Replacing Exhaust Pipes and Bumper Bars - Easy to do??

Hi There
Just bought a '69 Beetle and I'm looking at swapping over the bumpers and the exhaust pipes/tips. Is this an easy thing to do? Anything I should know before proceeding? I just want to replace the current ones with the same but better condition parts.

It looks with the exhaust pipes that I just loosen off the clamp on each one. Will they just pull off then?

Cheers

yeppas loosen the clams and pipes come off, and same with the bumpers loosed the screws and off they come.

depending how long pipes have been on ,as to how easy they come off,last lot i removed i used a pipe wrench to turn them round to get them off as it didnt matter what happened to them🙂

cool.. thanks heaps for that. will get some new pipes and will give it a shot.

I recommend getting the best quality pipes you can.

Cheap Brazilian ones can rust real quick and sound bad. They are the mufflers.

I got stainless steel German made ones, I dont remember the brand, but they were $70 the pair, and 5 years later I have never had to touch them they look shiny new, and sound nice, not a silly sound.

thanks heaps for the advice... my new tips have arrived and i attempted to take one of the old ones off and it's not budging. any bright ideas? where can i get hold of a pipe wrench? is that the best way to go about it?

cheers 😎

Pipe wrench or vice grips and a little heat works wonders.

Sometimes they rust weld themselves in, and heat from an oxy torch is needed to break the rust seal.

awesome. if i do go the pipe wrench route, is there anything that can get damaged at internal end of the pipes if i'm wrenching and ripping the bastard around?

also, how much heat are we talking? after i've driven it they're hot... is that the type of temp we're talking or does it need to be extreme heat?

cheers

a old way was to run the engine until it hot than drop a bit of water on the tight bits as you turn with a pip wrench failing that use a can of wd40 over a week aand spray every time you sstop

It sometimes needs to be hotter than normal exhaust heat. Sometimes glowing red hot on the outside part of the muffler so it will expand. You could damage the main muffler if you pipe wrench them until it twists that too. If it is old, thin, cheap or badly rusted it can damage a lot easier.

also have a look on the flange where the pipes go in
Sometimes they get "peened" (the outer skin hit with a centre punch so as to "pimple" the outer steel onto the inner tube) to stop them comming loose

If this is the case a drill may be required to drill out the punch mark

helbus wrote:It sometimes needs to be hotter than normal exhaust heat. Sometimes glowing red hot on the outside part of the muffler so it will expand. You could damage the main muffler if you pipe wrench them until it twists that too. If it is old, thin, cheap or badly rusted it can damage a lot easier.

Yes, You need to be careful, as if they are rusted to the muffler.. You can twist the pipes off the muffler very easily
as most mufflers are rusted...
unless painted with heatproof paint...
then You will end up needing a new muffler..
and because they are rusted so badly, they cannot be welded back on...

If the tail pipes are very rusted and have holes in them
a pipe wrench shouldn't hurt, as the muffler pipes should twist apart...

Lee

I have straight thru pipes which are rather noisey..
I also use a pair of tapered muffled pipes...

Bumper bars are easy to take off...

a bit fiddly to put back on
a lot easier with a helper... lol

but i do most things by Myself...

LEE

thanks heaps for that. they shouldn't be too rusted if the rest of the car is any indication. both pipes have surface rust. i might try to give them a gentle nudge with a pipe wrench and then if i have no luck i might leave it for someone who know what they're doing.

cheers

when you fit the new ex pipes tips DONT push them in too far

get a bit of wire and bend a hook on end to measure the depth of the hole
then mark on the tail pipe with a felt pen dont fit it in past this point