What Should I Do about Rusty Bolt

Would you recommend using a pin punch set to hammer out a rusty exhaust bolt?

Any kind of punch and hammer.

The bigger the punch, the better.

Tester

Someone not on the forum told me that it will be really difficult to rethread my exhaust bolt holes if I do it this way. Is this true?

Are these exhaust flange bolts?

Can you post an image?

Tester

If you think you are going to beat out a rusty bomt still threaded into a nut, that isn’t going to happen. If it is broken off, drill it out. Depending on orientation, use an easy out or keep drilling til the thread go away and retap.

It’s not still threaded into a nut. Can I do a good enough drill with an ryoby impact wrench?

It depends on what the hell you’re trying to do?

Tester

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Normally there are no exhaust bolts that are not meant to be just cut off and replaced, except on the manifold. So if they are the U clamps you just cut them off and use new ones. Sometimes there are bolts with a nut through a flange for the cat but you just cut the bolts and use new ones. Either a torch or an angle grinder with a cutting disc does a fine job. Not much more rusty than an exhaust system so they are just designed to not have to undo bolts. Really though exhaust work is cheap and it’s a dirty messy job with restricted access.

Can you mount a drill in your Ryobi impact wrench? Assuming this driver has the snap-in hex and you have drill bits that fit, I’d guess as soon as the bit snags the impact will snap off the bit.

So exactly where IS it? If this is the end of a pressed-in stud, yes, you can bang it out with a hammer and punch. If the stud is spot welded into the flange, it will need to be drilled out.

The answer to your question is simple… What to do? Utterly destroy it… and remove it from your life.

There are many ways to accomplish this feat. All depends on where the offending bolt lives…what it does…and what surrounds it.

If you can get to all sides of it… it stands no chance…just use your imagination.

I took some pictures so you can have a better idea of of what I’m dealing with. I forgot to say I’m removing the exhaust for the sole reason of replacing my transfer case

as you can see I’ve sawed off boot and cut around the top of bolt to separate bolt from exhaust adapter

Problem #2 the picture below are of the other end of the exhaust going into the engine bay. How can I get this out without air tools?

Here are more pictures to show an overall view of the car underneath. I’m posting to ask the question do I have enough clearance to take out the transfer case without removing the exhaust pipe? There book said I have to remove it but I seen a guy remove his transfer case in YouTube without removing the exhaust. But he has a tundra and not a sequouia though they are supposed to be same. I think he has a year that’s close or same as mine.

Looks like you’re also going to be replacing sections of the exhaust system.

There’s nothing to be salvaged there.

Tester

Ok so how do I do it?

I added pictures and details for more clarity

Yeah I can add a drill bit to the end of it but I’m not sure what will happen. This is my first time hearing about one snapping with a impact wrench. I’m new to electric tools

Any suggestions on where to start? Can I hammer these out with the punch set and easily put the threads in or not?

Cut the entire flange off and replace it with a band clamp. A saws-all works nicely for that.

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I’m at a loss but think Tester is correct. Whatever that joint is in the first picture, it’s not going together again. Isn’t that supposed to be two flanges that are just bolted together with a seal ring in between? What kind of vehicle is this anyway to see the full exhaust system. At any rate, that flange north of the cat should just be bolted together so you cut the bolts and use new ones if they don’t come loose, then drop the whole exhaust system down from their hangers to get it out of the way. Something is going to have to be replaced though.

OH brother… WELCOME to the JOY’S of exhaust… One of the reasons I dont really mess with them anymore. I especially like avoiding pulling pieces of oxidizing ferrous metals out of my EYES… I will mess with new exhaust pipe sometimes, but I try to limit my exposure.

Here is what would happen if you brought that to the poor guys who do exhaust for a living (God Bless their souls)… He would burn that junction right in half with a torch…and he would let it unceremoniously fall to the ground and kick it out of the way… Then he would install a new section of pipe…or an entire system from there back…and he’d do it so fast you would wonder why you spend more that one hour on that junction.

If he was a frugal exhaust man…he would install two sections of new pipe with a new flange…again he would do this very quickly.

Messing around with rusty exhaust is a fools game…dont be a fool…I have been prior, but I learn from my mistakes.

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I decided to go with your solution. Bought a reciprocating Saw with a blade that cuts metal. As far as band clamps go I’m not sure which one to buy. It looks like the first one i looked up was made more for cuts that’s aren’t completely through because one side has a bar that the band clamp and bolts connect that probably will leak exhaust if it is directly over the cut. It clearly appears to be made for clamp to just go over the opening and not the bar the clamp is connected to

Do you have a recommendation for a band clamps that can hold in exhaust if the pipe is cut all the way through the whole pipe not partially?
Where should I buy it