OEM Exhaust - repair or replace?

T

Twilight

Member
Location
Warwick, RI
currently stock OEM exhaust, approx 70k miles, some heavy corrosion on the flange connecting the muffler
the dealership suggested welding a sleeve, alternatively replacing the muffler (obviously more expensive)

the grown-up in me says to get the cheaper option and call it a day.
the kid in me says "what if the rest of the exhaust eventually rots out? might as well get an invidia now!"

my question for the "grown-ups": what would you do? Is there really a risk of the remainder of the exhaust rotting? is the sleeve just a band-aid for something that could cost more down the road?

My car modding days are somewhat behind me (mostly due to a mortgage and lack of disposable income) but I'd consider a nice new stainless invidia as "preventive maintenance" if there truly is a risk of future repairs
I've noticed a few threads here specifically mentioning rust on this flange so I see that it is a common occurrence for this portion of the exhaust. How does the rest of it hold up over time?
 
1) Where exactly is the rust? Surface rust or is it worse and gone through. Rusting at flange is common. It might look like crap, but for the most part should be structurally decent. As we all know rust spreads like cancer, so yeah good to cut it off when you see it.

2) If the rust is on the flange, how is the flange to the mid-pipe? Did it spread to there?

3) You said the word "grown-up" so I have to not suggest the Invidia -- it will be too loud for you. Go with HKS.

If your mid-pipe is fine, go with JUST the rear section:
http://www.importpartspro.com/34005bn002.html

I've had mine for over 5 years, and it has been through 5 chicago winters with TONS of salt and I've only had surface rust where you can polish it off if you wanted to. Never any leaks, etc...

This will be cheaper than a OEM exhaust from the dealer.

4) You can weld a new flange and pipe on, but are they going to be stainless like the OEM muffler? Does the dealer know how to weld stainless (they all say they do but they really don't). This is the cheap and fast fix, only if you find a shop that is good with stainless. Forget aluminzed steel, it will rust if your city uses salt in 2-3 years.

5) 100% use it as an excuse to buy an aftermarket exhaust. You are on this forum right?:rofl:


Twilight said:
currently stock OEM exhaust, approx 70k miles, some heavy corrosion on the flange connecting the muffler
the dealership suggested welding a sleeve, alternatively replacing the muffler (obviously more expensive)

the grown-up in me says to get the cheaper option and call it a day.
the kid in me says "what if the rest of the exhaust eventually rots out? might as well get an invidia now!"

my question for the "grown-ups": what would you do? Is there really a risk of the remainder of the exhaust rotting? is the sleeve just a band-aid for something that could cost more down the road?

My car modding days are somewhat behind me (mostly due to a mortgage and lack of disposable income) but I'd consider a nice new stainless invidia as "preventive maintenance" if there truly is a risk of future repairs
I've noticed a few threads here specifically mentioning rust on this flange so I see that it is a common occurrence for this portion of the exhaust. How does the rest of it hold up over time?
Click to expand...
 
Chedman13 said:
1) Where exactly is the rust? Surface rust or is it worse and gone through. Rusting at flange is common. It might look like crap, but for the most part should be structurally decent. As we all know rust spreads like cancer, so yeah good to cut it off when you see it.
The rust is pretty heavy. No holes in it yet though.

2) If the rust is on the flange, how is the flange to the mid-pipe? Did it spread to there?
It looks about the same but I'll have to take a closer look.

3) You said the word "grown-up" so I have to not suggest the Invidia -- it will be too loud for you. Go with HKS.
Interesting. I've read that the Invidia wasn't too bad as far as loudness. Does the HKS rear section directly line up with the oem mid-pipe flange? No modifications?

If your mid-pipe is fine, go with JUST the rear section:
http://www.importpartspro.com/34005bn002.html

I've had mine for over 5 years, and it has been through 5 chicago winters with TONS of salt and I've only had surface rust where you can polish it off if you wanted to. Never any leaks, etc...
...and no problems w/ the oem components? RI uses quite a bit of salt in the winter too.

This will be cheaper than a OEM exhaust from the dealer.

4) You can weld a new flange and pipe on, but are they going to be stainless like the OEM muffler? Does the dealer know how to weld stainless (they all say they do but they really don't). This is the cheap and fast fix, only if you find a shop that is good with stainless. Forget aluminzed steel, it will rust if your city uses salt in 2-3 years.
No idea on this one. The dealership quoted me $400 for the welding job which seems a bit obscene. They did say that they would have to pull down the entire exhaust, weld on the sleeve, and then put it back so it's a bit labor intensive.

5) 100% use it as an excuse to buy an aftermarket exhaust. You are on this forum right?:rofl:
LOL, I know! Why am I even asking this question??
Click to expand...

added comments above
 
So I know the 06-08 FX45 has longer cats than the 03-05 FX45.

I haven't heard of any differences between the 03-08 FX35 exhausts.

All I know for sure is 03-05 FX45 and FX35, all HKS parts are interchangeable. E.g. you can use a HKS rear section muffler and OEM mid pipe and OEM y pipe. Or you can use a HKS mid pipe and OEM y pipe and OEM rear section. You get the point.

My OEM exhaust was rusted too, but same surface rust. I know HKS uses quality stainless steel.

You might like the all out exhaust of the Stillen or Invidia, true dual. This is the way to go for power and sound.

Want to stay closer to stock? Go with HKS rear section and mid-pipe.

I'm counting out Nismo right now because doesn't seem like you want to deal with all the welding, cuting, etc... that is required to get it to work.

You can also buy a knock off on ebay exhaust.
 
LEXFX said:
can we use all g35 stock muffler coupe and sedan, and what about the 350z?
Click to expand...

Yes, 2003-2008 models.

They all will bolt on with the same flange, bolt, and exhaust hangers.

Just note you have to extend the tips.

Also, some that are true dual, won't fit tow hitch, so just be careful.
 
so the corrosion finally created a small hole in the flange welds. no, i didn't address the problem when I should have :tongue (2):

so now that I have this louder, raspy exhaust, time to do something about it.
I'm going to take a look at the condition of the flange on the midpipe... I'm considering just buying an OEM muffler and just bolting it on myself which should be fairly straight-forward.
alternatively, I could try to patch the hole for an even cheaper fix but I guess I would be only delaying the inevitable replacement of the muffler anyway.

I've given a lot of thought to the Invidia but I think that I really like the sound of the stock exhaust and cannot really justify the cost of the trivial amount of performance increase that a true dual exhaust would give me.
 
Mine rusted through. I removed it on both cat. It just a heat shield. I really don't think it will serve any type of protection. The shield is not a replaceable part.
 
I have exactly the same problem view month ago and i suggest :

4) You can weld a new flange and pipe on, but are they going to be stainless like the OEM muffler? Does the dealer know how to weld stainless (they all say they do but they really don't). This is the cheap and fast fix, only if you find a shop that is good with stainless. Forget aluminzed steel, it will rust if your city uses salt in 2-3 years.

it only cost me 60$ , don't go to the dealer for that. They want you to pay the full exhaust (1200$).
 
it only rusts on muffler side of the flange??

---------- Post Merged at 12:18 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 12:18 PM ----------

it only rusts on muffler side of the flange??
 
Thanks for the info on the muffler, my flanges have hole and rust too, failed inspection today butg35 mufflers are plentiful around me. Er I might just get performance exhaust....decisions decisions .
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top