Exhaust system maker Akrapovic is a titanium titan, too

Akrapovic’s titanium foundry at its Slovenia facilities.

SLOVENIAN brand Akrapovic, a huge name in motor sports and high-performance exhaust systems for premium motorcycles and cars, is apparently one of the biggest users of titanium in Europe. Because while the company has increasingly been turning to other exotic materials, like carbon and other composites, the chunk of its products are still made from titanium alloy — a necessity considering exhaust systems need to be strong, resistant to high temperatures and corrosion, and quite light.

This was bared by Akrapovic market development manager Marko Magdic, who, along with area sales manager David Brecelj, is in Manila to strengthen the company’s business in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. And Magdic assures the titanium Akrapovic uses for its products is among the highest grades in the industry.

An Akropovic exhaust system.

The brand’s product for Formula 1 use.

Fact is, Akrapovic’s vast manufacturing and development facilities in Slovenia, located about an hour from the capital of Ljubljana, include a titanium foundry (established in 2009). While other exhaust manufacturers rely on commercially available titanium, Akrapovic only takes the alloy’s raw form, then transforms this into what basically becomes an in-house concoction. The company then hand-forms the material into configurations specific to the vehicle — whether motorcycle or car — a particular exhaust system is designed for. The results more than satisfy OEM levels.

Well, Akrapovic exhausts are standard on the Bentley Continental GT3-R, and are optional kits on some BMW Motorrads. The systems, as noted, are also ubiquitous in motor sports — Akrapovic provides Audi Sport’s LMP endurance racing efforts with its produce, has taken part in the Dakar Rally, and is involved in numerous other series as well, including top-rung MotoGP. Akrapovic actually climbed as high as Formula 1, having teamed up with BAR Honda in 2004 (the brand had to pull out because it was asked to either remove its logo from its products, or pay up for what the sport considered as advertising space even if the logo is hidden from public view).

“But we always put our name on our products. We are not just a supplier,” insisted Magdic.

Though the company said its business in the Philippines remains a 50/50 ratio between providing aftermarket high-performance exhausts for cars and motorcycles, elsewhere in the world the changing automotive landscape poses some challenges to the brand. As an example, Akrapovic, according to Magdic, retains a good amount of business when it comes to hybrid-powered cars — these vehicles benefit from weight savings.

“Titanium exhaust systems compensate for the heavy batteries and motors of these cars,” he said.

When it comes to fully electric vehicles though — which obviously requires no exhaust systems — the challenge is trickier. Akrapovic’s expertise in titanium technology, however, means it could shift its focus on other vehicular components that need to be strong, light and heat- and corrosion-resistant when the transition to electromobility intensifies.

Company founder Igor Akrapovic, in an interview a few years back, forecasted demand for titanium products will, in fact, continue to rise. “Over the next years, I expect a major increase in demand for titanium products,” he said at the time, citing that besides the automobile and motorcycle industries, the material is also being increasingly used in the food, medical and aeronautics sectors.

For Akrapovic, then, it pays to be a titan of titanium.