Exhaust system. Change it myself?

[hibouxj]

My 87 Camry just failed the state safety inspection for the exhaust system. He said it needs to be replaced from the convertor back. Is this hard on this vehicle without a lift/rack? Someone's selling the system on ebay for about 170 with shipping. The garage wants 400 complete. If you've done this before your thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

[RIP]

Just me but, I'd rather have my teeth pulled. I haven't worked it on my 87 but I have on other cars without a lift. At least put it on jack stands. If you don't have the right tools and if the parts don't quite fit right, it can turn into a major headache. With shipping your Ebay parts will be at $200 or more. $400 sounds reasonable. They have the know how and tools if something isn't quite right. Besides. What they can do in an hour would take us a good chunk of a day. Call around some more. You might get it cheaper.

[Brian R.]

Have teeth pulled - Replace exhaust system.....
Hmm, tough choice.
I'd rather have my teeth pulled also.

If you do it, wear coveralls and safety glasses. Snorkel might be handy also so you don't eat too much rust.

[hibouxj]

With that coming from two well established do-it-yourselfers, I believe I'm going to have the garage do it. Thanks

[RIP]

Forgot to mention. If you have a buddy close by who is in the military, many bases have an auto hobby shop with lifts you can rent by the hour. When and where were you on F-111s? Shoot me a private message.

Coveralls, safety goggles and a snorkel cramed under a car. What a picture!

[JOET/CAMRY]

Originally Posted by hibouxj

My 87 Camry just failed the state safety inspection for the exhaust system. He said it needs to be replaced from the convertor back. Is this hard on this vehicle without a lift/rack? Someone's selling the system on ebay for about 170 with shipping. The garage wants 400 complete. If you've done this before your thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

Hello hibouxj,

I replaced the muffler and resonator (middle pipe) on my 1989 Camry awile back with OEM parts that I bought at Auto Zone. I believe the brand name was BOSAL. The muffler cost me about $103.00 and the resonator (middle pipe) cost me $88.00. The exhaust gaskets were aroung $5.00 each. Both the muffler and middle exhaust pipe (resonator) came with a lifetime warranty. It was pretty easy to replace because it was a all bolt on type of installation. no clamps, no hack saw, no welder, no adapters were needed to install it. I did however need jack stands (which I already owned) to get under the car to work. Some of the bolts did break off when removing them and yes, I did get a free rust shower out of the deal.

It seems odd your entire exhaust system on your car needs replacing.

You might want to get a second opinion on weather the whole exhaust system needs to be replaced. if you have never done exhaust work before you might be better off having someone else do the job. exhaust systems that are not bolt on type are even more difficult to work on. Good Luck.

Regards,
JOET/CAMRY

[ProMan]

$400!! Wow. Those pipes always rust thru at the welding joint. One hole and you will need to replace the while thing even 99.99% of the pipe is still in excellent condition, kind of waste of money. If you can find a welding shop with torch, it takes about 10 min to have the pipe "brazed" (with copper) and sealed. Most muffler shop won't braze it for you, because, $25 vs. $400, what would you do?

That's what I did myself since I have access to a garage with torch. And since it's copper, the same spot will never rust out for your life. I have done this every couple years without replacing any exhaust pipes. But the pre-requisites is that the other portion of the pipe is still in good condition or it's not worth it.

[JOET/CAMRY]

Originally Posted by ProMan

$400!! Wow. Those pipes always rust thru at the welding joint. One hole and you will need to replace the while thing even 99.99% of the pipe is still in excellent condition, kind of waste of money. If you can find a welding shop with torch, it takes about 10 min to have the pipe "brazed" (with copper) and sealed. Most muffler shop won't braze it for you, because, $25 vs. $400, what would you do?

That's what I did myself since I have access to a garage with torch. And since it's copper, the same spot will never rust out for your life. I have done this every couple years without replacing any exhaust pipes. But the pre-requisites is that the other portion of the pipe is still in good condition or it's not worth it.

ProMan,
It must be nice to have access to a garage with a torch to get your exhaust system on your car fixed the way you do. I suppose if the hole is not that big than brazing is the way to go to save some money. do you have a lift in the garage or do you put your car on jackstands or ramps?

When I replaced my muffler and middle exhaust pipe (resonator) on my 1989 Camry 3SFE engine, the muffler was completely rusted out. no amount of brazing would save this sucker. I bought it at Advanced Auto and it did come with a 1 year warranty. it was a OEM bolt on type of muffler. Almost 2 years after I bought and installed the muffler it decided to fall apart...... literally. of course it was out of warranty. what I found odd was that there was no piss hole on the bottom end of the muffler to let the condensation drip out.

The replacement muffler I bought at Auto Zone had a lifetime warranty and did have a piss hole located on the bottom end of the muffler. The middle exhaust pipe (resonator) had a lifetime warranty too. I was debating on getting the old middle exhaust pipe repaired rather than replace it because only a 6 inch piece of pipe located at the front of it after the flange was rotted out. for some reason the pipe was designed with thinner gage metal at this 6" area of pipe.

I figured buy the time I brought it to a welder and had them replace just the bad/rotted out section I would be looking at around $40.00 with no warranty, so I just decided to spend a few dollars more and buy it brand new at Auto Zone with a lifetime warranty. I plan on keeping the car till it can't go anymore so to me it was worth the extra money for brand new OEM bolt on exhaust with the convenience of having the lifetime warranty and the ease of installation. I'm hoping the car will last me at least another 5 years but with 205,000 miles on the clock only time will tell. take care.


Regards,
JOET/CAMRY

[ProMan]

Yes, I am very lucky. I have 5 vehicles in my household. Without this previlege, I can hardly afford them.

Beside regular maintenance items, I had done engine overhaul (head, gasket, and piston/rings), timeing belt, rear main seal, change/balance tires, brakes, suspension, CV boots, exhaust pipes, etc. Alignment is the next thing I would like to try. I would say I really saved a bundle by doing everything myself. Too bad I can't post attachment (why?), or I got a lot of photos I can show you guys.

[jlynx]

Originally Posted by hibouxj

My 87 Camry just failed the state safety inspection for the exhaust system. He said it needs to be replaced from the convertor back. Is this hard on this vehicle without a lift/rack? Someone's selling the system on ebay for about 170 with shipping. The garage wants 400 complete. If you've done this before your thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

Well, it is almost impossible without atleast a set of ramps. Even then it can be a little bit annoying when you have to crawl along the ground esspecially without a creeper and a concrete floor. You will have to look at the exhaust and see if it is welded or not? If it is then you will have to use a dye grinder "A small dremmel is what I use if it is a closed space. You just gotta watch out so that you don't cut your self. You can use a hack saw also if you have enough clearance. If you have a clamp on the exhaust then take that off, then you can sometime tap it off with a hammer. Or you may have to cut a slit in the side of the pipe lenght ways where the pipe over laps to help free it. If it's just bolts then you might get lucky and get them free but, you are almost guarenteed to have to break them and put new in. The pipe will slip out one way or another. You may have to jack up the rear so you will have more room to get the pipe out. Just make sure you have the wheels chalked with something for when your jacking up the car.

[JOET/CAMRY]

Originally Posted by ProMan

Yes, I am very lucky. I have 5 vehicles in my household. Without this previlege, I can hardly afford them.

Beside regular maintenance items, I had done engine overhaul (head, gasket, and piston/rings), timeing belt, rear main seal, change/balance tires, brakes, suspension, CV boots, exhaust pipes, etc. Alignment is the next thing I would like to try. I would say I really saved a bundle by doing everything myself. Too bad I can't post attachment (why?), or I got a lot of photos I can show you guys.

ProMan,

Hopefully this link helps you out. It is from the faqs thread. Thanks to Brian R.


http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...5&postcount=66

I have posted a few pics. using the photobucket.com website. I have a Kodak C530 digital camera. It is a basic point and shoot camera (with a fixed focus) but it does an okay job. It took me awhile to figure out how to post the pictures but once you learn it's pretty easy.

Regards,
JOET/CAMRY