C++ exception overhead

 I can think of a couple of possible reasons:

• Older versions of the compiler didn't support exceptions, so a lot of code has been written (and conventions have been established) where exceptions are not used
• Exceptions do have a cost, and it can be as much as 10-15% of your total execution time (they can also be implemented to take virtually no time, but use quite a bit of memory instead, which probably isn't very desirable on embedded systems either)
• Embedded programmers tend to be a bit paranoid about code size, performance and, not least, code complexity. They often worry that "advanced" features may not work correctly with their compiler (and they're often right too)

 result

 MyApp::InitTimer()
 {
    result r = E_SUCCESS;

    _pTimer = new Timer;

    r = _pTimer->Construct(*this);
    if (IsFailed(r))
    {
        goto CATCH;
    }

    _pTimer->Start(1000);
    if (IsFailed(r))
    {
        goto CATCH;
    }

    return r;
 CATCH:
     return r;
 }

What are the reasons for this behavior?

As far as I know, ARM compilers fully support C++ exceptions and this couldn't actually be the matter. What else? Is the overhead of the exception usage and unwindings on ARM platforms really that BIG to spend a lot time making such workarounds?