snichols

Let's be honest here - I don't know my way around an exhaust at all. I've been trying to find a diagram online some place, but thus far have come up very short. Before I start buying parts for me and my comrad to reassemble the puppy, I would like to get an idea of how things fit together from the exhaust, to the 'glasspack' (or whatever the kids are calling it these days), the cat, and to the downpipes. He has worked on exuahsts before and has a life at his old man's shop, I just want to get an idea of what I am going to need to make a good exhaust. I am sure this is mostly annyoing explanation for you guru's, but your help is greatly apprecaited!

tankman86

arent they usualy just welded together or bolted with a big metal o ring between sides

rocketaudi

the only backyard way to do it is with flexible exhaust piping, a pipe flaring tool and some flanges. but theres no sense in that, the flexible stuff is ribbed like a bendy straw and has to be awful for flow. parts and labor for the whole custom bent cat back on my 4kq was 200$ even, plus the muffler which i bought separately. they bolt the pipe to your cat, which comes directly off the downpipe, which comes off the manifold. theres a spot under the car where the stock resonator sits, which is the logical place for the glasspack. a glasspack is just a pipe with holes in it surrounded by insulation in a long, skinny can. it reduces the high pitched exhaust noise. then the pipe runs from there(if you decide to install one), down the driveshaft tunnel, up and through the rear suspension to the rear muffler(that they weld hangers to) and the tip comes out the back.. first of all, unless you have the same capabilities as your local midas, i wouldnt recomment a DIY on this particular system. in my experience, homemade, autozone ghetto exhausts always fall apart. for the labor involved, especially making the twisties around the rear diff, and then the maintenance when all the bolts come loose and the joints leak.. it just isnt worth it. definitely better to have the pros do it. in my opinion. buuut, if you want to try, it goes head, ex manifold, downpipe, cat, optional resonator/glasspack, pipe pipe pipe, muffler, tip. if you peek under there now, youll see how the routing goes. on fwd cars its easier and cheaper bc you dont have to deal with the rear diff and independent suspension. i was quoted 75 bucks for parts and install for the full cat back(minus muffler) for my fwd 4k.

if you have a shop, pipe and pipe bending tools and someone with experience, thats a different story. from the end of that cat, you can put pipe wherever you can fit it. dont let it hang too low and make sure its very well secured, especially by the rear diff. you dont want rattles and clanks and burnt undercoating. and i think 2.25" pipe is the consensus here, more if you have a turbo application. as i think i mentioned, audiworld mufflers of choice are magnaflow and dynomax (and i looove my sexy borla), it depends how much you want to spend. my muffler cost $150 but i think the others are considerably cheaper and also deliver excellent results. but still. after the cost of parts.. and a muffler.. and the time youre gonna spend.. id just take it to a shop.

gmbchef

Its pretty simple actually...you have the downpipe/collector with a flange, onto which bolts the cat, then a long pipe with a muffler on it that goes up over the rear diff, then the tailpipe section that bolts up to that above the rear diff. All connections are 3 fastener flanges with a steel "donut" for a seal.
HTH

JeromeS.

Yah, its not worth the time you would spend trying to make a decent system. Take it in!