25 years of Akrapovic exhausts

If you’re in the market for an exhaust, chances are the name at the top of your wish list is Akrapovic.

The company started out in a tiny workshop in Slovenia in 1991, the brainchild of racer Igor Akrapovic and in the 25 years since has grown to be the most sought after exhaust system not just in motorcycling, but in the world of four wheels, too.

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To celebrate the anniversary, the company created 25 limited edition exhausts which were then signed by legendary racers including Jonathan Rea, Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner and Chaz Davies and put them up for auction.

At the EICMA in Milan in early November, as well as having an impressive stand the company also held their own separate exhibition in the centre of Milan showcasing exhausts and images from the company’s 25 years.

So what makes Akrapovic exhausts so good? MCN Staff Writer Andy Davidson visited the factory in Slovenia and asked Igor himself: “Firstly its our huge investment and commitment to development technology and secondly our support of racing.

“We currently support over 80 teams and we’re not just there with money and stickers like some of our competitors. We are really pushing to continuously develop the exhaust. And from our huge base knowledge we apply our race technology to the road.”

For more from Igor, read his answers to our 20 questions.

How to build an Akrapovic exhaust

1. Akrapovic produce their own tubes using their tube mill. The titanium is delivered in coils; the coil is fed into the machine like yarn, rolled into a tube, welded and smoother in one continual process.
2. Titanium is notoriously difficult to shape and bend, but Akrapovic do their own shaping using their top secret bending machines.
3. The tube and parts are then welded together by both automatic welding machines and by hand. Some parts are sandblasted to give the titanium system a pristine finish.
4. Any carbon fibre components used are produced in house and cut from sheets of raw material before being shaped, moulded and polished.
5. All the parts are assembled before the Akrapovic logo is engraved via laser or stuck on.

 

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