front exhaust pipe

Forgive me if this has been discussed before...I did a search and didn't find anything...

My niece's '99 'Tour has developed an exhaust leak...it appears to be the flexible coupling in the front pipe. It seems that the catalytic converter and the front pipe with this coupling are all one piece. The only thing wrong is the coupling, so I hate to have to pay for a whole new cat and all. Does anyone make a replacement for this flexible piece without having to buy the whole pipe and cat?

RF Overlord said:

Forgive me if this has been discussed before...I did a search and didn't find anything...

My niece's '99 'Tour has developed an exhaust leak...it appears to be the flexible coupling in the front pipe. It seems that the catalytic converter and the front pipe with this coupling are all one piece. The only thing wrong is the coupling, so I hate to have to pay for a whole new cat and all. Does anyone make a replacement for this flexible piece without having to buy the whole pipe and cat?

Click to expand...

JUST the flex pipe is in fact available, although I'm not sure where. I already discussed it with my mechanic and he said that they are available (I'd fix it myself but I don't have the tools). However, I do recommend trying this heat-resistant tape I have heard of. It can be wrapped around the leaking part of the flex pipe, giving you some time before you actually need to get it fixed. I'm going to pick some up for my broken flex pipe and I'll let you know how it works.

is it in the flex piping or where the to pipes bolt together?
1. if it is the flex pipe then the only way to replace that is to cut foward of it and unbolt the back side of it, slide a 2 bolt 2" coupler and flare the pipe behind it. then you can go out and replace the flex pipe by itself with one that will fill up the gap.

2. if it's where the to pipes bolt together, unbolt the 2 pipes from one another replace the gasket and bolt it back together, not sure of the part number for the gasket but I think this one is most likely the culprate

It's definitely the flex-pipe.

I found a shop that will replace the flex for $150...I also found that buying the whole pipe is over $400 (plus labour), so it sounds like a good deal to me...

Do you have Cali emmissions or something because the normal cat's are only 220 to 260 depending on where you go?

The price of the front pipe at Advance Auto is $424...

Vibrant products have flex pipes in various sizes and price is less.