Test Pipe Hell!!!

[SallySpeed3]

Earlier in the day as I was thinking what I'd be doing by this time, it certainly didn't include posting this thread. At 6pm I jacked up my car on stands, and within 15 minutes I had all the necessary things removed to start taking out the stock mid-pipe. I started with what I figured would be the hardest part, removing the bolts connecting to the cat-back. After spraying with PB Blaster and letting it sit in, I removed the driver side bolt first with a bit of muscle, but it was no problem. I then proceeded to spend an hour trying to get the other bolt off, so much so that it is now completely bare! I now have no way to remove it myself at home, so my question is what the hell do I do? I'm thinking of taking it to the local shop near me in the morning and hoping that they can somehow remove it, any ideas???

 

[Darth Vader]

Note for future reference:

Tighten every nut/bolt you want to remove a touch before loosening. It breaks the thread interface and it'll wind right off.

As for now, the shop will cut it with a gas ax or plasma, most likely. You could try a small hacksaw or grinder with a cutoff disc.

 

[justanothermp5]

or you can buy a metal saw and hack it off yourself, also another note: if you plan to do exhaust work, spray the PB blaster on there the night before and drive like normal
bolts will come right off do to the heat cycles and PB

 

[bigdaddy]

I spent soooo long getting those little f*ckers off. lol, but I ended up using a breaking bar and that took care of it.

 

[chubbs]

go to sears and get one of the stripped nut removers. looks like a socket but actually bites in.

 

[8.5MS3]

every garage should have these

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00952166000P

 

[SRTie4k]

Or if you have a grinder, grind some new edges on the bolt so you can get it with a wrench. Also run your car for 10-15 min so the exhaust heats up good and hot, that should help the bolt back out (or a better solution is to use an acetylene torch to heat it up as you're trying to remove it).

 

[martispeed]

Or if you have a grinder, grind some new edges on the bolt so you can get it with a wrench. Also run your car for 10-15 min so the exhaust heats up good and hot, that should help the bolt back out (or a better solution is to use an acetylene torch to heat it up as you're trying to remove it).

+1 heat it up enough and you might be able to just break it off...

 

[SallySpeed3]

Thanks for the replies guys. If the shop can do it for me quickly in the morning I'm just gonna go that route cause I don't want to have to worry about it after work. But I'm definitely going to pick up that damaged nut remover from sears, will definitely help for the future. Thanks for all the tips as well.

 

[The ManLaw]

heat up just the bolt though. as metal expands, if you heat up the surrounding area's you might actually run into a different type of stuck

 

[martispeed]

heat up just the bolt though. as metal expands, if you heat up the surrounding area's you might actually run into a different type of stuck

+1 as well haha. Oh and for some metals there is a certain temp point they "break" free as in you can actually get it off... If you go above that temp it will actually get tighter if that makes sense. Thats why you heat it up a little at a time and keep testing it.

 

[coyfish]

Had the same issue removing the bolts the catback. They were so tight and ended up stripping. I took an air "hammer" (not sure what the air tool is called) and basically smashed the s*** out of the bolt symetrically on all sides which created grooves. This let me remove them with a socket much easier.

 

[zx2man]

I myself never had prablem with my midpipe..but then again when I was fidling with it i had like 5000 miles on the car..I use a product called Kroil...it really seeps into those threads and breaks it loose..pb blaster is decent as well..the important factor is to let it soak in all night before the actrual work..looks like its alittle too late for that now..but oh well..lesson well learn..we all make mistakes..I think there has been plenty of good advice given here from other members..goodluck to you Sally ......ps if you do the downpipe install..mak sure you soak the living piss out of the studs on the turboside and be prepared to do some yoga underneathe your hood..with patience and the right tools...couple beer breaks and alot of cussin it goes pretty smooth

 

[SallySpeed3]

haha, yeah even jacked all the way there was still very little room under my car. I've decided to run to sears during my off periods in work to pick up the damaged nut remover set. Hopefully that'll do the trick added with now the pb blaster will have set in a whole day. Hopefully I'll be posting positive results about 12 hours from now.

 

[MSMS3]

If the Sears tool does not get the job done and if you do not want to take it to a muffler shop, another option is to use a Dremmel or other type small rotary tool with a small metal cutter disc. You cut directly into the flat side (or what used to be flat) of one of the nuts, cutting deeply down close to the threads of the bolt, but not quite cutting into it. This will spread the nut enough that you should then be able to back it out without damaging the bolt. If it does not give, then use a chisel into the groove you made.

Best bet probably remains to go to a muffler shop, let them heat it and spin it off. The do this every day.

 

[coyfish]

If the Sears tool does not get the job done and if you do not want to take it to a muffler shop, another option is to use a Dremmel or other type small rotary tool with a small metal cutter disc. You cut directly into the flat side (or what used to be flat) of one of the nuts, cutting deeply down close to the threads of the bolt, but not quite cutting into it. This will spread the nut enough that you should then be able to back it out without damaging the bolt. If it does not give, then use a chisel into the groove you made.

Best bet probably remains to go to a muffler shop, let them heat it and spin it off. The do this every day.

That is what I did. I took an air tool to hammer the bolt which created a ridge. I hammered the ridge and the bolt finally came out.

 

[SallySpeed3]

ITS OVER!!!! The damaged nut remover worked, barely! but it worked so thanks for the advice on that. Holy mother effing crap! If you plan on doing this mod yourself and are still low on miles do it now!! Do not wait. I have 37K on my car and it definitely made this install (or should I say removal) horrible! Once I finally got the stock midpipe out I think it only took me about 10 minutes to put the corksport in. Only problem is I could not get the other hanger in the grommet, and frankly was so stressed out I didn't care. It's as snug as a bug. Took it for a run (see log below) and it felt great. Slight tone improvement as well. Being a worrier, I am worried about exhaust leak. From what I can tell there is none, no leak sounds, flashed a light under car to see if I could see any fumes, nothing. Would it be noticeable if there was? Anyway, thanks for all the replies and tips. So glad its over.

 

[coyfish]

And to think it should only take you about 10 minutes to do the whole swap .

 

[viper117630]

Did mine about 3 days ago. Same issue with the bolts at 22000 miles. Got so pissed i cut the bolts off with a sawzall!