2001 2.7 986 needs new exhaust - Advice please

[MC1]

Hello all, I am hoping someone can help me with this. Local garage that look after my 986 tell me its going to fail the next MOT due to holes in exhaust, also 1 Cat is rattling, so I'm thinking maybe its time to replace the whole system. My problem is I am getting on a bit and can't face living with an loud aftermarket replacement. Not looking for any performance uplift, just need to get the car through the MOT. Ideally I would go for the standard system but I get the feeling that would be ridiculously expensive.  Any suggestions would be most welcome. I am based in Warwickshire. 

[jonogt6]

Hi, I think it all depends on your budget. The closest to original spec is probably going to be a Dansk. They do several versions..standard, loud, or very loud. The standard version is £908 from design 911 although I think they are currently offering 10% off.

Alternatively you'll have to look for a good used Porsche example.

 

[Menoporsche]

They are stainless, so holes should be minor. Wonder if a more experienced person (if your garage doesn't usually work with Porsche) can look at it and see if it really needs replacing or if judicious repair would work for another 2-3 years.

Cat rattling is usually fixed with a jubilee clip IIRC. Otherwise, the triangle manifold-downpipe joint is a known weak point and can be fixed by drilling out the very corroded bolts and replacing.

[iborguk]

Ouch https://www.design911.co.uk/p/exhaust-muffler---silencer-porsche-986-boxster-27l-00-02_2/

 

[MC1]

Thanks all, appreciate the feedback. Garage guy knows Porsches, going to book the car in for an inspection as soon as I get some free time but will check out the links in the meantime.

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Edited April 10, 2023 by MC1
Typo

[½cwt]

It is not so much whether someone knows Porsche or whether they know how to weld thin steel, I know @987RG had the boxes on his 987 successfully welded for a very fair price.  Cat rattle is often the cat heat shields which rattle if they rust through on their mounting points, replacements from Porsche are not outrageously expensive which I did on mine a year ago or so but it had run without shields at all for at lest 3 years as they were not fitted when I bought it.  There is a lower section of heat shield forward of the cat which can be clamped on with a jubilee as mentioned above as they only come as part of the cat from Porsche....

Douglas Valley Breakers (Steve Strange on eBay) will have a lot of used back boxes and cats which will be the cheapest source of something that won't be loud or drone at motorway speeds, this is a medium cost option and at least the parts will have been checked before sale. 

Otherwise a Dansk system which appears to be best priced from Design 911 currently but will cost a lot of pennies for parts and then throw in labour, not much change from £2k....!

[MC1]

Thanks again, I'll check the heatshields when he does the inspection. I'll also mention using parts from a breakers as I hadn't considered that before.

[½cwt]

2 hours ago, MC1 said:

Thanks again, I'll check the heatshields when he does the inspection. I'll also mention using parts from a breakers as I hadn't considered that before.

Bear in mind what you have got has lasted 22 years already so they are pretty well made!

[Topbox]

I wonder what the cost of a new 986 Porsche exhaust is? Anyone know, or care to hazard a guess. I think I would want to know that to put the repair/ replacement options into context.

Edited April 11, 2023 by Topbox

[RedBarediver]

2 hours ago, Topbox said:

I wonder what the cost of a new 986 Porsche exhaust is? Anyone know, or care to hazard a guess. I think I would want to know that to put the repair/ replacement options into context.

They are not cheap... I looked a few years ago and the standard backbox was eye-wateringly dear. I lived with a dronemeister for two years when finally I was luckily offered a used backbox by Paul Lewis for a very good price. It had a few spots on the seams that looked like they may be a problem but it's been absolutely fine. 

If you don't want to pay silly money then I would steer clear of a new, genuine Porsche replacement. The decent aftermarket ones have a good reputation and they're not that expensive (in the bigger scheme of things). Alternatively pray to the gods of speed that you get a decent second-hand one. It's worth checking out Douglas valley Breakers on eBay.

[½cwt]

7 hours ago, Topbox said:

I wonder what the cost of a new 986 Porsche exhaust is? Anyone know, or care to hazard a guess. I think I would want to know that to put the repair/ replacement options into context.

They include the back box and the two U bends and sleeves as a kit, with 10% off they come in around £1900 for 2.7 and £2200 for 3.2.  Even though lots of pennies I'm seriously considering this route when mine eventually needs doing, although Dansk is a good back up option.

OE cats which include all the heatshields are eyewatering at around £2.5k each!!!  So a full new exhaust system aft of the manifolds for a 986 from Porsche costs about £7k so more than most cars are worth before a labour price is even thought about....

Edited April 11, 2023 by ½cwt

[Topbox]

4 hours ago, ½cwt said:

OE cats which include all the heatshields are eyewatering at around £2.5k each!!!  So a full new exhaust system aft of the manifolds for a 986 from Porsche costs about £7k so more than most cars are worth before a labour price is even thought about....

I thought you would know Chris 👍 I thought the exhaust was about 2k which given their longevity is not to bad. What I had no appreciation of was the cost of the CATs and shields which really does make alternatives a good option. I hope it's wee while before I need for exhaust surgery.

[½cwt]

12 minutes ago, Topbox said:

I thought you would know Chris 👍 I thought the exhaust was about 2k which given their longevity is not to bad. What I had no appreciation of was the cost of the CATs and shields which really does make alternatives a good option. I hope it's wee while before I need for exhaust surgery.

The cat price is ridiculous.  There's hardly a 986 out there that it would be economical (Man Maths excepted for low milage 550s or suchlike) to fit OE Porsche cats as replacements.  The larger shields that fit to the top of the cats are available and, including fixings, a pair was about £150 for my car in late 2020, so the cats are still shockingly expensive.

[Jon61]

I've never had to replace the cats, but had always assumed, although the new parts are expensive, that you'd get something back for trading in the old ones? Surely the reason they're expensive is that they have platinum or other similar precious metals in them (which is what makes them attractive to thieves) - these metals don't get 'used up' during the lifetime of the cat converter and should be able to be recovered (at a cost) when the cat needs to be scrapped.

[½cwt]

6 minutes ago, Jon61 said:

I've never had to replace the cats, but had always assumed, although the new parts are expensive, that you'd get something back for trading in the old ones? Surely the reason they're expensive is that they have platinum or other similar precious metals in them (which is what makes them attractive to thieves) - these metals don't get 'used up' during the lifetime of the cat converter and should be able to be recovered (at a cost) when the cat needs to be scrapped.

There's no indication of exchange, but it might be available, however a spot check on some VW and BMW cats is that they are around 25% to 55% of the Porsche price on similar age vehicles with 6 pot engines.

[jonogt6]

I bought two brand new cats for £59 each back in 2020. So far they've got through two mots with no problems at all and I suspect they'll be alright for the next mot in March.

So on that basis I can purchase 42 new Cats2U cats for the cost of 1 Porsche. So even if they only last another mot I should be OK for another 120 years of mots😃

[½cwt]

3 hours ago, jonogt6 said:

I bought two brand new cats for £59 each back in 2020. So far they've got through two mots with no problems at all and I suspect they'll be alright for the next mot in March.

So on that basis I can purchase 42 new Cats2U cats for the cost of 1 Porsche. So even if they only last another mot I should be OK for another 120 years of mots😃

Looks like they've gone up a bit at £312 for a pair for 3.2 Euro 3 (which is what UK market cars are) now, more basic Euro 2 are £180 for a pair. but complete with the heat shield mount fixtures makes those damned good value, and as you say if they only last 5 years rather than 25 years, what the hell!

Thanks for the tip.

[MC1]

Definitely not the Porsche often then !!!