I had planned on doing this months ago but ended up in the hospital with a viral infection.

On the day I got out I left the hospital and started the car and noticed the exhaust sound was now coming from the front of the car. After some diagnosis it appears that the downpipe has finally given up and I am going to replace the whole exhaust.

I just wanted to know what to expect when dealing with the bolts on the turbo to downpipe ect... They have never been removed before and its an 02.

Looking for the best way to do the procedure. I am also replacing the motor mounts, intake and other things at the same time.

Thanks

 

Spray them with some penetrating lube the day night before and let it sir. You will probably need some leverage or breaker bar.

 

You'll want an impact wrench. It works 10 times better then a breaker bar.

 

Not going to be able to get the impact on a turbo to dp connection. I bought a telescoping socket wrench that let's me use the longest length allowed.

 

And IF I recall correctly, those are not standard bolts... they're like a male torx.. I haven't even opened my toolbox in 6 months, Im starting to forget what tools look like. Double check that.

 

I will be getting my money for this friday and am hoping to get the car taken apart this weekend because after talking with other people and a couple friends looking it over with me I have a concern. The exhaust sound is coming from the front of the car but the exhaust itself is still coming from the back. We didnt notice any leaks or at least serious leaks and Im concerned that it may not be the exhaust. Any chance it could be a turbo issue?

There is a serious power loss especially up hill but the turbo still boosts up to 24 lbs using GIAC and I havent noticed any loss in oil or coolant. Do turbos just stop functioning properly? Never had a turbo issue and I only have sooo much money to put into the car. Basically exhaust or turbo.

My first thought was exhaust but too many people are mentioning other things and I am just not sure. Anyone have thoughts on this.

 

Is it a 225hp? If it is a 225hp you have to drop the entire subframe to get the downpipe out. If it is not a 225hp you have it a LOT easier. The downpipe takes allen heads to remove from the turbo manifold. If you have the 225 let me know if you have any questions because I replaced mine 4 months ago.

 

I had a noise and power loss as you described and it turned out to be a loose bolt(after I replaced it). A torn flex peice would cause the noise but not that big of a power loss.

 

It sounds like some of the exhaust is leaking out up front. That explains the noise and exhaust fumes from the back. Run a little bit of seafoam through it and get a friend to look at the DP / flex section / flanges when you rev it. You should see white smoke escaping if there's a leak.

 

factory pipes prolly 304 stainless = FOREVER, just did a cat back on my 01 surprised the pipe after resonator was magnetic, not 304 stainless but still in excellent condition