Stainless Steel Exhaust Fit - Worth it?

[3706mht]

Morning all. Our 94' pre-facelift running a treat and earns it's living every day.

There is zero chance of it being moved on and indeed we will be preping it for 16 year old Grandson to learn in go Uni / work soon.

But as happens, the exhaust started to blow a couple days back .... I bought cheap last time and have to say it has not lasted well.

I'm wandering about buying a stainless one? Not a performance one or loud shouty one. Mind you if it can add some easy won quiet performance then super stuff of course.

They cost and on that basis not so sensible I guess. But given it's going to stay in our 'cheap car stable' at least another 5-7 years then I'm thinking itwould be nice not have to change an exhaust for that time even if costs a few dollars.

What you think? They worthwhile? Know anyone who supplies them? Got any experiences of them?

Interested what you think and where I might get.

Cheers

 

[plmval]

Deja-vu Exhausts Durability, we bin here before?

Quality engineered electro galvanised mild steel exhausts can last as exemplified by my current 22 year old K11 with its Nissan all original (OEM) exhaust still passing MOTs with no issues & I now believe it will outlast the economical useful MOT passing life of the vehicle.

Reference; https://www.micra.org.uk/threads/ex...rusted-broke-12-months-old.70099/#post-767248

Quote; Bosal uses high corrosion resistant aluminised steel both in and outside exhaust systems.

Quote; "drain hole is a formed 2mm hole at the bottom of the inlet endcap of the lowest part of the exhaust system; this prevents the build-up of corrosion and prolongs the life of the exhaust".

Reference; https://garagewire.co.uk/news/exhaust-drain-holes-help-prevent-corrosion-reports-bosal/

 

[3706mht]

Deja-vu Exhausts Durability, we bin here before?

Quality engineered electro galvanised mild steel exhausts can last as exemplified by my current 22 year old K11 with its Nissan all original (OEM) exhaust still passing MOTs with no issues & I now believe it will outlast the economical useful MOT passing life of the vehicle.

Reference; https://www.micra.org.uk/threads/ex...rusted-broke-12-months-old.70099/#post-767248

Quote; Bosal uses high corrosion resistant aluminised steel both in and outside exhaust systems.

Quote; "drain hole is a formed 2mm hole at the bottom of the inlet endcap of the lowest part of the exhaust system; this prevents the build-up of corrosion and prolongs the life of the exhaust".

Reference; https://garagewire.co.uk/news/exhaust-drain-holes-help-prevent-corrosion-reports-bosal/

You 100% right sir, and you know what? I sort of remembered as I posted.

Well that's even worse! Why? well since that post (and replacement) it's gone again!!!

I cannot honestly remember what I replaced with at that time. And in fairness I've not checked the damage under there, just heard it.

Well if I didn't take your advice last time, I certainly will be this time. But will take a look and see what I did first. Would be strange of I asked and ignored ... especially on this site, the advice from which is always excellent. Will take a look in the morn and come back.

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[3706mht]

Deja-vu Exhausts Durability, we bin here before?

Quality engineered electro galvanised mild steel exhausts can last as exemplified by my current 22 year old K11 with its Nissan all original (OEM) exhaust still passing MOTs with no issues & I now believe it will outlast the economical useful MOT passing life of the vehicle.

Reference; https://www.micra.org.uk/threads/ex...rusted-broke-12-months-old.70099/#post-767248

Quote; Bosal uses high corrosion resistant aluminised steel both in and outside exhaust systems.

Quote; "drain hole is a formed 2mm hole at the bottom of the inlet endcap of the lowest part of the exhaust system; this prevents the build-up of corrosion and prolongs the life of the exhaust".

Reference; https://garagewire.co.uk/news/exhaust-drain-holes-help-prevent-corrosion-reports-bosal/

Not checked what I fitted yet but spent some time looking on line and the Bosal options seem a little hard to source. Can see suppliers here and there but they only seem to have bits and pieces not a huge catalog.

Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places but wandering if you remember were you sourced yours from or know where best to go to for supply?

Also (not been to one in years) but the big chain exhaust/tyre places like Kwikfit etc, do they source specific brands rather than just their own preferred make?

Cheers

 

[vexorg]

Price them up and see. An average repalcement exhaust will last 5 years or more.

 

[plmval]

Avoid the national so called free fit groups that maximise profits by ripping off customers at every opportunity & that includes fitting the lowest priced very low quality aftermarket parts that they can source on the international parts market.

I fitted Bosal rear box 26 years ago to my Merc. W124 TE Estate as they made the original Merc OEM exhaust assemblies at that time. Merc wanted £750 & I bought a Bosal aftermarket back box for £140 & have not needed to source exhaust parts in all that time since for it or my subsequent K10s or K11s.

Due diligence is the rule of thumb, do it right first time do it once is almost always the optimum long term economic solution in everything we do.

I suggest that it is worth searching for Bosal brand exhaust parts & or equivalent quality engineered exhaust parts assessed & verified by the likes of Motoring Which Magazine & or the Popular Motoring type magazines that do quality assessments of vehicles & aftermarket car parts. Most are now online & relevant references can be searched for free but report article details are behind pay walls that can be purchased for online access.

Interchanging SS & MS parts may not be feasible thus necessitating system complete replacement expense where as I replace the defective part only which is usually the back box.

It’s a long long way & we been here before as in a gifted minimalist appearing to be a hobo, sometimes everything is not what it appears to be when looking through the mirror glass?

Happy hunting for the right long term economic solution.

Reference;

 

[MattInARedMicra]

I find it difficult to research suppliers as once they were all good quality, and inevitably they get bought out and the quality drops

The people who sell these cheap international parts know that in order to flog them they need a reputable brand, so they buy one, replace the product line with their own cheap crap, eventually the company goes bust as they lose their long-built reputation and then they move on and buy another company. You can't get away from it these days

Nothing is built to last any more and the consumer is the one who ultimately pays the price having to replace things more often

 

[plmval]

Quote; “Nothing is built to last anymore and the consumer is the one who ultimately pays the price having to replace things more often”

This is the case at the scragg end chirpy chirpy cheap cheap minimum price led bottom of the market and reinforces my point that for long term durability do it right first time, do it once with known provenance long term quality engineered materials with everything we do & in this case,simply avoid the low price mass after market trick scam free fit rubbish.

Bosal Quote; "Today the BOSAL Group remains a family-owned, Dutch-registered company established in 1923,with its head office in Lummen, Belgium. In 2019, turnover is estimated on €400 million, which was generated by over 2,200 employees working in 12 manufacturing plants, 7 distribution centers and 5 R&D centers".

The seven Ps of success: Proper Prior Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.

As always, DYOR: do your own research for the optimum long term economic outcomes.

References; http://www.bosal.com/en/about-bosal/bosal-company/bosal-at-a-glance

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=Who+Owns;+Bosal+Exhaust+Manufacturer?

 

[3706mht]

Price them up and see. An average repalcement exhaust will last 5 years or more.

Yeah have emailed a few of them but no replies. Could be the current conditions maybe.

 

[3706mht]

Avoid the national so called free fit groups that maximise profits by ripping off customers at every opportunity & that includes fitting the lowest priced very low quality aftermarket parts that they can source on the international parts market.

I fitted Bosal rear box 26 years ago to my Merc. W124 TE Estate as they made the original Merc OEM exhaust assemblies at that time. Merc wanted £750 & I bought a Bosal aftermarket back box for £140 & have not needed to source exhaust parts in all that time since for it or my subsequent K10s or K11s.

Due diligence is the rule of thumb, do it right first time do it once is almost always the optimum long term economic solution in everything we do.

I suggest that it is worth searching for Bosal brand exhaust parts & or equivalent quality engineered exhaust parts assessed & verified by the likes of Motoring Which Magazine & or the Popular Motoring type magazines that do quality assessments of vehicles & aftermarket car parts. Most are now online & relevant references can be searched for free but report article details are behind pay walls that can be purchased for online access.

Interchanging SS & MS parts may not be feasible thus necessitating system complete replacement expense where as I replace the defective part only which is usually the back box.

It’s a long long way & we been here before as in a gifted minimalist appearing to be a hobo, sometimes everything is not what it appears to be when looking through the mirror glass?

Happy hunting for the right long term economic solution.

Reference;

Oh yes 100% agree and the research is the fun but have to say it does seem very hard to find a Bosal specialist on-line.

Bits and pieces sure but the whole 9 yards? Not that I can find. Would love to .... an order would be in before end of day if I could, a little regardless of cost as the car is a keeper and I'd like to avoid replacing every 12 months which has been the experience for a while now.

Same with the stainless options ... lots of web sites saying how they can make it sound noisy but none replying to a request for a normal stock replacement in SS. In fact I'd be open to a little extra performance but I don't need any extra noise.

 

[3706mht]

I find it difficult to research suppliers as once they were all good quality, and inevitably they get bought out and the quality drops

The people who sell these cheap international parts know that in order to flog them they need a reputable brand, so they buy one, replace the product line with their own cheap crap, eventually the company goes bust as they lose their long-built reputation and then they move on and buy another company. You can't get away from it these days

Nothing is built to last any more and the consumer is the one who ultimately pays the price having to replace things more often

Is some truth in that. We all got used to paying Aldi prices for very mundane food. Pay £5.00 for a steak from Aldi. Go buy a real steak and the price will scare most off. Which is the best? No contest ... usually.

There are few folks buying top end and keeping for long periods these days. I count myself as one who still does, repairs until the wheels drop off then go buy the best. Not just cars but clothes, hifi, TV etc. It's the Primark Vs Hugo Boss argument. I watch our kids go to Primark every weekend instead of going to church!!!! It's just something to do buying 'cheap stuff' instead of buying way less, buying way better quality and making it last longer. And for sure there's a financial hit in the short term.

And it is the case that most folks don't want to spend over £3k on a flagship Panasonic 65" OLED when they can get a 55" 4k ok-ish ChinaCo machine from Aldi when they do one of their specials for less than £400. Are they the same, are they hell as like, but most folks don't care and will dump it the second it starts to fail. More plastic and chemicals in the ocean and ground.

Seems similar here. I don't mind the financial hit in most instances if I can see longer life as plmval mentions. I'd pay £3-400 for an exhaust I don't need to mess around with for 10 years .... Bosal or Stainless. But getting fed up of replacing cheap exhausts every 12 months.

Should add that in the case of the Micra, it's only the exhaust that this seems to apply to and cheaper brand (ebay) parts have in the main served me rather well. Just bought a complete set disks, pads and cylinders shipped for I think it was £34! Mind I'm still sticking to me Boss Jeans than Primark specials! .... the rola cola syndrome that Peter Kay talks about.

Sermon over.

 

[3706mht]

Quote; “Nothing is built to last anymore and the consumer is the one who ultimately pays the price having to replace things more often”

This is the case at the scragg end chirpy chirpy cheap cheap minimum price led bottom of the market and reinforces my point that for long term durability do it right first time, do it once with known provenance long term quality engineered materials with everything we do & in this case,simply avoid the low price mass after market trick scam free fit rubbish.

Bosal Quote; "Today the BOSAL Group remains a family-owned, Dutch-registered company established in 1923,with its head office in Lummen, Belgium. In 2019, turnover is estimated on €400 million, which was generated by over 2,200 employees working in 12 manufacturing plants, 7 distribution centers and 5 R&D centers".

The seven Ps of success: Proper Prior Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.

As always, DYOR: do your own research for the optimum long term economic outcomes.

References; http://www.bosal.com/en/about-bosal/bosal-company/bosal-at-a-glance

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=Who+Owns;+Bosal+Exhaust+Manufacturer?

I read the Bosal corporate statements and web site marketing as well plmval. But what they don't tell is where to buy the buggers!

I would take your advice 100% and buy a system today. But where from? I simply cannot find anyone.

Now in fairness I've played this game many times ... searched for days only the next day to find the answer staring me in the face but so far? Nothing I can find.

 

[nesty]

Just my 2p worth on the subject. I get my full system from Formula one centre fitted £105, they last 4 years before MOT issues. I last had one done in 2016 and it's slightly blowing now, will get it done once lockdown over.

 

[3706mht]

Just my 2p worth on the subject. I get my full system from Formula one centre fitted £105, they last 4 years before MOT issues. I last had one done in 2016 and it's slightly blowing now, will get it done once lockdown over.

Weird, I'm just not getting anywhere near the same .... replaced the rear section twice at 12-18 month intervals and has gone again. Well as you say it's slightly blowing. And they were tyre depot replacements as I remember. Our local one.

Car not hard used, well maintained but does do short journeys in the main and runs a little rich.

Just thinking out loud, it has had two or three fairly minor road bashes after speed humps ... think the rear end a bit low. Wouldn't have helped I guess.

 

[nesty]

My K11 is completely stock, so not sure if that anything to do with it, but I do fairly high mile motorway mileage. Though I have noticed that the Formula One full systems are slightly better build quality than the ones I had previously elsewhere.

 

[plmval]

I read the Bosal corporate statements and web site marketing as well plmval. But what they don't tell is where to buy the buggers!

I would take your advice 100% and buy a system today. But where from? I simply cannot find anyone.

Now in fairness I've played this game many times ... searched for days only the next day to find the answer staring me in the face but so far? Nothing I can find.

Try Buycarparts below, but I have no idea how about the site or the companies service or efficiency? NB that part is for my 98 K11 1300cc.

good luck in the webb wild west?

Reference; https://www.buycarparts.co.uk/bosal/1335701