I Can See the Appeal of Fake Exhaust Tips
 

because here are my real ones after just 6 months and 2,500 miles.

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After cleaning with Adam's All Purpose Cleaner (doing just one at a time).
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After polishing with Britemax Easy Cut (yes, I didn't get them 100% clean)
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And they are already nice and pitted...
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Meanwhile the SQ5's are fake, but you don't have to deal with the above. Yes the real ones look better and the SQ5's aren't even close to convincingly real but for people who don't really care about their exhaust tips (most people not on here) are probably happier with the fakes.
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As someone who loves the SQ5 but hates the fake exhaust tips, this post makes me feel a bit better.

How often do you clean them ? I clean them every time I clean the car and with 8000 miles they look new.

This is the 2nd time I've cleaned them. However, previously my Q5 3.0T a year and twice as many miles without being cleaned and they cleaned up like new

I'd take unclean real exhaust tips over fake one any day.

X2. Real & Dirty >>> Fake & Clean

Steel wool every wash and takes a minute to do all on my SQ real tips.

I can see exhaust tips going the way of the in home telephone line...

Electric cars won't need em.

I can't see how mine would ever look like that...

I said it on another thread. I declared an unconditional surrender on trying to keep the exhaust tips clean years ago. Now I just let them go black naturally and let them stay that way. Trying to keep them clean is like chasing your tail - you will wear yourself out trying and never succeed.

While I do like the look of the quad exhaust on the S models, I think I'd be perfectly fine if they just tucked them out of site behind the rear diffuser with no fake tips to replace them.

The ones on the V-6 F-Type were made by Ducati from stainless and you could always bring them back with very little care, chrome tips (chrome anything actually) seem silly in anything but perfect weather...

Windex and a micro fiber every wash.

-Elihttps://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.aud...d8fb9122bb.jpg

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/aud...ormal-2948325/

Good timing with the post. I think this should be covered under warranty and I'm going to push to have it taken care of. This should not be happening on a car that costs this much. Our 2017 VW Jetta doesn't have the chrome peeling and pitting issue that the S5 does...

That's quite funny given Audi own Ducati.

there is a polish you can buy in any auto parts store that fixes this. fake tips is stupid lame.

I have never had an issue keeping exhaust tips clean on cars. If you clean them at least twice a month, they will be fine. They may discolor a bit, but will overall be fine.
They only turn that black, and/or pit, due to neglect, or use of harsh cleaning materials/chemicals. Road salt won't help either.

I have noticed cars with turbos (like our B9 A5/S5s) seem to make the exhaust tips blacker quicker.

~4 months of road salt a year doesn't help
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I never specifically cleaned my tips and they never looked anything like that. I live in a northern climate where we get road salt 4 - 6 months of the year.

The recent VAG cars seem to spew carbon hard, and my R is/was no different. I used Nev-R-Dull to good success in stripping the BS.

On my R I got a Miltek exhaust with matte black tips and dont have to clean them much anymore.

That's where you lost me. ;) Too much of a commitment. Now if I could only apply that same level of laziness I have toward my exhaust tips to my laundry!

Haha it takes dedication. I neglected mine for a month and it was caked on the tips. Took a while to get it out.
I also noticed the inner tips get blacker than the outer ones. I'm assuming it's due to the exhaust valve in the outer ones.

I live in NJ too and my tips don't look anything like yours did even after not clearing them for a few months. However, I have now gotten into a routine of wiping them with some Griots Speed Shine on a micro fiber cloth when I get home from work each day - takes about 2 minutes and keeps them shiny!

I never clean the exhaust tips. To me, they look great when they black out.

​​​​​​Thank you! They are very easy to clean now.

Meh.. Not going to spend any money decorating my car's *******s..

imported from Japan?

Thinking you are way off base here - OP works for Audi and, BTW, has since traded that car in!

My next car will have NO EXHAUST, so no need for exhaust fake or real.

Kudos on that. I say that too Tesla people all the time. Literally.

On a side note, chrome exhaust tips are a bad design by Audi. They should be less corrosive stainless steel.