Alright So I have dropped my trans to do repairs and such and decided why not do the y-pipe also since I have perfect access but I seen the bolts and they all seemed rusted. The cat ones are basically gone. I sprayed them all down with liquid wrench and it has been sitting for about an hr or more now.

So my question is should I use an impact gun or a 1/2" ratchet with a breaker bar? Also if I am to break the studs where can I get replacements and will I be able to put new studs in myself? Or do they have to be tapped in?

 

I would leave it alone until you have replacement parts in hand. My y-pipe is in similar shape, except that I did round off the nuts at the cat. I think they'll need to be chiseled off and maybe the studs will need extracted too.

The studs and nuts are pretty cheap from Nissan, and getting to the y-pipe hardware is not much harder with the tranny in place (if you have a universal-jointed socket and extension).

Dave

 

you can cut the cat bolts off with an angle grinder, dremel, or sawzall. then drill through it.

 

Where do I cut them at? Like the bolt, the nut or what? Is there any threads for the cat/y-pipe where they connect or just a bolt.

 

Neither tool will work by itself.

You need heat, and lots of it. Heat up the rusty nut blobs with a acetylene tourch. Heat up the rust blobs that used to be nuts until they glow red hot.
Then put that 1/2" driver socket on it and they will twist off like butter.
Hands down the easiest way to remove a rusty exhaust system, aside from cutting it apart.

 

couldn't have said it better myself

 

Will the stud not twist where I cant get the nut back on?

 

if they're rusted into unrecognizable nubs of metal then don't bother with either - they won't ever come off. take the car to a muffler shop and have them cut them off with an oxyacetylene cutting torch and replace the bolts with new ones. it'll take them a couple minutes and cost you $20 or maybe a case of beer if they are cool.

 

Cut them off at both sides of each bolt, then drill through whats left(careful not to use a drill bit thats too big), then use a nut/bolt or tap it. Worked great for me. I tried heating the bolts up but they were so bad it wasn't gonna work.

 

I'd love to find a shop cool enough to do that around here. I hit two Meineke's this weekend. The first had NO customers because it was early. Two or three mechanics were standing around with nothing to do. One guy was actually walking across the street from a yard/tag sale carying a rug he just bought. I had my new Y pipe with me and I had just picked-up Nissan gaskets from a dealership. The manager said they wouldn't put on the Y pipe because they don't install private parts I asked him if he would replace the old bolts with new ones. No deal there either. I hit another shop later in the day and he said he'd install my Y pipe for $150. Give me a break. I'll keep looking but I have noticed that New England shops are uptight.

 

if you snap a bolt. you would need a torch and aleast a stud extractor to pull the stuff off the same way you get the nut off. its not a hard job but its just annoying and makes you mad quickly.

 

I would just cut off the bolts for the catalytic convertor since you should replace that along with the Y pipe while you have it off. I had to put some WD40 on the nuts attaching the Y pipe to the manifold and then used a 1/2 not a 3/8 ratchet with a deep socket I got at Sears. Came off no sweat, no power tools needed

 

i just did the same thing myself... replaced tranny... and y not do the y-pipe at the same time!

i just used a breaker bar.. got them all but one! and it broke... :-( (the stud that is) i was able to drill it out and i just used a nut/bolt. but it was a pain in the *** getting the nut on... and i even have small hands...

 

impact gun. Use a smaller socket and smash it on. When you get the nut off, put the socket in a vice and puch it out with an old crappy screwdriver

 

u should use THRUST Pentrating lube...works like 10x better than WD-40 or PB-Blaster or Liquid Wrench

 

just drill them out man, thats what i had to do.