Location: Lexington, KY
Posts: 218
My VIN: 16655
It came from Dayton, so yeah. And it's not like Lexington is entirely OUT of the salt belt, either.
I'm definitely worried about the condition of the engine studs myself- that's the primary point of this thread, trying to figure out what the best approach would be- especially with regards to going forward with it myself or having a shop do it. If I were closer to one of the actual shops, I'd almost certainly take the car there and have the current exhaust pulled and new put on, but the closest (up just north of Cinci) would be over 100 miles- though I could still pretty much just put the stock muffler back on temporarily. My concern with taking it to a local exhaust shop would be that they'd snap a stud themselves and not be able to fix it... :/
Posts: 1,068
Unless someone can come up with a good reason not to, just snap the damn things off and flip the manifolds.
Bill Robertson
#5939
Location: Lexington, KY
Posts: 218
My VIN: 16655
"I don't want to unnecessarily destroy things or potentially make like a lot harder down the line," is a good enough reason for me, at least.
If I do decide, for example, to pick up Hervey's headers, I wouldn't be able to use them if I had just snapped the studs off willy-nilly. I've tried really hard to not make any changes that cannot be reversed to put the car back to stock, and simply destroying the ability to use the stock exhaust system because it would be less work doesn't sit well with me.
Location: Reedsburg, WI
Posts: 4,026
My VIN: 5180
Club(s): (DMWC) (DCUK)
Agreed, But the likelihood of returning to stock exhaust is slim to none. You can however, pickup used manifolds for next to nothing because so many systems have been converted to headers. As for head studs, try not to snap those off. It cold make replacing them a PITA. Some will say, just put new studs in the empty locations in the head and don't bother with fixing the old ones. You know and I know that's a half-assed way to do something. Although their are those rare times when something like that is unavoidable. Always try to do a job properly before se coming it'll do repairs.
DENNIS
VIN 5180, Frame 3652, STAGE II, DM-eng Solid State Solutions (RPM Rly, Dm.Lt.Mod., Fan Fail Mod. , FAN Rly, HS.Rly) , HID headlights, SPAX user since 2009, Eibach springs, M Adj. Rear LCA's, DPNW poly-sway bar kit, DMCEU LCA Stabilizer link kit, DMCMW Illuminated door sills, Aussie Illuminated SS Shifter plate, REAL MOMO EVO Steering wheel, DELOREANA Extended View Side Mirrors w/ Heaters, DELOREANA LED Door Lights.
Location: Northern NJ
Posts: 8,576
My VIN: 10757 1st place Concourse 1998
When trying to disassemble exhaust hardware the only way to do it without breaking or cutting everything is to use an acetylene torch. It is the way all professional shops do it.You heat the nuts up to cherry red and let them cool a little. Heat up again to cherry and then turn them off easily without destroying threads. The nuts are expendable, you try to save the studs. The only real draw-back is the danger of fire and heat damage. With the proper precautions they can be controlled and/or minimized.
David Teitelbaum
Posts: 990
the less torturous way for sure.
And if you do wind up drilling, they make great trophies for your cubicle at work.
stud.jpg