Replacing Cat converter, muffler & tailpipe

You will need to buy a pipe expander and you probably already have the other tools needed.

Don't tighten any of the clamps until you have all the parts installed so you can jiggle them about to get the best fit.

As straightforward as it might be, working on an exhaust system is seldom easy.

L.W. ("ßill") Hughes III did pass the time by typing:

Gas here is expensive. Even the teeny bottles I use in my OxyMapp rig. Expensive enought to make me start looking at the Miller MIG welder

I gave my old TV away to a charity that rebuilds things (if they can). The old PC montior just went with the trash. Taped the glass well and set it out for pickup. The trash folk here will take anything but prefer not to have suprises in the bin.

Chemicals and oil (even filters) have to go to the hazmat drop-off but they are open till 6pm and some times on Saturday.

They had fun when I brought down an old, rusty, but still charged

12oz fogger can of Baygone and some other slightly lethal kritterkiller chemicals. :) I was wearing a chemical suit and they thought I was kidding till the unloading started. Then they got geared up too.

Have you ever done an exhaust system before?

I gave up on doing them because they normally end up being 'WAY' more pain in the butt than they are worth.

After 6 or 8 hours, or by the second day and with dead saw blades, ripped knuckles, stripped bolt/nut heads, cursing, jacking then cursing more when you figure no way that @#$%^ tailpipe is going over that axle without it being on a hoist, that $100.00 labor they wanted at the muffler shop is cheap!

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

"Mel P." wrote:

I just called an exhaust place over the river I have used for about 20 years. They gave me a price for a cat-back exhaust system for a 96 Cherokee

4 liter (sorry I couldn't remember which engine Pat has) of $90 + tax. This includes a 1 year guarantee on the pipes and lifetime on the muffler.

My CJ took about $80 to get a complete exhaust system installed. This included tube bending, cutting, and welding, and the tube itself. The only additional costs were the CAT and the muffler. Total deal came in at about $200, if I remember right.

I neglected to ask about a new catalytic converter. To add a universal converter to the deal would probably be less than $100 additional

Catalytic converters for Jeeps

Mike Romain did pass the time by typing:

I've got to agree with Mike. If you have the money, pay someone with the lift and tools to do the job.

I did the system on my ZJ but would probably let someone else do it next time. The cat-back and headers are easy (mostly easy). The cat is a royal pain in the ass because it's usually welded/rusted to the downpipe. Beat on the downpipe too much and you can crack the header. It's easier to have someone zip it off with the gas wrench. pffffffft! pfffffft! CLANG! seemple. :)

When I did my 88 XJ I cut the whole thing off including the header pipe. That was easier than trying to get the header pipe off the cat. Made the whole job easier that trying to hang new stuff on old.