Date: Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:00:03 -0500
Reply-To: T Collins <tonycollin@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: T Collins <tonycollin@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Mufflers re-dux (pipe strangeness)
In-Reply-To: <20120228105907.THU16.702464.imail@eastrmwml214>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252
So since I started this posting I figure I say something.
The muffler I bought from partsgeek was an ANSA.... I wanted to find
out if there was a warranty for it. I found it. It is one year worth
from the time of purchase....It has been 2. Figures....The rest of the
muffler is ok and it seems that I have enough of a nob to place a
strait tip on it.
So it does not look all wacked, I’m going to cut a piece of tail pipe
1 5/8ths diameter that I had laying around and make a tip for the
muffler by drilling 2 holes into it and tightening the screws against
the remaining muffler nob.
When that falls off I’ll go to the muffler shop and have them weld the
rest of my reminding pipe to the muffler and call it a day.
Thanks,
Tony
On 2/28/12, Dave Mcneely <mcneely4@cox.net> wrote:
> ---- The Bus Depot <vanagon@BUSDEPOT.COM> wrote:
>> > A local shop has offered to put a "universal" muffler on including tail
>> pipe,
>> > everything welded, for $150, or an Ansa muffler, with new pipe and
>> > flange,
>> bolted,
>> > for $288. Opinions? Any functional difference? Oh, with the
>> > "universal"
>> muffler,
>> > which is 4" shorter than the Ansa, he would weld the muffler to the
>> > pipe
>> coming
>> > from the catalytic converter, too.
>>
>>
>> > I would go with the Ansa muffler and the corresponding tailpipe. I've
>> > been running this setup on my Westy since 1997 with several trips
>> > coast to coast and she's still going strong, no reason to change it
>> > out yet.
>>
>>
>> Assuming you have a 1.9L, that is the very same Ansa we sell for $99
>> everyday. So you're paying nearly a $200 premium to have the local shop
>> supply and install it. The installation is straightforward, given that
>> it's
>> a direct-fit bolt-on muffler - certainly not $200 worth of work. (To be
>> fair
>> to the shop, part of the difference may be that they pay more for the
>> muffler than we retail it for. They buy a few at a time; I buy hundreds.)
>> You would probably save about $100 if you simply bought the muffler from
>> us
>> for $99 and brought it to a mechanic who was willing to install
>> customer-supplied parts. (Or alternatively, one who was willing to order
>> the parts from us rather than paying a higher markup to their local
>> jobber.)
>
> Actually, I have a 2.1 waterboxer. But the principle is the same. A
> different muffler shop offers the same deal for $245 for the ANSA, or will
> install one I supply for $45. He will install a "universal" for $100, with
> a "lifetime guarantee," whatever that means. On that job, unlike the other
> shop I consulted, he will weld a flange onto the catalytic converter side of
> the muffler, and and bolt it on, though he will fabricate and weld a
> tailpipe on.
>
> I'm leaning toward ordering the muffler myself and having it installed, but
> because of the welded on tailpipe that I have currently, I will have to buy
> a tailpipe for another $30.
>
> Or, I might just go to Midas, and get their "lifetime guarantee." that
> seems like a surer thing than a lifetime guarantee with a local shop, since
> there are Midas shops all over.
>
> Can anyone speak to whether which muffler makes any difference in engine
> performance or mileage? I have been told that it does, due to differences
> in back pressure, but I have no understanding of how that would work.
> Certainly, there is the catalytic converter and a whole series of pipes and
> manifolds between the muffler and the engine.
>
> mcneely
>>
>> - Ron Salmon
>> The Bus Depot, Inc.
>> www.busdepot.com
>> (215) 234-VWVW
>>
>> _____________________________________________
>> Toll-Free for Orders by PART # : 1-866-BUS-DEPOT
>
> --
> David McNeely
>
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