[Now Available] AWE SwitchPath™ Exhaust for the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing

[Christian/AWE]

LUXURY. WITH TEETH.

Presenting the AWE SwitchPath™ Exhaust Suite for the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing.

See the complete details right this way.

Feature Rundown:

• Dual 3” valved catback configuration
• Utilizes factory valve motors to retain all factory drive mode valve functionality
• Max gains of +11 hp and +3 lb-ft of torque at the wheels
• Bespoke X-pipe for an exotic, rasp-free tone
• Bullet-style resonators facilitate a smooth soundtrack with valves open
• No sagging: SwitchPath™ keeps the same ground clearance profile as stock
• Signature 4.5” double-walled, slash-cut tips available in chrome silver and diamond black
• Handcrafted from CNC mandrel-bent, U.S.-sourced .065”-wall T304L stainless steel
• Less is more: clean, straight-through design maximizes performance
• Pure bolt-on, no-cutting required
• Perfect Fitment guarantee
• AWE No CEL guarantee
• Lifetime Warranty

​

DUAL PERSONALITIES OF SWITCHPATH™:​

The AWE SwitchPath™ brings no drone, minimal bends, maximum flow, and push-button attitude. The SwitchPath™ Exhaust is composed of dual 3-inch U.S.-sourced T304L stainless steel, a bespoke x-pipe, and a valved SwitchPath™ muffler tuned specifically for the LT4.




Beginning after the factory mid-pipe, the bespoke X-pipe immediately helps smooth the 6.2L of its rasp, providing an exotic tone before it's refined further by the bespoke SwitchPath™ muffler in the rear. Integrated machined valve brackets house the factory valve motors with precision to ensure all of the Blackwing’s valve characteristics remain intact and operate the same as the factory exhaust.








The closed valve experience:

When the valves are closed, the SwitchPath™ Exhaust produces a refined, aggressive howl while remaining full-bodied and powerful – no congested, metallic sounds when on the throttle. At cruising speeds, interior acoustics are close to stock with no drone at cruising speeds. AWE SwitchPath™ tech also responds perfectly to the factory parameters designated by the drive modes, opening the valves when reaching the designated throttle threshold.

The opened valve experience:

Open the valves and the LT4 roar is uncorked. Sport & Track modes achieve the ultimate contrast in behavior when compared to the Tour driving mode (valves closed). In Sport or Track mode, the exhaust note is powerful, clean, and aggressive. Thanks to the precision X-pipe and bullet-style resonators, the rasp is still kept in check while allowing the exhaust note to reach full aggression.

If you’re looking for the best of both worlds (i.e. drone-free, clean aggression), and want to retain your factory valve behavior all while gaining peace of mind (i.e. emissions compliance), look no further than SwitchPath™.

LET’S TALK TIPS:​

Finish it off with signature 4.5” double-walled, slash-cut tips in your choice of chrome silver or diamond black—each stamped with the AWE logo and individually adjustable for precise placement.

100% EMISSION-FRIENDLY:​

AWE Exhausts do not interfere with any factory emissions equipment.

MADE IN PA, USA:​

Engineered, designed, and manufactured in-house at AWE using premium US-sourced .065”-wall T304L stainless steel to achieve a tone deeper than everyone else.

THE FINE PRINT:​

AWE’s Perfect Fitment Guarantee, No CEL Guarantee, and Lifetime Warranty all come standard.




Check out the full details right this way, or feel free to PM the team, our messages are always open!

 

[BW56M]

Would be interested in knowing, how much weight savings there is versus the stock system?

 

[1BadRS]

Good question, I was wondering the same thing.

 

[Moffetts]

Sounds good, but round tips look odd on this car.

 

[BW56M]

Sounds good, but round tips look odd on this car.

Subjective point of view. No right or wrong here.

 

[Worldrider]

This is the only car I’ve owned where I didn’t upgrade the exhaust system to a superior (read: louder) aftermarket solution (or at least plan to before selling ). I still can’t figure out how Cadillac got the stock exhaust to pass EPA drive-by maximums.

On Jay Leno’s show, I’m pretty sure it was Tony Roma who explained he gave the head engineer in charge of building the exhaust system a pretty plain brief: “make it loud enough to scare small children“.
As I’ve been happy to prove, mission accomplished.

 

[Moffetts]

Subjective point of view. No right or wrong here.

It goes without saying that my thoughts are my own, but, the aftermarket would benefit from non-rounded tip options.

 

[ngoni]

It goes without saying that my thoughts are my own, but, the aftermarket would benefit from non-rounded tip options.

Someone laid it out in another thread: Asking for rectangular tips like OEM would require additional expensive tooling and each tip would have to be a different shape making that cost even more. Add to this that there just aren't that many Blackwings and even fewer people who would be up for an aftermarket exhaust. This means that added cost, for a purely cosmetic option, would have to be amortized over a very small volume product. The result would be an exhaust so expensive, the few people looking for one would probably look elsewhere. And before you ask- GM made the stock tips one contiguous piece so if you want to transfer them, it would require cutting and welding.

TL;DR: It sadly just doesn't make any business sense to offer rectangular tips. But I suppose you're free to take your OEM tips to a local fabricator and have them do the surgery.

 

[Todd]

This is the only car I’ve owned where I didn’t upgrade the exhaust system to a superior (read: louder) aftermarket solution (or at least plan to before selling ). I still can’t figure out how Cadillac got the stock exhaust to pass EPA drive-by maximums.

On Jay Leno’s show, I’m pretty sure it was Tony Roma who explained he gave the head engineer in charge of building the exhaust system a pretty plain brief: “make it loud enough to scare small children“.
As I’ve been happy to prove, mission

Believe or not: there is no Federally mandated sound limit when it comes to passenger cars. That’s all controlled at the local level.

Personally, I find the stock tone kind of nasally, sounds a little stuffed up. It’s louder than your average vehicle, but still on the tamer side.

I’m rocking the AWE system and it stirs a deeper level of enjoyment and engagement whenever I’m driving the car. I giggle on rev matched downshifts. It’s glorious, while being incredibly refined.

 

[Todd]

Someone laid it out in another thread: Asking for rectangular tips like OEM would require additional expensive tooling and each tip would have to be a different shape making that cost even more. Add to this that there just aren't that many Blackwings and even fewer people who would be up for an aftermarket exhaust. This means that added cost, for a purely cosmetic option, would have to be amortized over a very small volume product. The result would be an exhaust so expensive, the few people looking for one would probably look elsewhere. And before you ask- GM made the stock tips one contiguous piece so if you want to transfer them, it would require cutting and welding.

TL;DR: It sadly just doesn't make any business sense to offer rectangular tips. But I suppose you're free to take your OEM tips to a local fabricator and have them do the surgery.

That was me, and you are fully understanding what I wrote.

After having the round tips on my ride for a while, I don’t miss the rectangular ones. People tend to not like change, but this wasn’t a bad one after all.

 

[rubberduck]

After having the round tips on my ride for a while, I don’t miss the rectangular ones. People tend to not like change, but this wasn’t a bad one after all.

That is usually the case with most things. The real answer is we forget what it was like before (in this case better looking). There would be a more appropriate fascia style for round tips. Naturally, my aesthetic, but that's all the matters on my car.

Part of the issue with the 5BW exhaust market is there is a high threshold to overcome since Cadillac did a decent job with it. If the exhaust was terrible, people would put up with a lot more compromises to get something better. But, in this case, I don't really mind the exhaust and won't replace it unless the new exhaust is perfect. - I have other things to spend my money on. It's actually pretty loud at WOT when you hear the car go by.

 

[Todd]

That is usually the case with most things. The real answer is we forget what it was like before (in this case better looking). There would be a more appropriate fascia style for round tips. Naturally, my aesthetic, but that's all the matters on my car.

Part of the issue with the 5BW exhaust market is there is a high threshold to overcome since Cadillac did a decent job with it. If the exhaust was terrible, people would put up with a lot more compromises to get something better. But, in this case, I don't really mind the exhaust and won't replace it unless the new exhaust is perfect. - I have other things to spend my money on. It's actually pretty loud at WOT when you hear the car go by.

Yes, the benchmark was high, but I can say, ironically with an absolutely unbiased opinion, the AWE system is a clear cut above regarding acoustics.

The tone is much broader, it brings out exciting tones that simply weren’t there with the stock system.

The GM 6.2 V8 can absolutely sing with an appropriately tuned exhaust, and this one doesn’t disappoint.

Even in daily stop and go driving, not shifting above 4k rpms, there is a massive difference: more depth, more aggression, zero drone. All upside for the driving experience. A perfect pairing with the manual transmission. Not exaggerating.

One “downside” was that the uncorked overrun decel pops with the AWE became a little much for me in Sport mode, and that was my preferred mode with the stock exhaust.

But thankfully there is MyMode, where I have everything set to Sport spec except for the exhaust, which is in Tour. And MyMode persists after shut down.

Vmode I have set as full Track on everything, and the decel pops and overall exhaust aggression is ridiculous, in a good way, for a temporary Good Time, lol.
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