Best valved exhaust for BMW 320i G20 / G21

Your vehicle.

All our exhausts for this generation, version by version, are brought together on one page: BMW 3 Series G20 / G21 Valved Exhaust.

The seventh-generation 3 Series, the G20, is the saloon that holds the heart of the BMW range. In petrol form, its 320i and 330i share the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder, tuned to two power levels, and the same Rog exhaust. Here is what you need to know about your car before choosing.

Body styles

G20 (saloon), G21 (Touring)

Years

Saloon launched in March 2019, Touring in September 2019; facelift presented in May 2022, in production since July 2022

320i

Turbo 2.0-litre B48: 184 hp; 300 Nm between 1,350 and 4,000 rpm

330i

Same B48, tuned to 258 hp and 400 Nm

Drivetrain

Rear-wheel drive or xDrive

Factory valves

Motorised valve in the 330i's rear silencer; 320i checked by VIN

Outside this product page

318i, 330e plug-in hybrid; six-cylinder M340i (dedicated guide)

G20 and G21, the current 3 Series

BMW presented the G20 at the Paris Motor Show in October 2018, and the saloon reached dealerships in March 2019. The G21 Touring was unveiled in June 2019, then put on sale from 28 September. Both bodies share their engines, their transmission and their exhaust architecture.

The facelift, presented on 18 May 2022 and produced from July, redesigned the headlights and the grille, and placed on board a large curved screen that combines the instrumentation and the central display. Under the bonnet, the 320i and the 330i did not change: same engine, same power outputs.

Saloon or Touring, the use is not the same: the G20 suits office commutes, the G21 holiday departures with a full boot. For the Rog exhaust, the question does not arise: with the same engine, the product page reserves the same exhaust for both bodies, and your VIN confirms it before manufacture.

320i or 330i: one engine, two tunes

The 320i gets the B48 in its 184 hp tune, with 300 Nm available from 1,350 to 4,000 rpm. The 330i uses the same base, pushed to 258 hp and 400 Nm. The two sets of bars below correspond to the 320i, before and after the facelift, as the product page publishes them.

For the exhaust, these two versions are one single car: the Rog product page for the 320i also covers the 330i, in the G20 saloon as in the G21 Touring, with the same exhaust. It covers model years 2020 to 2026; for a 2019 G20, the VIN allows the compatibility to be checked before manufacture.

The 318i, the 330e plug-in hybrid and the six-cylinder M340i do not fall under this product page. The M340i has its own exhaust and its own guide; for the other two, send us the VIN, and we will reply in writing.

184 hp version from the factory

184 hp version from the factory

Stage 2: published figures with the front section and an ECU remap carried out by a tuner.

The 3 Series' B48

The B48 is a direct-injection 2.0-litre four-cylinder, boosted by a twin-scroll turbo, which splits the gases from the cylinders into two flows so that the turbine responds sooner. That is what lets the 320i offer its peak torque from 1,350 rpm, with a flexibility you would rather expect from a bigger engine.

The 330i draws more from the same block thanks to a more aggressive tune. It gains vigour at mid-revs as well as at the top, but keeps the same exhaust architecture as the 320i, which explains why a single Rog exhaust suits both versions. This four-cylinder also powers, at the same period, the 420i and 430i G22 or the four-cylinder Z4 G29: an engine that BMW has placed wherever economy and driving pleasure had to be combined.

A richer voice than you would think

The 320i is often reduced to a well-behaved saloon, and its standard silence contributes to that. Yet this four-cylinder has character: a firm grain at idle, which turns rasping as soon as the turbo builds boost, and little crackles when you lift off when the exhaust lets it express itself.

On the 330i, the note is the same in timbre, but more emphatic, because the engine breathes more. In both cases, what you hear from the cabin as standard gives only a faint idea of what the B48 can let you hear with an exhaust designed for it.

What the G20 keeps to itself

BMW tuned the current 3 Series for acoustic comfort: its silencers are bulky, designed for noise regulations and for the calm of the rear seats, and the factory exhaust lets through only a neutral background sound. At a red light as on the motorway, the 320i makes itself forgotten.

A valved exhaust leaves the choice according to the moment. Valves closed, the gases pass through the silencers, and the saloon or the Touring stays as calm as at delivery, which matters for a weekday car. Valves open, the gases take the short path: the B48 makes itself heard from outside, at start-up as when pulling away.

The 330i's valve and the Rog remote

The 330i G20's factory rear silencer contains a valve driven by a stepper motor: the BMW parts catalogue provides it for it, before and after the facelift. For the 320i, we check the equipment from the VIN. If your car has this valve, the Factory option takes over its mounting point: your garage refits it there, and the 3 Series' driving modes keep controlling it.

The Rog option supplies an exhaust whose valves are already fitted, with a remote: you open or close them, and they keep that position, whether the 3 Series is in Comfort or in Sport. On a 320i without a standard valve, it is the only way to go from a quiet saloon to a car you can hear, with a simple press.

Straight pipe or resonator on a four-cylinder

The character of the sound is chosen on the product page, at the same price. The straight pipe keeps the B48's rasping grain intact, with its crackles when you lift off. The resonator, for its part, brings a rounder and slightly softer voice: on a four-cylinder that spends its days in town or in a loaded Touring, it is a pleasant setting, which takes nothing away from the exhaust's sporty character.

Tips, shades and front section

At the rear of the G20, you can choose between included Rog tips, in chrome, gloss black or blued titanium, and carbon tips with the M logo charged as an option, in forged carbon, black carbon or carbon blended with titanium; no tips is possible too. Titanium removes about 40% of the exhaust's weight compared with 304 stainless steel, and its brushed, gold and purple shades cost the same price.

The downpipe is also on the product page, on the "Manifold" line: 200-cell sport catalytic converter, which keeps emissions control in place, 100-cell sport catalytic converter, or catalyst-free version, intended for the track. With the cat-back alone, the 320i and the 330i keep their control unit and their power; for more horsepower, the downpipe must be accompanied by a remap, done by a tuner.

Your exhaust is built from the 3 Series' VIN and fitted at your garage without welding or cutting: a reassuring point on a recent saloon, still under manufacturer warranty.

Configure your exhaust.

How the exhaust is put together

On the 320i and 330i G20, the Rog cat-back starts at the downpipe outlet and extends to the tips, bringing together pipes, silencers and valves. The downpipe, attached to the turbo outlet, carries the catalytic converter; it is the option named "Manifold" on the product page.

Each choice explained in detail, from sound to material: How to configure your exhaust.

Three recommended configurations.

• Weekday sedan

  • 320i
  • Stainless steel
  • No manifold
  • Resonator
  • Rog remote

  For a 320i doing its office commutes: the standard downpipe does not move, the B48 gains a rounded timbre, and one button is enough to make it heard.

  View this configuration

• 330i Touring

  • 330i
  • Stainless steel
  • 200-cell sports catalytic converter
  • Straight pipe
  • Factory valves

  For a 330i Touring heading off for the weekend: the four-cylinder asserts itself when pulling away, emissions control stays active, and the driving modes keep control of the standard valve.

  View this configuration

• 320i to be tuned

  • 320i
  • Gold titanium
  • 100-cell sports catalytic converter
  • Carbon tips with the M logo

  For a 320i destined for a remap at a tuner: a freer flow behind the turbo, a lighter exhaust in gold titanium and carbon tips with the M logo.

  View this configuration

From order to fitting.

VIN, manufacture, delivery, fitting and warranty, step by step

Questions.

Further reading.

• All our BMW 3 Series G20 and G21 exhausts
• BMW M340i G20 / G21 guide
• BMW 320i, 328i and 330i F30 / F31 guide
• BMW 420i and 430i G22, G23 and G26 guide