Removing the 172 cat

[llgsimpson]

Morning,

I have got myself a decat system and want to get ready to fit it, the only problem is I cannot seem to get the cat off the manifold! the bolts and nuts are in a fairly good condition, the problem is if I am loosing the nut the bolt spins and I cant stop is as i cannot reach it!

also while the car is up its quite difficult to reach into the engine bay to hold it or get someone to hold it.

so I am wondering, how do you guys do it and what tools do you use?

 

[FLOBALOB]

Just taken the cat off my car about an hour ago weirdly enough. Two person job , one with hand down back of engine with 10mm on the bolt ( socket ideally as its slightly recessed but a swan neck spanner might do it ) , and one underneath the car with a 10mm socket and extension bar. Thread is quite fine so takes a lot of turns but pops off eventually.
Not that difficult just a bit tight to access.

 

[llgsimpson]

Just taken the cat off my car about an hour ago weirdly enough. Two person job , one with hand down back of engine with 10mm on the bolt ( socket ideally as its slightly recessed but a swan neck spanner might do it ) , and one underneath the car with a 10mm socket and extension bar. Thread is quite fine so takes a lot of turns but pops off eventually.
Not that difficult just a bit tight to access.

That's what I thought it would be a case of, I didn't know if maybe you could take the heat shield off and reach the bolt from underneath, how hard was it to hey back on? (if you did that)
I have two 10mm sockets luckily! So might get the wife to hold it for me lol

 

[Cupman29]

Can all be done from underneath with only one person.

I use a 1/4" ratchet with flexi joint and 4" extension on the cat side and hold the other side with a 10mm ring spanner. You will need to reach over the manifold. Tbh, not the easiest job but is doable.

 

[llgsimpson]

Can all be done from underneath with only one person.

I use a 1/4" ratchet with flexi joint and 4" extension on the cat side and hold the other side with a 10mm ring spanner. You will need to reach over the manifold. Tbh, not the easiest job but is doable.

I tried that but my hands are too big to get to the other side from underneith, plus I cut my hands to death on the heatshields trying haha, the wife is going to give us a hand on thursday, after I have finished helping her decorate the bedroom :hail:

 

[Budgie]

I use the impact gun. Spins it off in no tome

 

[Cupman29]

I tried that but my hands are too big to get to the other side from underneith, plus I cut my hands to death on the heatshields trying haha, the wife is going to give us a hand on thursday, after I have finished helping her decorate the bedroom :hail:

My hands are like shovels. It's about technique more than size. That's what the wife tells me anyway.

 

[Gus]

This reminds me of when I tried to do this by myself. Was a pig of a job and took me absolutely ages. I ended up loosing one of the bolts, it fell away and never found it, spent ages searching for it too. Its definitely a two person job if you want an easy time.

 

[masekwm]

I've just finished this. The easy way to get them on is probably the second best way to get them off, I used a garage in the end to get it off.

I clamped the new nuts on the bolt with a set of molegrips and then locked them in place with another set of grips on the ARB. I then used a 1/4" 10mm socket down the back of the engine, I found it easiest to do this whilst squatting on the engine

 

[llgsimpson]

Did this yesterday, wife holding the breaker bar attached to a 10mm socket on the bolt while I undid the nut from underneath, 100% a 2 person job, took us just 10 mins once ready to go!

 

[Cupman29]

Did this yesterday, wife holding the breaker bar attached to a 10mm socket on the bolt while I undid the nut from underneath, 100% a 2 person job, took us just 10 mins once ready to go!

Lol at 100% 2 person job. It's not! :rasp:

 

[Budgie]

It is, unless you have an impact gun.

No way I know that you can do it from underneath easily enough.

 

[Cupman29]

It is, unless you have an impact gun.

No way I know that you can do it from underneath easily enough.

You can and I have quite a few times as I've said. Impact gun went no where near it.

The hard part is trying to refit it rather than remove it but still doable.

 

[Budgie]

Laying under the subframe?

One arm up engine side to stop it spinning? The other arm up engine side undoing?

Either way, the 182 revision shows how much of a c**t it is. Lol

 

[Cupman29]

Laying under the subframe?

One arm up engine side to stop it spinning? The other arm up engine side undoing?

Either way, the 182 revision shows how much of a c**t it is. Lol

Yeah, on my back on the drive with the car on axle stands. I hand holding the bolts head with a ring spanner and the other using the 1/4" ratchet, extension and flexi joint. Footery but doable.

Spot on though, 182 setup is 100X easiers for sure.