Upon realizing Borla had not included the connection bolts and gasket (that connect the cat and muffler), I stopped by the local hardware store to purchase three 10 mm x 5 cm stainless steel bolts in addition to another gasket.
My 1996 Explorer exhaust nuts and bolts were fairly well corroded together, so I attempt to use a nut splitter (a la made in Taiwan). The nut splitter broke since cast aluminum was used in this 7 dollar tool. I tried drilling the nuts off to no avail. Finally, I used my air compressor and cut off wheel to remove the damn nuts and bolts in one fell swoop. All this dickering around was the most time consuming part of the installation.
Removing the stock exhaust from the cat back was not difficult, but not exactly as easy as I thought it would be within the confines of my garage and jacks. The stock unit is one complete piece that cannot be disassembled. I removed the spare tire, loosened the right rear shock absorber from the bottom, and removed the bottom portion of my rear stabilizer bar end link. With this done, removal just took a little twisting, and strategic manuevering of the pipe/muffler.
Now, the Borla exhaust system comes in two pieces (thank God). It fit perfectly, utilizing ALL the stock hangers. This was by far the easiest aftermarket exhaust system I have ever installed. Took me approximately 20 minutes once I had removed the stock system. Fitment is spectacular!
I woke up this morning around 8:00 am, and with all the driving around from Pep Boys to two hardware stores, making myself breakfast and lunch, and playing a few computer games online, I got the job done around 1:30 pm. It would have gone much more smoothly had I not had stubborn nuts and bolts.
Soundwise, my vehicle is just a tad louder than stock, and not really obnoxious (at least as far as I can tell from the inside). Sounds deeper, and definitely like the V8 that it is. I realize my comments here are subjective.
In all honesty, I'm surprised that the Borla system is shaped almost identically to the stock system, but the curves are mandrel bent, and the stainless steel is much more shiny.
Time for my shower, after which I will be cruising around to check out my new addition.
1996 Ford Explorer XLT 5.0 V8 (Med Willow Green Met)
KKM Intake
Hypertech chip
Custom half-wrap added leaf spring in rear
Torsion twist up front
Deflectashield fender flares (painted graphite to match running boards)
31x10.5x15 on 15 x 8.5 rims
Rockford Fosgate amp added to stock JBL unit
12 inch bandpass subwoofer in rear
Rockford Fosgate 6.5 inch midrange speakers up front
Waag front brush guard
KC Daylighters on brush guard
Tail-light guards
Draw-tight Class IV hitch
Rear Ford Window deflector
1 meanie beanie bag frog up front.
Ribbit
[Edited by ksfrogman on 02-11-2001 at 03:20 PM]
My 1996 Explorer exhaust nuts and bolts were fairly well corroded together, so I attempt to use a nut splitter (a la made in Taiwan). The nut splitter broke since cast aluminum was used in this 7 dollar tool. I tried drilling the nuts off to no avail. Finally, I used my air compressor and cut off wheel to remove the damn nuts and bolts in one fell swoop. All this dickering around was the most time consuming part of the installation.
Removing the stock exhaust from the cat back was not difficult, but not exactly as easy as I thought it would be within the confines of my garage and jacks. The stock unit is one complete piece that cannot be disassembled. I removed the spare tire, loosened the right rear shock absorber from the bottom, and removed the bottom portion of my rear stabilizer bar end link. With this done, removal just took a little twisting, and strategic manuevering of the pipe/muffler.
Now, the Borla exhaust system comes in two pieces (thank God). It fit perfectly, utilizing ALL the stock hangers. This was by far the easiest aftermarket exhaust system I have ever installed. Took me approximately 20 minutes once I had removed the stock system. Fitment is spectacular!
I woke up this morning around 8:00 am, and with all the driving around from Pep Boys to two hardware stores, making myself breakfast and lunch, and playing a few computer games online, I got the job done around 1:30 pm. It would have gone much more smoothly had I not had stubborn nuts and bolts.
Soundwise, my vehicle is just a tad louder than stock, and not really obnoxious (at least as far as I can tell from the inside). Sounds deeper, and definitely like the V8 that it is. I realize my comments here are subjective.
In all honesty, I'm surprised that the Borla system is shaped almost identically to the stock system, but the curves are mandrel bent, and the stainless steel is much more shiny.
Time for my shower, after which I will be cruising around to check out my new addition.
1996 Ford Explorer XLT 5.0 V8 (Med Willow Green Met)
KKM Intake
Hypertech chip
Custom half-wrap added leaf spring in rear
Torsion twist up front
Deflectashield fender flares (painted graphite to match running boards)
31x10.5x15 on 15 x 8.5 rims
Rockford Fosgate amp added to stock JBL unit
12 inch bandpass subwoofer in rear
Rockford Fosgate 6.5 inch midrange speakers up front
Waag front brush guard
KC Daylighters on brush guard
Tail-light guards
Draw-tight Class IV hitch
Rear Ford Window deflector
1 meanie beanie bag frog up front.
Ribbit
[Edited by ksfrogman on 02-11-2001 at 03:20 PM]
