Vrroom

The bolts that attach the muffler to the catalytic converter have transformed into rust anthills. I expected there to be some semblance of a bolt head. There was none. Several weeks were spent devising the fastest, cheapest, and most convenient way to remove the rusted bolts. After considering right angle grinder, torch, muffler shop, I settled for the most obvious of all. A dremel with reinforced metal cutting discs. See picture for the results.

The best method of bolt removal turned out to be to cut the head in half down the top. Then across the shaft. This revealed the shaft of the bolt which is visible is this picture. Afterwards, a different dremel bit was used to bore a pit into the top of the shaft. Next a punch and 2.5 pound hammer were used to hammer the hell of bolt. This procedure remove all three bolts.

The bolts fastening the muffler's retention strap were also rusted beyond function. Time for some more cutting. I was amazed at how clean the screen on the inside of the cat seemed. Carbon galore was more what I expected. A quick swap of mounting plates (which require removal of the heater header ducts) and the new cat-back system is hanging in place, nice and shiny. Mmmm.

I thought I would dislike the new exhaust tip. It looks a little garish, but it looks more mild installed. Though I would still prefer a a simple straight cut tip...

Lower the car, climb in, and start it up. Not nearly as loud as I thought. The MINI is much louder. It just has a nice throaty sound. On the first test drive, I don't notice any power gains. Drat.