Is there some magic trick to getting the back two muffler hangers loose from the rubber grommets?

I am installing resonated test pipes and a new exhaust - I already have the mid-pipe out and everything else has been going great since I have air tools. But I have already spent more time futzing around with the hangers than I have taking everything else apart.

Also, I'm assuming that it is easiest to remove the o2 sensors from the cats by just disconnecting the connectors underneath and removing the actual sensors once you have the old cats out from underneath the car.

Finally, what is the best way to reach the nut on the top side of the cat-to-header flanges? I was able to easily get to the one that has the nut on the bottom with my air tools, but wasn't sure of the easiest way to get to the one on "top".

If there is a DIY that has some of these answers, I couldn't find it easily with search... but I did try. So please don't just answer "USE SEARCH".

Thanks!

 

yes .....wd40 and have it above your head on a lift. yank.. done. Very tuff when laying under a car on jackstands only.

Now try replacing them w poly bushings.. THAT was a b#tch. they dont flex AT ALL. Not a fun install.

A muffler shop would prob charge you 20 bucks to remove that stuff... might be worth it.

 

i used wd-40 and a screw driver to pry them off(i did it on the ground)

 

I'll try the WD-40 and see if that helps, but yeah... it isn't fun trying it while it is on jack stands.

Any helpful hints in getting to the nut on the top side of the cat-to-header flanges?

 

There's one on each side that can be hit from the engine bay with a couple of large extensions and an impact gun, electric or air.

 

This:


And this:

 

I figured out a great trick. After I sprayed them down with WD40, I grabbed my trusty crowbar (yeah, I've been tearing out trim and floors to be replaced in the house) and used the hook end of it to just pull the rubber towards the middle with each. Once I started using the crowbar to pull, it was no problem at all. With a screwdriver or just pulling the muffler, I couldn't get enough pressure to make it slip off.

Thanks for everyone's help. I would definately recommend a lift, but if you're like me and work off of jack stands, hooking the crowbar behind the rubber allowed me to pull them off pretty easily.

Now onto the test pipes...

Wow, I soooooo did not expect to be able to get to these from the engine compartment, but I can see them (thanks for the heads up on that). I'm gonna need a crazy long extension, and it looks like I'll have to take off my intake tube to be able to get to the one on the driver's side. But it's doable and I'm headed to Walmart to see if I can get a 1/2 extension tonight (since I'm on Eastern time and everything else is already closed).

Hopefully, the neighbors wont call the law on me if I just run the air tools long enough to break those last 4 nuts loose on the top of the cat-to-header flanges.

BTW - Man, it really looks like changing the headers has to be a PITA (at least for a shade tree mechanic like myself).

 

I went the long way for the muffler hangers...

I unbolted the hangers from the underside of the car itself and then removed the rubber with a screwdriver after the muffler was off of the car.

There were 3 hangers involved with the muffler.

I unbolted one hanger from the left rear of the car (3 Bolts), the second hanger from the right side of the car (3 Bolts), and finally an additional hanger on the right side of the car that is bolted directly into the car itself (1 bolt)

 

+1 on what everyone said about WD-40 and a flathead screwdriver. For the bolts, either soak them in PB Blaster oil or heat the rusty bolt up with a propane torch if you have one. This helps alot too.

Glad to see you got it worked out...

 

I dont bother with the rubber grommet......I drop the entire bracket. its 3 12mm bolts pointing straight up.

I use a 10mm to remove the rear evap, bumper sheild and with a swivel or wobble extension i can get to the 3 bolts easily.

once out, removing the grommets is much easier...takes two minutes..


-J

 

Ebay hanger tool from Lisle with a little WD 40 - $17.00

 

^ ha...thats cool, never seen that one before...lol

-J

 

very good useful tool... makes everything easy. I use to use this a lot when I worked @ a shop.

 

 

@Jason - I thought about dropping the brackets themselves since I use air tools (with wobble/universal joints, etc), but there were a few pieces underneath that I would have needed to remove to get to 2 of the bolts (panels on each side tucked under the bumper). If those panels are easy to remove from underneath, I'll probably go that route in the future too.

I just wish that I could stumble across an affordable lift that would fit in my carport. I'm starting to get tired of the tedious process of jack stands. Plus, even though I use 6 jack stands (one in each of the 4 standard spots, along with one in each of the front and back lift spots), I would just feel safer while underneath the car if I had a lift.

Now that I have my basic bolt-ons finished (intake, spacer, TP's, dual exhaust), I guess it's time to go get a tune. I was thinking about getting an Osiris to up my rev limit, get 100% WOT response, have different maps via cruise control buttons, etc. I'm sure that I'll go UTEC/Haltech whenever I'm ready to go FI, but felt like it was probably the right time to get a tune. But that discussion is off-topic for this forum, so I'll open up another post.