[T3] Muffler Nuts...
Jim Adney
jadney at vwtype3.org
Tue Oct 4 18:46:09 PDT 2016
On 4 Oct 2016 at 21:55, J. Jonik wrote:
> Got the right size flat wrench for the job...used 3 ft breaker
> bar...tried chiseling with heavy hand sledge...tried propane
> heat...tried hammering the wrench...nothing moved. CRC or Liquid
> Wrench are no good because fluid won't go up-hill.
I always use anti-seize when I put those parts together. Once they
freeze up, there's only one way to get them apart: Cut the muffler
off, as close to the upper HEs as you can. Then put the HE in a vise
and heat up the male remnant of that "pipe union" connection to red
heat with an oxy-acetylene torch. I regularly get these apart this
way. It takes a big torch, a big vise, and a big wrench.
The first time I was faced with this problem was back in the 70s. I
tried soaking them in various kinds of penetrating oil, including
Kroil, for literally years. It didn't work. Many years later, I got
them apart with the "heat wrench."
Russ once mentioned that at the dealership, when these cars were
newish, with the car up on a lift, they cut off the muffler then went
at the union with a suitable socket and a huge impact driver. These
days, I'd be worried that this would snap off the rusted exhaust
studs in the heads.
> Problem is that replacement Heat Exchangers may not be available for
> thousands of miles...and then will probably cost a fortune. It was
> pure luck that got me the "new" unused muffler.
I have new and used heat exchangers, and I can also, most likely, get
your parts apart.
--
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Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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