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I am trying to remove central muffler to install xpipe however, I am not able to remove the rusted bolts. I already snapped 2 bolts as well as not able to take the stud out.
I have searched here to look what previous members did to remove but nothing worked for me. I soaked them with WD-40 many times over night. Then heated it with torch. I broke 2 bolts and still not able to take the studs. I don't want to attempt on 3rd bolt to leave exhaust hanging so I am seeking any suggestions on safe method without braking bolt. Also any suggestion on how to remove the stud, I tried to hammer the hell out of it and still not able to move it at all.
Anybody went though this and what did they end up doing? I also opened a thread in regional section looking for shop who can do it since I am not able to do it myself.
Are you talking about the three bolts on the cat flange? If so, a punch and good heavy hammer should pop a broken stud out pronto. I broke one of them doing my Fister install, and had no trouble getting the stud out of the flange.
Good idea to spray all the bolts/nuts liberally with liquid wrench and allow the penetrating oil to soak in for an hour or so. This should facilitate removal of the other fasteners. Additionally you will need a S shape wrench to get to the upper bolts more easily.
Last edited by Kuhl997.2!; 12-23-2018 at 12:21 AM.
Reason: Spell correct
Are you talking about the three bolts on the cat flange? If so, a punch and good heavy hammer should pop a broken stud out pronto. I broke one of them doing my Fister install, and had no trouble getting the stud out of the flange.
Break the darn things and stop worrying... the bolts are shot. The studs just popped out of mine with a punch and a hard whack. Go buy some stainless bolts and nuts. One of the threads had the size.
Good idea to spray all the bolts/nuts liberally with liquid wrench and allow the penetrating oil to soak in for an hour or so. This should facilitate removal of the other fasteners. Additionally you will need a S shape wrench to get to the upper bolts more easily.
spraying all over and leaving it hour, 2 hours and even overnight is not working with me. I almost believed that bolt is welded instead of being a stud. I have spent 2 days so far trying to get this out but no luck. I never had a problem taking rusted bolt out except these freaking bolts
Originally Posted by Bruce In Philly
Break the darn things and stop worrying... the bolts are shot. The studs just popped out of mine with a punch and a hard whack. Go buy some stainless bolts and nuts. One of the threads had the size.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
My bolts are almost flush with flange so I cannot hammer them out easily. I tried point something towards them and then hammer but I ended up hurting myself more than even moving the stud
It seems (from observing various posts/threads) that when people encounter this problem, a quick application of hammer and/or punch seems to pop them out for most of them. Coincidentally this includes a colleague of mine in literally the past few days.
But then there's a subset of folks that no matter how much thuggery they apply, they ain't moving. And they need to resort to drilling.
Originally Posted by onsickm
Thanks for posting the video. Do you know what accessory did he use with dremel? I am not able to find that accessory to follow
Sorry, don't know. But Car Fanatic / dc2000 is a Rennlist member, maybe send a PM to him ? He seems like a stand-up guy...
It seems (from observing various posts/threads) that when people encounter this problem, a quick application of hammer and/or punch seems to pop them out for most of them. Coincidentally this includes a colleague of mine in literally the past few days.
But then there's a subset of folks that no matter how much thuggery they apply, they ain't moving. And they need to resort to drilling.
Sorry, don't know. But Car Fanatic / dc2000 is a Rennlist member, maybe send a PM to him ? He seems like a stand-up guy...
Karl.
Hi Kark,
When you say a hammer with a punch. What does that mean? Do you have picture of a punch?
I PMed dc2000. Hopefully he gets back to me.
I can't believe Porsche would do horrible job on choosing better bolts than these. All other cars I had no matter how rusted the bolt is, I was able to take them out. These bolts being a stud is making job more difficult than what it should be.
Hi Kark,
When you say a hammer with a punch. What does that mean? Do you have picture of a punch?
I PMed dc2000. Hopefully he gets back to me.
I can't believe Porsche would do horrible job on choosing better bolts than these. All other cars I had no matter how rusted the bolt is, I was able to take them out. These bolts being a stud is making job more difficult than what it should be.
I just installed one of these about a month ago. Check the "Topgear Center Muffler Bypass" thread. The cat flange studs are pressed in from the factory and 5 of the 6 broke on me as I tried to remove the nuts. Then I had to remove what was left of them and NO amount of pounding with a punch and hammer would do it. I dremeled each one out using the tungsten carbide bit (buy several). It took forever and next time I will pay someone to do it.
OP is talking about these studs on the cat flanges. They are pressed-in on the flanges and are M8 x 1.25 thread. They corrode big time from combination of heat cycling, water and road chemicals. If they snap (and they will) you should be able to get the piece out of the flange with a decent punch and hammer. If you have problems with the top one (12 o'clock) removing the muffler or even the rear bumper will give you more access. Cat exhaust studs. I used a 13mm ratcheting S wrench to get the top one off. Stud at 4 o'clock position is the one that broke on me.
Last edited by swingwing; 12-23-2018 at 09:45 AM.
Reason: Added wording.
I am happy that you are doing this work yourself, yet dismayed that you don’t know what a punch is (or how to look it up).
Use something like these and a heavy hammer and they should knock the studs out. They are studs, not bolts. They are pressed into the flanges of the catalytic converter and are held in place by a friction fit. If the punches do not work, they must be drilled out. And if the first two snapped, just assume that the other four will, too. Good luck!
12-22-2018, 11:33 PM
Help in Xpipe install on 997.2
