I am trying to remove my cylinder head with the intake and exhaust manifolds and the turbo attached. My problem is the turbo downpipe and 'front exhaust tube' are solidily rusted together. I have been able to remove the three nuts to undo the flange that secures the exhaust tube to the downpipe (only broke one stud on the downpipe). The only way I can think of to get leverage on the front exhaust tube to try and break it free of the downpipe is to unbolt the other end at the catalytic converter. Then I could pull down or move side to side that end of the pipe to break it free from the turbo downpipe. Is this a good idea or will I screw up the downpipe and or turbo itself (I was going to replace the downpipe anyway). The only other thing I can think of is to cut the exhaust pipe where it bends backward to go to the CAT. I don't want to do that if I don't have to. I've been dousing the union with PB and trying to wedge them apart any way I can but no luck.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

That flange is a common prob. Don't pry on anything. You could lightly tap the lower part w/ a mallet. If that doesn't break it loose, you'll need to take off the 4 nuts from the turbocharger to downpipe, and remove the bolts to the front of the cat & drop the whole section out. A lot of fun eh?!

 

Well although slightly different, When I removed the downpipe from the turbo, I didn't need to drop the cat. I was able to maneuver the exhaust manifold up and out of the car with no need to remove the cat.