oem exhaust removal
 

Hey guys, im having some trouble removing my oem exhaust. First off whats the trick to the spring / screws on the connector pipe that connects to the midpipe? and secondly what in the hell is an easier way to get the hangers off?

I used Liquid Wrench on the bolts and a flat-head screwdriver with some Liquid Wrench on the rubber hangers to pry it out of the pins. If you decide to do it this, make sure you wash the rubber hangers right away; letting them get soaked in LW will soften the rubber which is obviously bad.

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The trick to remove old rusted exhaust parts is to pay a corner shop $20-$40 to hit everything with an impact and a blowtorch, then put in the new hardware you give them, then drive it home and take it all off easy. I've never known a better way, and it is easily worth the cost to avoid fighting with rusted and seized bolts for hours or days.

For the hangers, spray them down with a lubricant, jam a long flat blade screwdriver along the metal arm through the hanger toward the end of the metal arm, then position the flat of the blade against the end of the arm and start levering. The hangers can deform/stretch to over twice their original dimensions, so don't be afraid to really get it out of shape. It goes back. Once you get the hang of it, the hangers can be popped off in a few seconds.

Thanks for the tips... what order am i supposed to disassemble it in? there was no instructions.

Do i unbolt the connector pipe then do the hangers or what? also there is no way to disconnect the muffler bolts that connect it to the connector pipe because they are so rusted. But i figured I could leave it attached

the nuts on the spring side come off first/only. I don't recall if the stock cat has the studs welded or not. Get those free then remove the hangers one by one. Some hangers you might leave on the car, some you might leave connected to the exhaust, depending on which of the two holes you can more easily lever on. Transfer hangers as needed.

I got the springs and nuts loose last night but i felt like they just turn forever..... are they really long or is there a trick to em.

The nuts come off on the side of the spring, they should screw to the end of the stud and fall off, just like any other bolt. The springs are free riding, so they can spin without making any progress on anything. Once the nut is off, the springs just slide off.

Thanks! I got the Invidia exhaust on today! It sounds great although it still sounds like its being constricted by the CAT. its a nice deep tone but really only comes alive above 4-5k RPMS and is slightly less noticable in the cab because the noise of the AEM CAI is kind is loud. I cant wait to get a BHR midpipe on it to see how she really comes alive.