so i recived my j pipe yesterday morning and i was just wondering if any of you had any tips on installing it! as far as i can see it'll be easy, but just incase.. any help thanx

 

All the bolts are easy except for the ones that go up higher closer to the block. They're very difficult to reach, and it's easy to strip your bolts there.

 

Yup..take it to an exhaust shop and have them do it....I though it would be easy too, and it would have been if the bolts/nuts came out. I soaked them overnight as recommended on this board, but that did absolutely nothing. I ended up wasting two afternoons swearing at it and ended up taking it to an exhaust shop where they did the whole job (including fixing the bolts I stripped) for like $50.

 

it's easy with the right tools. the easiest way to do it is to put your car on ramps. then spray some pb blast on all of the bolts. then make sure you have 6-side sockets and also a 3 and 6 inch extensions and a breaker bar. you can also use 12 point sockets but if the bolt is really tight then it increases the chance that a bolt will get stripped.

this is one of the easiest things you can do, but if you don't have the right tools then it just ends up being frustrating if your bolts are really tight.

 

Yep what they said. If you are gonna try this on your own, spay the bolts a few days ahead of time to help free them up. Use ramps or jack stands. Use a 6 point socket. Good luck.

 

thanx for the input! ill definitely spary it down with some pb. let you know how it worked out!

 

ramps are easier to use than jackstands so i would recommend them for this job. i was just messing with the bolts on mine the other week doing an adjustment. definitely get pb blast ($5-6 a can) and not wd-40 or some other substitute. it works better. i wouldn't say you need to spray the bolts ahead of time as long as u have a breaker bar handy. u can spray them and leave it for a few minutes. once u break the bolt the pb blast will seep into the threads and u can switch to a regular socket wrench to screw the bolt off.

 

I'm waiting for my ATLP j-pipe, test pipe & base exhaust from the recent group buy. Are the test pipe & exhaust as much of a pita as this? If so, I may consider having someone else do the job.

 

The j-pipe and test pipe should take less than an hour to install with the proper tools. The only concern is rusted nuts on the cat; the car really isn't that old yet for the nuts to be rusted beyond removal.