps and gaskets, no welding: two hours on average at the garage of your choice.
20 working days from order confirmation to delivery
- Warranty
- 3 years, parts and workmanship, from the date of purchase
- Payment
- Card, PayPal or bank transfer
- Installation
- At the garage of your choice
What about the manufacturer's warranty? In Europe, fitting a part from another brand is not enough on its own to void it; the manufacturer has to prove the link between that part and the fault. Our article on the manufacturer's warranty.
Our recommendations for your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86
-
Daily driving
- Stainless
- Cat-back only
- Rog remote
Your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86 stays easy to live with, the factory emissions control is retained, and you open the valves whenever you decide.
View this configuration -
Fast road
- Titanium
- 200-cell downpipe
- ECU remap
For great roads: more voice and more response, while staying road-friendly.
View this configuration -
Track
- Titanium
- Decat downpipe
- Stage 2
The most extreme configuration, for track use only.
View this configuration
These profiles are starting points. The right choice is often made in a few messages.
BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86: your questions
How much power does an exhaust add on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
As standard, the BMW X5 M F85 produces 575 hp; the BMW X6 M F86 produces 575 hp. Without a remap, the exhaust transforms the voice and lightens the rear; it is the ECU remap that increases power. The published Stage 2 figures for each model are shown in the figures table.
Stainless steel or titanium: which material for the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
The Rog exhaust comes in stainless steel and titanium, at the price shown on the product page in your currency. Choose stainless steel for value for money and a rounded sound, titanium to save around 40% in weight and get a clearer tone.
Do you need to replace the catalytic converter on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
No, the cat-back alone already does most of the work on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86. The downpipe option is for those tuning the engine: 200 cells to stay road-friendly, 100 cells or decat for the track.
Will a Rog exhaust pass vehicle inspection on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
The cat-back only and the 200-cell sports catalytic converter both keep emissions control: that is the configuration to present, with the valves closed. The 100-cell brings more sound and flow, and whether it is accepted at the emissions test depends on the car and local rules; the decat version is intended for track use on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86.
How is the Rog exhaust fitted on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
Fitting needs no welding or cutting and takes two hours on average on a lift. We check compatibility with the VIN of your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86 before manufacturing.
What price and lead time for a Rog exhaust on the BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86?
The price depends on the configuration and is shown on the product page, in your currency. Allow 20 working days from order confirmation to delivery. Free delivery, 3-year warranty.
Unsure about your configuration? Write to us.
Stainless steel or titanium, cat-back only or the complete system: the right choice depends on how you drive and on your BMW X5 M F85 or X6 M F86. We take the time to talk it through before you order, with a reply within 24 hours. We are not here to push a sale: we help you choose, even if that means a cheaper option because it suits the way you drive. Write to us: we reply in writing, in English.
Behind every Rog exhaust is a French team you can actually reach, who know the cars they talk about. More than 500 exhaust systems fitted and a rating of 4.9 out of 5.
Further reading
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