guy at the shop said, my a-pipe is NOT double walled since there's a heat shield on there, he said heat shield means not double walled, something about my c pipe being double walled, and that my pipe is soo rusted through he couldn't cut the holes and weld them together (this is on a 97gsr), he quoted me at about $200 to replace the pipe, going to get a second opinion on saturday..

one more thing, anyone buy bridgestone potenza s-03 pole position from tirerack.com? do they deliver as they claim..?

opinions welcome

 

The only thing this guy told you that is of use is that you need to find a new mechanic. Go to a Meineke or Midas, they'll weld it up for $15.

As for the S-03's...if Tirerack says theyre in stock, I'd expect them in no time. As long as the tires are in stock, theyre great with shipping.

 

yeah i actually went to meinake first but they were busy, going there on saturday... the thing about them is they seem a lil TOO conservative, when i asked if they could put on brakes from me..(that i bought of tirerack) they were like no, cuz these brakes aren't warranteed by us... that's why i didn't think they wouldn't want to do any patch job, welding... guess i'll find out on saturday...thanx though...i know midas will do anything..but they charge alot..
i'll see what midakee says on saturday.

 

put your new pads in yourself.. its not hard..

http://www.bseries.net/html/garage/brakes.php

haha if it was me this would be a good enough excuse to put on a new header and exhaust system I guess thats just me...

the Bridgestone Potenza S-03 Pole Positions are great my friend has them on his eclipse and loves his.. too bad in 16" they don't make my size - 205/45/16.. they only make 205/55/16 or something like that or else I'd get them as my next tire... tire rack delivers... their pretty quick too

 

header and exhaust cost around $700, quick fix $30...
me being a poor (and spending currently buying new tires) i opt for the quick fix ..but i know what you mean...header and exhaust would prolly be a better idea in the long run.

 

yup, my a pipe rattled so i dropped some loot into a comtech tig header and then proceeded to take off every heat shield i could find. no more rattle and now i have more midrange and topend power. woohoo its amazing what 450 bux will do for your car.

 

So i went to mienake today, and well the guy told me he couldn't perform the quick fix cuz he had no tools to dril through the a-pipe without damaging it, so he told me to look for a custom shop to do the job, i'm prolly going to try that, before i just give up and look for a new header, i'm thinking maybee i should invest in one, since everyone on this board says it's the best fix.
i think i might end up doing just that, however the idea of just fixing it by welding the two pipes together was very appealing...