Repair 7

How to Custom a Miata Exhaust

The easiest way to increase the horsepower in your vehicle is to increase the amount of air coming in or going out of the engine. One of the ways to do this is to customize the exhaust. By adding a free-flowing muffler or exhaust system, youll gain horsepower and also get a better sound when you push down the pedal. A full exhaust system can be expensive, but to just customize your exhaust without spending a ton of dough, a rear-half exhaust system is an easy start and will still give you improvements.

Instructions

1

Lift the vehicle up into the air using the jack and secure the body on jack stands. Make sure the vehicle is completely secure before you crawl underneath it.

2

Unbolt the rear half of the exhaust from the forward section using the 3/8-inch ratchet and sockets. (Off the muffler on the rear of the car, there is an exhaust flange that joins the two sections together.)

3

Remove the rear of the exhaust from the car by disconnecting the exhaust hangers from the car. You may need to spray grease into the rubber mounts to be able to push out the exhaust hangers. Pry the hanger out of the rubber mount using the 24-inch pry bar.

4

Install the new rear-half exhaust by lifting it into the position of the stock exhaust and sliding the metal hangers into the rubber exhaust mounts on the frame. You may need to spray the white lithium grease on the metal hangers to make the install a little bit easier.

5

Bolt the new exhaust to the old exhaust using the 3/8-inch ratchet and sockets. There is an exhaust gasket included with the rear half of the exhaust, and this needs to go between the two flanges, that get bolted together. Tighten everything using the ratchet.

6

Lower the vehicle and start it. Rev the engine to see if you hear any exhaust leaks. If you do, tighten the flanges again using the ratchet, or check to make sure the exhaust gasket is seated correctly.