Exhaust - should I replace myself?

[Mike F]

Have just found a hole the size of a plum in the silencer (sounds great but want it right for Sunday's event). Volkspares have a system in stock which I can buy tomorrow.

Am I letting myself in for grief by thinking of doing it myself? I changed the heat exchanger on my Beetle a few years ago so am quite optimistic!

Any advice welcome as to what to do / avoid doing!

 

[slammedresto]

if its just the muffler/silencer your replacing piece of piss, just bolt off old one, replace with new one, using new gasket etc

even i managed to replace my whole system myself including the header, can be a pain, but not too impossible if ur half decent at doing ur own stuff

some headers need some playing with to get em to fit right

if its a stock one, should be pretty easy

 

[currylager]

The silencer will be easy, but you may need a grinder or something similar to cut the old bolts off if the system has been on a long time. If you are changing the header beware of seized nuts or studs, i had to use a nut splitter to get the seized nuts off and fortunately the stud threads were ok. The worst case scenario would be a sheared cylinder head stud which might need drilling out or extracting with a stud extractor. Its a good idea to check all the nuts/bolts will undo before diving in the deep end. Hope this is of some help.

 

[Mike F]

Good advice guys - cheers! The system is only a couple of years old so hopefully the nuts will undo OK. I'll WD40 liberally before starting; I reckon it is only the silencer I need to do but will buy everything and keep what I don't put on now..

 

[gninnam]

The system is only a couple of years old so hopefully the nuts will undo OK.

Second funniest quote of the day - cheers :lol: :lol: :wink:

 

[slammedkustom]

go for it mike, its not that hard just a pain if the nuts are seized or round off.
go for a german exhaust not a brazillian, its better in the long run and will last more than a few years like the last one!
good luck :wink:

 

[Mike F]

At £61 I've probably been sold a cheap brazilian exhasut - I'll go for quality next time!

I've been under the van and sprayed the nuts with WD40 - some seem a little inaccessible. Do I need special spanners? Socket set or ring spanners?

Up early Saturday and hope it doesn't rain!

 

[Mike F]

Just sprayed some more PlusGas (better jet so it goes where it needs to be) and had a good look round. The hole is actually there because the tailpipe has gone! Looking at Baron's pics from Stanford Hall it may have been missing all the way on the journey up north, and may explain the excess petrol consumption that day!

I've also put some PlusGas on the screws holding in the metal plate in the engine bay. I guess access is easier with this removed?

You are all very patient with me...

 

[gninnam]

You are all very patient with me...

When you have a bay you have to be patient :wink:

 

[Mike F]

Progress report...

Friday pm, have been out and removed the metal tray between the engine and deck lid. All bar one nut easily accessible and all now loosened but not yet removed. Not sure yet how to access the one on the offside underneath the mount on the engine.

Only one scraped knuckle so far!

 

[Mike F]

I got the old exhaust off in 30 minutes, great!

The new one went on fine until I tried to put the nuts on the section which comes in from above - holes not in alignment on the new exhaust. Nothing I tried would make them line up so the old exhaust is back on!

The engine sounds rather good I must say and so I am aiming to noisily make my way round to the show tomorrow and will be calling the excellent James at VeeDubs in Welling to see whether he can get the thing to fit!

 

[slammedresto]

a crow bar helps to get the header to line up properly

at least thats what i used :wink:

 

[Mike F]

Unfortunately it needed more than the lever I used to push round to align!

 

[Mike F]

Good advice given by slammedkustom today at Dubs in the Park... putting a slim screwdriver in one of the holes should allow me to twist the misaligning pipe enough for the other bolt to go it right. I'll try it all again one evening this week!

 

[Mike F]

Got home early, tools out at four, exhaust fitted by 5pm! The stroppy holes lined up quickly, then the ones which were OK yesterday wouldn't!

 

[Grazy]

well done Mike F :wink:

 

[Mike F]

Cheers Grazy! What I didn't say was that the engine smelt a bit when I got home last night and one side is a bit oil-splattered. It was reluctant to start before and after I did the exhaust so I'll be calling my man James W. I know when I'm beaten. My normal car is life-expired so I'm charging the battery on the 1303 which looks like being called into daily service!

 

[slammedkustom]

it was scooting along the motorway well... have you checked your valves?
maybe it got a little hot as you didnt have the engine foam fitted and it can make a lot of difference.

 

[Mike F]

I had the exhaust off again tonight, got it back this time with the heat exchange gaskets on both sides, which I forgot last time!

What does that foam do? Am collecting another from Volkspares tomorrow.

It now starts, runs but is very loud, and there's a squeeking as if the fanbelt is slipping. Good old James has said he'll come over tomorrow.

Live and learn? I've got a long way to go!

 

[pete nice]

The best way to do them is leave the main nuts loose or off, line up one of the pre heat bolts & wind it in till it just bites, then slip a thin screwdriver in the next hole & fully tighten the first bolt. when you remove the screwdriver, it will still be lined up