Yesterday I tried installing my short throw shifter for the first time since I got it in september (laaaaazy). Anyway, I know this is something I can do and I hate shelling out money if I know I can do it. The problem is I can not for the life of me get the two bolts of that connect the ypipe to the cat. They're 14mm and sooo rusted that I was under my car all day yesterday and came away with nothing but bloody knuckles! So frustrating. Anything I can try? I tried liquid wrench and then something a local midas guy suggested called pb buster. Nothing worked. Any ideas on getting these stupid things off?

 

I had the same problem with mine. I spent a few hours trying to get those things off, but finally was able to work around it. I just unbolted the rubber things holding the cat up (not sure if your car is same as my 3rd gen) and that gave me a little more room and I just unscrewed the heat shield and slide it out to the side.
Be careful and let your car cool down for a while (the cat gets VERY hot, trust me)

after getting to it, it's a pretty easy install
good luck

 

I installed my short throw with only removing the cat heat shield. You might want to try it without removing portions of your exhaust.

 

hmmm maybe i'll try that...

thanks!

 

Just thought I'd express my surprise that PB Blaster didn't penetrate. That stuff usuall weasels its way into ANYTHING! I've never seen it not work. Don't let this very rare occasion sour you on PB BLaster, because it's worth its weight in gold. I used to be a welder and used it in the shop ALL THE TIME.

 

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mwahaha - i'm not ready to give up just yet sprnt... i'll have my day!!

maxwell... the guy at midas suggested i leave it on overnight to penetrate. I didn't have that time because between school and work it's very rare that I even have ONE full day off so I left it on for about 30 minutes. Should I leave it on overnight? Will it penetrate better? I guess I'll try that next time. With school ending in 2 weeks I'll have some more free time to make this happen... and it IS happening.

=)

 

well, overnight sounds like overkill, but yeah, the longer you leave it, the better it will penetrate. if you really want a way to leave it on a while, just put it on before you go to bed on a friday (or whatever the day before you work on it is), then go out the next morning and you should be fine. but hey, there's a first time for everything, and maybe your bolts are just so rusted it won't help.
(although it should be noted i'm in pittsburgh, which is saturated by salty rusted cars.)