RX7Club.com - Mazda RX7 Forum - Install Your Own Exhaust?

RX7Club.com - Mazda RX7 Forum (https://www.rx7club.com/)

- 3rd Generation Specific (1993-2002) (https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/)

- - Install Your Own Exhaust? (https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/install-your-own-exhaust-262621/)

Hmmmmm....all this talk of the rubber 'donuts' being a bitch.....mine were fine. Still nice and supple and I had no trouble getting the hangers off them.
I did lube them up with some silicone grease prior to reassembly.

I haven't done the rest of the exhaust on my car yet, just the dp, so I have no experience with these rubber hangers, but from others I've done they're really not that bad.

My preferred method it to stick a flathead screwdriver in the hole in the rubber hanger alongside the metal bracket, inserting from the side that you need to slide the hanger toward. Once the screwdriver is in, you can use that as kind of a slide to push the hanger along. Works every time. Of course lube helps, but either way that should work.

To get the hangers off on mine, I just took some silicone spray in a can with a straw, stuck the straw in the middle of the hanger on the rod and sprayed. Slipped off like a hot knife on butter (best analogy I could come up with)

Quote:

Originally posted by adam c
I came up with a nice little trick for removing the rubber hangers easily. Put a little grease on the outside edge of the metal post. Take a large channel lock and place one end on the post place the other end on the far side of the rubber hanger. Squeeze the channel locks so that the post pushes into the rubber. Try to squeeze the post at least 1/2 inch into the hanger. Once you get it this far, it is easy to remove the rest of the way. :)

Thats probably the right way to do it. Did you put the grease on the nmight befoe like everyone else? Im thinking that the more precautions I we take, the less chance of breaking things we have.

I had a shop do the DP. I did the Hi flow cat and the cat back at the sametime myself. It took a couple hours on jack stands. The worst part was using bolt cutters and a hack saw on the old bolts. They would not budge even with penetrating oil. One of them broke. So the time invested was cutting off the old bolts and nuts.

Quote:

Originally posted by MazdaRx7Racer4Life
Thats probably the right way to do it. Did you put the grease on the nmight befoe like everyone else? Im thinking that the more precautions I we take, the less chance of breaking things we have.

The trick to the hangers is getting it started. I don't think putting it on the night before is necessary, but it won't hurt anything.

Quote:

Originally posted by Kento
A couple of additional words of advice:

The night before you begin installation of the DP, soak the DP nuts/studs in a good solvent like Liquid Wrench or anything of that sort. And spray them again just before removing them (be sure to wipe off any drippage before you begin work under the car, so that you don't get any in your eyes).

Have the right tools handy. A "u-joint" extension with a deep socket is a good idea, as it's pretty tight working quarters.

Be very careful when removing the nuts/studs. Chances are 50/50 that some or all of the studs will basically come out along with the nuts during removal. If you feel some heavy resistance, don't force it; try going backward a bit, then forward (counterclockwise) again. Otherwise, if you just try to manhandle it off, you'll probably break the stud off in the exhaust manifold, and you may be FUBAR. Also good insurance to get a couple of new exhaust manifold DP studs and nuts, that way they probably won't break because you have new ones on hand. :)

You'll also need to remove the surrounding heat shields, including the ABS shield, for easier access.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Agreed. very easy job. I recomend PB blast it is a catalist that if you spray the bolts the night before it will make the removel a hell of a lot easier. PB blast is 100 times better than WD-40. It comes in a spray can that is white with black lettering that looks like a kid desinged the lable. Its great stuff and well worth the money ($5).

Really? You learn something new everyday, thanks SVT, Ill try that for sure.

how about just replacing the catback?

i know its basically the 2 bolts and the hangers but damn i dont have any jack stands or nothing..i was thinking of backing the car on some ramps and hope its high enough to where i can undo the bolts..

You actually don't have to get the car that high off the ground anyway. I did my exhaust myself and it took about 30 minutes. Very easy. Spray the two bolts with some PB blaster or something similar. Wait a few hours for it to do it's thing. Take the bolts off. This is where a jack stand would come in handy. The stock exhaust is very heavy so you'll need something to support it while you're unbolting it. Once it's off take some exhaust gasket sealant and bead it around the new gasket stick it on and then install the new exhaust in the reverse order. All very easy.

well i already have an aftermarket exhaust on, so at least i know the bolts were removed more recent than 13 years lol..i just wanted something different, thats why i changed it..

im HOPING the gasket thats on there now is still good cause im gonna have to reuse it since the used exhaust i bought didnt come with one..im gonna buy gasket maker just in case..