So I get the car up on jack stands last night so I can install my new clutch and had to stop after about 10 minutes. It turns out the steel tubing for the smog pump running from the cats up into the engine bay is welded so it forms a single tube. That raises two problems: (1) I don’t have the height clearance with the car on jack stands to drop the H-pipe and keep everything intact; and (2) Even if I had the height clearance, the smog tubing is going to prevent the h-pipe from sliding forward so I can remove it from its mounts.
So, I’m thinking my only option is to start cutting. Could somebody provide me with a photo and/or advice on how to properly hook this back up? Is the tubing normally connected with compressed flanges (like where the headers meet the H-pipe) or some other type of connection? Is the tubing that connects between the two cats and then up to the smog pump lines a factory part or something I would need to fabricate myself? Any advice would be appreciated. If I can just get the clutch replaced and fix this later that would be my preference. I just bought the car and haven’t even had the chance to really drive the darn thing because of the clutch.
So, I’m thinking my only option is to start cutting. Could somebody provide me with a photo and/or advice on how to properly hook this back up? Is the tubing normally connected with compressed flanges (like where the headers meet the H-pipe) or some other type of connection? Is the tubing that connects between the two cats and then up to the smog pump lines a factory part or something I would need to fabricate myself? Any advice would be appreciated. If I can just get the clutch replaced and fix this later that would be my preference. I just bought the car and haven’t even had the chance to really drive the darn thing because of the clutch.