Motorcycle Exhaust Tips & Caps

A stylish chrome or matte black exhaust tip is the perfect way to complement your bike and add a great finishing touch to your new exhaust. However, contrary to popular belief, they are not only an eye-catching accessory, but also the part that affects the exhaust sound. The tips work with other exhaust system components to augment the sound you hear when riding. Performing in tandem with wide pipes or a performance muffler, the right exhaust tip can amplify the tones coming from your exhaust. That’s why when choosing an exhaust tip, pay attention not only to its look, but also to its length, width, and shape.

While the exhaust tip can have an effect on your exhaust sound, first and foremost, it serves as a stylish add-on designed to customize the look of your bike. It is one of the most cost-effective exterior accessories you can install on your motorcycle to improve its look. It doesn’t matter whether you are still running a factory muffler or have installed a high-performance exhaust system, an exhaust tip will finish off your exhaust system. Most motorcycle exhaust tips are universal, so you can use them for almost any make and model of your bike.

Motorcycle tips come in several types and designs to suit different needs and applications. Usually clamp-on, they can be either single walled or double walled. Single-walled exhaust tips have a single layer of metal tubing. Such exhaust tips are lightweight and affordable, however, they are vulnerable to damage from flying rocks and debris. When it comes to double-walled exhaust tips, they have a two-layer construction and thick rear profiles. Double-walled tips are more durable compared to single-walled counterparts, which is why they are more difficult to bend or damage. Plus, they are available in various shapes.

When looking for motorcycle exhaust tips you might have noticed that some of them had cooling fins around the inside of the exhaust pipe. They are so-called intercooled exhaust tips. The ventilation cut-outs they come with allow for cooling exhaust gases before they exit the system, while slightly reducing the loudness of your exhaust system. Intercooled exhaust tips come in handy for high-performance applications and big bikes, which engines consume much fuel, and therefore, produce a lot of exhaust gases. They cool down these gases for a safer and more comfortable driving experience.

At first blush, choosing a properly fitting exhaust tip is an easy task. Although, there is a chance that you will find yourself with the “right size” tip which, however, doesn’t fit your exhaust pipe. To avoid that you should make several measurements to find out the perfect tip dimensions for your bike. First of all, you need to determine the outer diameter of your exhaust pipe. This measurement will determine the inner diameter of the exhaust tip. Last but not least, keep in mind that the tip should be long enough to allow for exhaust ventilation and short enough to prevent it from scraping the ground.