You can see how very little tools are required for a full downpipe job in your garage.
*I will edit as needed if anyone comes up with a step I feel needs to be added.*
Notes:
16mm open end wrench missing from pic, you need one
T30 Torx socket for rear intake tube screw
Some parts are only for a Modshack removal: The allen socket and 10mm open end wrench
Some parts are only for a Ultimate Racing downpipe removal: The 9/16" and 14mm open end wrenches
Going thru a downpipe job in my head, step by step.
1. If just off a fresh drive, set up a fan in engine compartment, blowing down towards turbo at back of engine compartment.
2. Jack up each side of car, place jackstands under rounded subframe points. Jack higher for easier pipe removals later.
BOTTOM WORK - 15 mins
3. Slide under passenger side. Remove passenger side underbody tray. mini 1/4" drive rachet. (8) 10mm nuts, they do not come off the cover. Do not overtighten later or the built-in washers will crack.
4. Pull your O2 sensor bracket off its underbody stud. Unplug each harness form the bracket. Use the large flat head screwdrive to carefully pry each clip loose till you hear a click. Then put the screwdrive down and pull the plugs off. Finally, pull the middle female harness out if the bracket so it hangs down. Now both O2 sensors are out of the way. This step is well worth the effort, rather than going the cheap route and twisting your O2 sensors 10X to get them out. Do you really want to have a weak wire in the loom?
DIY Video on step #4:
5. Take a 13mm socket with 4" extension and 7-8" long rachet. Remove your two cross member support brackets which go across the tunnel. Also loosen up the sleeve clamp at the rear of downpipe. Do not remove it, just make sure you can twist it and its loose. It will support the downpipe until you are ready to remove it. When you reinstall it later, make sure the nuts face the ground. Stock they face up and are much harder to get to.
6. Slide in from front. Find your CV axles. Find your white CV heat sheild. Take your 16mm open end wrench, and remove the 2 bolts and heatsheild. Now you will notice you can easily see your lower downpipe flange nuts.
ENGINE COMPARTMENT WORK - 20-30 mins
7. Unplug your MAF sensor harness plug, set aside. Use the large channel locks and remove the accordion tube off the MAF.
8. Remove whatever intake you have. You need to do this to have proper room later accessing flange nuts. If you have a stock oem, you just remove the airbox top cover, sometimes phillips, sometimes mini torx screws. Also remove your CBFA injection tube if you have one. (Also involves removing snap cover on top of duct, then the piece under it, which it snaps into. Then finally the U tube if you feel like it. ) If you have the Carbonio you remove the intake box. If you have the Modshack intake you remove the intake box.
9. Remove your rear intake tube, not fully, but mostly. T30 torx to remove the rear tube bracket screw. Then a long reach spark plug wire pliers (not pictured) to remove your tricky oem clamp on the turbo side, or if you are lucky, a stubby flathead if you have previously replaced that with a normal hose clamp. (Recommended on your very first job.) Lift your intake tube out of the silicone connector. Do NOT remove the PCV tube. Just turn the tube vertically front to rear on the engine so it is out of the way.
10. You are now ready to tackle the hardest nut of the entire job. The dreaded inner upper downpipe flange nut. Set up your mirror against the firewall and play with it until you can see the tricky nut in it. Take your 16mm socket, put a wobbly extension on, then a 12" extension. Take your right hand and feed the long extension in from the brake reservoir area. Use the mirror to seat the socket on to that nut with your left hand. Once seated, lay it down carefully, then go get your full size 12"-14" long rachet and pop it in. Hopefully you can break the nut loose. If it tightens up as you remove it, STOP, snug it back up again. Get your PB Blaster or WD40. Get that nut wet somehow, very very tricky to get it aimed right. Makes all the different in not stripping a bolt. Do not skip this step if it is the first downpipe job on this car. The lube is never needed anytime after that. The car should be warm to hot, not cold. I always get burned doing this job, but I do give the fan 15-20 mins of work blowing before i access that area. Keep your left hand on the edge of the socket/nut the whole time, you don't want it to fall off. That is the worst thing that can happen in the job, and takes a while to find it, IF you can find it. Once you feel it is loose carefully lift the socket up and grab the nut off it. You have now passed the hardest part of the job.
11. Take a combination of the 16mm open end wrench, and a 16mm socket with long rachet, and work the other easier top nut. (No extension needed on this one.)
You are now ready to go back under the car and do the final work to remove your downpipe.
BOTTOM WORK - 10 mins
12. Slide under from front, and you will remove the 2 lower downpipe nuts. Much easier to get to. Usually using a 16mm open end wrench is the best method. (Do not disconnect the front downpipe bracket yet, it supports everything for now.)
13. Slide under from passenger side, and remove the (2) 13mm bolts from the oem front downpipe mounting bracket. Leave the bracket on the downpipe.
14. Now your downpipe is loose. While holding it up, slide to rear and remove your sleeve back off the downpipe. You are now holding the downpipe with your hand. Then while holding slide forward on your back and work the downpipe head off the studs. Hold the head itself for the best movement. You are still holding towards the rear to support it a bit. Be gentle and don't bung up your flange studs too bad. Once it is off the studs, force it down and out. The metal sheeting will move easily, dont worry about crushing it. Lay it on ground, straight up, sitting on its front bracket. If you lifted your car high enough you can simply slide it out the drivers side of the car now.
OFF CAR WORK - 5 mins
15. Swap your O2 sensors to the new downpipe using a 7/8" open end wrench. Do not mix up the order, do them one at a time.
16. Assemble your downpipe if needed. Usually easier to assemble it off the car rather than on the car one piece at a time. Set up any brackets needed. For the Ultimate Racing downpipe, you will remove the front bracket on the oem mount, and pop the UR piece into it. Do not install it until later.
BOTTOM WORK - 5-6 mins
17. If this is your FIRST downpipe job on the car, use copper anti-seize on all the downpipe flange studs. (Nuts too.) You will never have an issue getting them off ever again.
18. Move your new downpipe to drivers side, slide it under a bit so you can reach it. Then go back and slide under passenger side, grab it, and start placement. You want to do the flange/nuts first once you get it on. You can hang it there carefully once its over the studs, then gently slide to the back and slide your oem sleeve back over to support it. Then slide in from front and first start the 2 bottom flange nuts on the downpipe to make sure it doesnt fall off. I like to snug those up real gently before moving to the top. Do not tighten the rear sleeve yet.
19. You can also put the 2 upper flange nuts on from the bottom depending on your downpipe. Even the very tricky one can be reached on a UR downpipe install. This bypasses the very hardest part of the job, if you have to start that nut from the top by feel.
ENGINE COMPARTMENT WORK - 3 mins
20. Go to engine compartment, and snug up your two upper downpipe plange nuts. (16mm). Since the lowers are already snugged, go ahead and do final tightening on the upper nuts. You dont want them impossible to get off, but get them nice and tight.
BOTTOM WORK - 15 mins
21. Slide in from front and do final tightening on your lower flange nuts. You will now move to your rear oem sleeve, center it up between your two pipes, and tighten your clamp. (13mm)
22. Final step for downpipe securing is the front downpipe bracket. This can differ on every downpipe. Hopefully it lines up and you can bolt up the front bracket.
23. Since you are already underneath, reassemble your O2 sensor cluster now. Insert the secondary O2 harness plug back into the bracket. Place the harness bracket back on the correct stud. The plug the 2 O2 sensors back into the bracket. Every time you do a downpipe job the bracket will get a tad looser on that underbody stud. Mine is still fine after 10+ downpipe jobs, but its not as tight as it used to be. (Remember, the underbody sheild also holds it.)
24. Grab your two crossmember brackets for the tunnel, reinstall the (8) 13mm nuts to install them.
25. Grab your underbody sheild, reinstall the (8) 10mm built-in nuts which are on the piece itself. DO NOT overtighten or they will crack. Snug up gently. Bottom should be done.
ENGINE COMPARTMENT WORK - 10 mins
26. Reassembly. Start with the rear intake tube. Use a normal clamp at the turbo, don't reuse the oem clamp. Then attach the T30 bolt to the tube bracket also.
27. Reinstall your airbox system. Don't forget to plug your MAF back in.
Inner upper downpipe flange nut: 3 mins once you have the technique.
The timeline above is roughly 1.5 hours. Assuming no major errors like a stripped bolt. After you've done it once, your next job will be 1 hour or less.
c'mon plac... didn't think you'd need THAT many tools to get the job done!
no seriously though, it can be done with less tools, but having more may make the job easier.
I find a Flex Head 16mm ratcheting box wrench to work well for ALL the turbo flange nuts from underneath the car. Didn't need ANY sockets, extensions, mirrors, voodoo, etc.
for any locals, i do the downpipe job for $100. already done one for someone. but if your car has a lot of miles i might have second thoughts. that's when you snap studs, and I don't want to be responsible...
