Install Day #2

[nametakennow]

begins in about 5 minutes. If this thing farts, I'm gonna cry...

For those not knowing: I am installing my BRM (again) today, let's hope this one fits...

UPS still has not picked up the Spec V unit, I may just take it to them some time early this week, would that work, Greg?

A vid or two probably tonight, however the good (read: WOT) vid(s) may not come til Monday.

Weeeeeeeee!

[[Zero-S]]

You're going to install an exhaust in the middle of a hurricane. Good job winsie.

[GEO]

har har

[[Zero-S]]

lmfao

[nametakennow]

No hurricane here. Sunny with a few clouds...

****in hell... it appears that the muffler or the pipes are ALL WRONG... if we bolt up the axle section to the front section, then try to hang it, it's short by an inch or two (too low), if we just bolt the front, then hang the rear, and then try to make them, it's 4-6 inches too long, the piping overlaps... I'm pissed cause I don't understand this AT ALL... it looks like it should fit in every way... I'm gonna go check the SCC article on putting on their SE-R unit to see what steps they went through... not the same car, but close...

We think the piping from the exhaust with the wrong hangers may fit with the muffler with the right hangers...

THIS IS INSANE!

[[Zero-S]]

hrm...

note to self, don't ever buy a b15 and try to install an exhaust, you will get pissed.

[Mr1der]

maybe he's using the plunger again

[nametakennow]

I'm about to ****in scream, it looks like it should fit... I'll take a pic in a minute... I'm gonna call Greg right now though, maybe we totally ****ed it up somewhere... I hope...

[nametakennow]

Here's the issue (just called Greg, he's obviously not at the office on Saturday, so I dunno what to do)... pics-

As you can see, it mates up to the cat pretty well and it's hung correctly (see below)...



The problem lies with trying to connect these two pipes...

Any ideas? I'm pissed and confused and more frustrated than I've been with anything except women in a LONG time... and it's coming close to women too... I seriously looked around for a good exhaust for my car (they are rare) since March, then Paypal hated me through July... finally I get Paypal figured out and get an SE-R unit, rather than an SE... then I get an SE unit and... well... if we lopped off a couple inches between the rear flange and the muffler we could fit it, but I don't have any implements to cut it or put it back together safely...

Please fire your fabricator, Greg, unless I just screwed this up real nice somehow...

[GEO]

Boy did my 1 piece apexi N1 look better and better....

[rousie13]

I had no problems at all with my BRM exhaust. Do you have the middle section pipe on backwards? I did that at first and was like wtf when it wouldn't line up.

[GEO]

Hahaha, he prob does. Why wouldn;t they jsut make a 1 piecer?

[nametakennow]

No, the flared section faces the rear, look at the pics. The front section (slides into the resonator section) is not flared.. unless it's supposed to flare around the pipe coming from the resonator then be clamped... even then, the bends are right. The pipes look right, the muffler looks wrong... and I believe it was supposed to be a 3.5in tip... but it's 4, again...

This is further proof I should have gone for suspension... but with the ticket, I'm not sure I could afford it...

Mike is on the way to save us... maybe we're retarded... I sure hope so, I don't want to get under this car for this install again, I'm tired of it not working...

[nametakennow]

I really want to try it the way we originally had it (bolt up resonator to cat, bolt up muffler section, then try to hang the muffler) one more time, but the other guys have given up and are putting the stock one back on as I type this... even though we didn't investigate the other way as much as this way... thinking about it, we did have it pushed together as much as possible, so we had it right...

The other problem (really, the main one) is that the muffler section is too high, that is that the pipe leading in to the muffler from the axle flange is either bent up too far, too long, or both. If we could cut it, as I stated in the post with the pics, it'd fit fine... but no shops are open right now AND I don't want to pay for it because this thing should have fit, no questions.

At this point, I really don't want to install ANOTHER exhaust again, but I'm not sure what else to do. I really wish I'd done suspension now...

edit: I will remind people that I don't blame Greg in the slightest, I blame his fabricator, and I hope that all the extra money this is costing is coming out of the fabricator's wallet, not Greg's.

[BadMojo]

Sorry to hear about the problems you've been having with this. I guess there isn't anyone else on here with a Sentra SE and a BRM exhaust?

But anyway, I would have tried to do it exactly the way you said (bolt resonator to cat first, bolt up muffler,etc.)

Good luck!

Edit: I know what it's like when you can't finish an install for reasons out of your control. When I tried to do my timing chain last weekend, everything was going great until I realised that the part shipped to me was a lower tensioner...I needed an upper. I looked briefly at the part, but it didn't click that it was wrong until I took off the old one. I paid a lot of money to get the right part to me really fast.

[nametakennow]

I don't think anyone anywhere has a BRM on an SE (besides the test car, or was there an SE test car? was it assumed that all non QR Sentras are the same?), but I could be wrong... there was one other person who contacted Greg with an SE who was sent an SE-R unit the first time around. I do not know if they recieved the correct one or not.

We've discovered the most likely culprit (the stock unit is back on, the guys have left)... Joe Schmoe exhaust builder wasn't quite awake when building my exhaust, and he rotated the pipe coming from the muffler incorrectly, then welded it on. We think that if the pipe was removed, then rotated (and possibly cut shorter) a bit, it would fit. If any shop in the area was open, I'd have that looked in to and then send BRM the bill, but no shops are open on Saturdays.

I'm steamed, but trying to keep my composure here, a lot worse of things could have happened. Next weekend 3 of the 5 people who have worked on this project over the past two weekends will be unavailable, so it may be me and Mike trying AGAIN, or maybe I'll be awaiting some Koni Yellows and Sprint springs or H&R Sports...

[krazy skwerel]

Damn man. Hope this works out soon. Maybe they sent you an exaghst for the 1.8 liter model instead of the 2.0 motor.

[BadMojo]

I'm sure you'll get everything taken care of. Greg has always seemed really good to work with.

I've still got a few things to take care of on my car before I can do suspension. Right now, I'm leaning towards H&R Sport springs with KYB AGX shocks.

In the meantime, I want to:

a) take a close look at my coolant temp sensor

b) install a new oil pressure sender

c) put some Brembo rotors and Hawk HPS pads on to get rid of my fried rotors/pads.

d) exhaust!

Hopefully, this all will happen very, very soon. I also have some stripped holes for my valve cover gasket that I've got to fix.

Anyway, like you said...it could be worse. At least nothing's messed up on your car.

BTW, I was talking to you on AIM about your Sentra recently , wasn't I?

[nametakennow]

I believe so. It's absolutely a wonderful car, it just seems that exhaust is a problem.

I hope that either Greg will see this and call me before 10pm EST tonight to discuss what to do and/or he will email me sometime tonight (I'll probably be on til 1-2am EST).

I understand sending me the wrong one. I also understand a minor fabrication mistake. I even understand one right after the other, but the time consumed working on this could have been spent doing homework, or working, seeing as last weekend I managed to call my boss last minute and get that night off in order to install the first incorrect exhaust.

Not much I can do, just wait... I'm really wishing I'd done suspension now... I wish I made enough money to do both...

[navysnail]

if you want, i could look into stealing auto for the afternoon and we would have a whole lift, the install would be much faster, probobly easily make the drive worth it

[nametakennow]

Maybe I can pull that off Friday (or any day this week 'cept Wed... since I'll be in court, eek!)... though the teacher may want to close and leave early? I dunno. That'd be nice though, we could get it done in 15 minutes that way, lol.

We'll see, first I have to get one that fits.

[navysnail]

i dunno, ill talk to him about it, we stayed for a while after school on friday to look at some things on his awd talon, leaking oil, etc...

[nametakennow]

Oh Talons... they break EVERYTHING! So much fun...

::continues talking to hoes::

[Altiman94]

hmm. You are getting frustrated too fast.

[nametakennow]

Am I really? I apologize. I guess I was ust a bit too excited about getting this done...

[crzycav86]

Remember murphy's law: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

Also, I dont think you need much help installing an exhaust. I reinstalled my exhaust in about half an hour by myself, and most of that time was spent bending the cat's heat shield so I can align the exhaust with the bolts. Good luck though. Third time's a charm right?

[nametakennow]

I don't need that much help, but it's a good excuse to have friends over, and moreover, I have yet to invest in a good jack (it's next on my list) and jackstands, so... kinda hard to do it myself, seeing as I'm too large to adequately crawl under the car without lifting it up a bit...

edit: I also have what is quite possibly the most painful headache ever at the moment, right in the middle (slightly off to my right) of my skull and a little in my right ear... hurts like a mother and I dunno why...

[TachyonS14]

If you REALLY can't get it 2 work, take it down to a muffler shop tomorrow and have them install it. I'm pretty sure if they can't make it fit, then somethings wrong.

[nametakennow]

It won't fit, we've tried everything... not without modification.

Muffler shops aren't open on Sundays, I believe... nothing car related is open around here on weekends...

[krazy skwerel]

I still wonder if they sent an exaust for the 1.8 and not the 2.0