Exhaust Pipe and Suspension Problem

Jun 23, 2004 4 Replies
N

Hi,



My front exhaust pipe is rusted and leaking, producing an irritating noice.



A mechanic is charging about 400 to replace it with a new one (Parts: $362; labor $45). Is this reasonable for a Speedy's muffler ?



Although I would want to keep my vintage max, I'm not sure if I should be putting such a new part in at this time.



Would you advice a used exhaust pipe from....from wreckers, particularly if I may end up keeping the car for just another year?



Secondly, I noticed that while in low rmps (up to 1500) my steering wheel jerks quickly, from left to right, as if the wheels are wobbling... any ideas, what might be wrong.



I live in MD...



thanks for all your advice



Noela


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S

A used one in your part of the country isn't likely to be much better. That pipe is an expencive part to replace.

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C

What year maxima, and specifically what front exhaust? Is it the segment before the cat and after the exhaust manifolds? If so, there are aftermarket alternatives that are much cheaper. You can even get a muffler shop to custom fab one for a lot less. The labor he is charging is very reasonable. The parts cost is a little high unless he is getting new OEM.

CW

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S

Pretty tricky part to fab up nicely. Most of the "muffler shop" ones I've seen are pretty kinked up (tubing benders really butcher tubing!) and don't look like they would flow very well. Also most end up leaking where they attach to the manifold from using thin/cheap flanges. To make a nice madrel bent one with good flanges would take some time/money.

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C

True. The collector portion which merges the two banks is hard to get right too. Custom shops also frequently don't have lined flex sections so you may end up with a lot of raspy noise with throttle. If it is the downpipe, I would just opt for a cheap aftermarket one like one made by Warpspeed.

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From the dyno's that I've seen, mandrel bent tubing doesn't make a whole lot more power than pressure bends for this part though. In any case, I've seen 10-12fwhp compared to the stock downpipe... a nice gain.

CW

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