OEM Chrome Tips

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:25 am

(I posted this on NASIOC a while back, and got mixed responses, so I figure I'll try my luck on a forum devoted to my model of car.)

Well, it finally happened. That's what I get for living in New York. My muffler's been rusting a bit... and when I was moving my dad's car out of the driveway this morning, I noticed that something about my car was odd. Then I saw it; the left chrome tailpipe tip was missing. Must've fallen off while I was driving home the night before.

Well, I found a place that has replacement parts, but I don't want this one to fall off too... plus, my Chilton's doesn't list how to remove/install the chrome tips. So, anyone out there know something about these parts? How are they connected, how would I go about installing a new one, and how do I prevent this from happening a second time?

My dad swears that they're held on by a screw (which, according to him, is the reason it fell off), but I've also been told that they're welded on. So what's the definitive answer?

Thanks in advance for any help you guys can give!

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:31 am

I don't think they're welded on, because the OEM parts catalog shows them as a separate part. But it does show both tips as a single part... So maybe the two are welded together, and only one of them is actually attached to the muffler? I don't know. I never looked too closely.

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:36 am

That's actually pretty possible. I'd have to check up on that one.

And on an off-topic note, holy crap! I just saw your mini-profile... your location "at times" is the same as mine. What a coincidence! ^-^

EDIT: Do you have the OEM Parts Catalog online somewhere, by any chance?

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:37 am

Woah.

Are you in Ithaca or in DC right now?

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:39 am

Ithaca. Wonderful snow we're getting. Saturday it's clear as day and Sunday it's blizzard. Jeez.

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:42 am

Yeah...

And my alternator just bit the dust this evening. I had the joyous experience of charging my battery for about an hour and then driving down to the Advance on Route 13 from here in Brooktondale, hoping the battery would make it and get me there before they closed, and then I got to install the alternator in their parking lot while it snowed on me.

At least my headlights were nice and bright on the ride back.

Whatcha do in Ithaca? I'm a student at Cornell.

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 9:52 am

Senior, IHS. Applying to Cornell. But I've only been here since 9th Grade; spent 13 years in Oswego, NY and one in Irvine, CA.

But that's awesome! Runnin' into another first gen Suby person in my town. I've seen quite a few around (one time I was at drama rehearsal and swore I saw my car pull out and leave, but mine was still in the lot, heh), but I don't know anyone personally. I'm the only one at my school who has one (as in personally own), and it's cool 'cause its condition is better than most of the cars my peers have.

Winter came late, but I'm glad I got the snow tires on early. Silly unpredictable weather. Sucks about the alternator, man.

Heh, I really should get back to writing my papers, since I've got two due today... but I procrastinate like crazy, and besides, I'm prayin' that the wind chill will be enough to force school to close.

It's a long shot, but hey, I can hope!

EDIT: Oh yeah, what model are you driving? Forgot to ask.

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 10:02 am

Cool, where else are you applying?

That is cool to know another Ithacan is into his 1st-generation Legacy. The cars are all over the place around here but it seems like nobody pays any attention.

I have a burgundy 93 turbo sedan. If you see a burgundy sedan with a hood scoop and a trailer hitch, it's me.

We should try to meet up sometime. Another board member, markgc1973, lives in Van Etten and comes to Ithaca every once in a while too. If you see a white 91 turbo, that's him.

Good luck with the papers...

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 10:03 am

Wow, I just looked at the picture of your car... It looks great! How's it so non-rusty?

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 10:15 am

*laughs* Totally, I agree with the meet-up idea. I'm also applying to RIT... and my parents are begging me to apply somewhere else too, but I didn't find any other places that had what I was looking for. So yeah.

As for the non-rusty-ness, that's a result of the car's literally gifted life.

It spent most of its days with a little old lady in California.

Basically, it was my grandmother's, who lives in CA. She hardly ever drove it... when I was a little kid and our family'd take trips out there, that's the car she'd pick us up in. She gave the car to me for my 15th birthday since A.) When I was old enough to read, I read the manual front-to-back and B.) I broke the center console hinge and the storage compartment hinge at about the same age.

So yeah. It's a CA-raised car.

...and at one point, I cleaned the engine compartment with a toothbrush, but that's another story.

Post by **Legacy777** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 3:42 pm

The stock chrome tips are little bit of a pain.

They are actually held on by a clamp. The tips are spot welded to the clamp.

What happens, over time the clamp rusts and usually you get one tip that falls off. I had this happen. What I did to fix this is get used tips from the junkyard. I put them on, and tightened the clamp. I then drilled up through the bottom of the tips into the pipe. I installed a single stainless steel screw. So even if the clamp rusted out, the muffler tip shouldn't fall off.

vrg3 · Post by **vrg3** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 4:13 pm

Nomake Wan - Ah, cool. My car was on the other coast for most of its life too.

Josh - Does the clamp just basically have a bolt that pushes tight against the muffler's tailpipes?

Post by **Legacy777** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 5:36 pm

No the clamp is actually what is touching the tail pipe. The bolt is in the center between the tailpipe tips. When you tighten the bolt is squishes the two sides of the clamp together and "clamps" the tips to the tail pipe.

tris91ricer · Post by **tris91ricer** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 8:49 pm

I think most 1st gen legacies I've seen have at least one chrome tip missing..
Yeah, josh has it right... listen to him. I can only concur and offer useless information.

evolutionmovement · Post by **evolutionmovement** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 11:08 pm

I almost always see the left tip missing. Almost ever just the right tip. My left has been missing since shortly after I bought it 6 years ago.

Steve

ultrasonic · Post by **ultrasonic** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 11:35 pm

My left tip was MIA, too, until I fitted the WRX tbe system.

Post by **Legacy777** » Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:22 am

yeah I think it was the left one that went on mine as well.

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Tue Dec 21, 2004 9:00 am

Wow... Chipping black trim, wind noise, and missing left chrome tips. Veeery interesting.

Thanks a bunch guys, I appreciate it!

G-reg · Post by **G-reg** » Wed Jan 05, 2005 7:05 am

Ha, my left one was missing too........wait that sounds bad. The easiest way to replace those tips is to get a new muffler, I kinda looked into replacing just the tips and didn't find anything aside from the chromed-tin autozone junk.

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 12:29 pm

I was coming home in the van the other day (my car's in pieces, so I can't use it for anything except solo driving, and I had to pick up my sister, so...) and found myself tailing a first-gen Legacy wagon that had its right chrome tip missing. I was astounded!

As for replacing the whole muffler, I'm not so keen on the idea. The OEM Subaru muffler's pretty darn good. A cat-back system would be on my to-do list, but not a new muffler.

G-reg · Post by **G-reg** » Thu Jan 06, 2005 5:39 pm

I was talking about an OEM Muffler, the pre-04 WRX one as it is a dual tip. The hangers have to be moved an the pipe extended, that runs about 30.oo at a local muffler shop, and you can find WRX owners with their OEM stuff sitting in their garages taking up space. I bought a WRX muff for 10.00 off eBay, and just recently picked up another from neighbor for free. It is now on my Impreza as I wanted a bit more sound, the dual tips, and something that would get through the dealers warranty dept.

Nomake Wan · Post by **Nomake Wan** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:22 pm

Coolness on the WRX Muffler, I'll look into that.

In the meantime, Rockauto added/modified parts possibly due to an email I sent them. I have no idea which part I need, now. Could someone explain the differences between these two parts? Specifically, what's a "welded" system, a "split" system, and how do I tell what I have?

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/catalog ... gineID=712

Thanks muchly!

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OEM Chrome Tips

OEM Chrome Tips