KHE Posted September 28, 2008 Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 The driver's side muffler on my '96 SLS rotted out a few weeks ago and I MIG welded a patch over it in order to buy time to shop for mufflers. NONE of the muffler shops in my area had or could get a stainless muffler. Most of the shops tried their "Aluminized steel is just as good and we have a lifetime warranty" BS line... I knew I'd be back there every 2 - 3 years and having to pay for labor so I searched for some stainless mufflers. GM has discontinued the mufflers so that was out of the question. Most of the internet searches for stainless mufflers produced the "fart can" noisemaker mufflers for japcans... but one turned up - www.stainlessmuffler.com. They had a muffler that was very close to the OEM muffler. The only difference was the outlet was centered vs. biased up. Stainlessmuffler.com is out of Ontario but they shipped two mufflers for $328.00 total. Walker aluminized steel mufflers were $124 each from Rockauto and $200 each from the local NAPA store so the stainless mufflers were a good deal. Dave at stainlessmuffler.com was very helpful. I installed them today - it was fairly routine except for I have not welded stainless steel before and that took a bit of geting used to... I did not have tri-mix gas and was using C-25 shielding gas but got it done. THe welds are not pretty but they are sound. I thought I could just install one of the mufflers but noticed a suspect area on the other muffler and jabbed it with a screwdriver... it went right through... so I replaced both. The car is now quiet again and the mufflers should outlast the car... Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Nunnally Posted September 28, 2008 Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 Nicely done. I wish I had a good welding setup, as it is handy when you DO need it. Can't justify the expense and garage space as seldom as I would use it here though. Also I would end up setting things on fire, but that's a different story. Bruce 2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Follow me on: Twitter Instagram Youtube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted September 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 The welder setup I have is fairly compact - It is a Millermatic 175 240V wire feed welder and it has a 3 foot tall Argon/CO2 tank all on a small cart. It was an expensive tool but it is indispensible at times. Another handy tool is an oxy-acetylene torch. That makes quick work of rusted fasteners. Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted September 28, 2008 Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 The welder setup I have is fairly compact - It is a Millermatic 175 240V wire feed welder and it has a 3 foot tall Argon/CO2 tank all on a small cart. It was an expensive tool but it is indispensible at times. Another handy tool is an oxy-acetylene torch. That makes quick work of rusted fasteners. When I was in the shipyard, I could have pushed to go to welding school, I wish I did now. Kevin can you post photos of the new mufflers? Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted September 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 MIG welding is the easiest welding technique to learn. Here are a couple of pictures - disclaimer: I did not use the proper shielding gas for stainless steel which is tri-mix (helium, argon, and CO2) because I did not want to buy a cylinder and gas for just one job. Normal welding of regular steel uses 75% Argon 25% CO2 which is what I have. It worked but the welds don't have a good appearance but it's only an exhaust system. Once the pipes get a surface coat of rust, nobody will notice. Here are a couple of pictures. Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted September 28, 2008 Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 VERY NICE JOB, I am VERY impressed as to how STRAIGHT and balanced the job is... I would expect nothing less from you, nice Kevin Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted September 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2008 Thanks for the positive comments. I wanted to center the pipes better but the OEM pipes weren't centered either so I'm not concerned. I bought a can of high-temp black spray paint to paint the mufflers but I think I'm going to take it back - I doubt the OEM mufflers were painted and once the new ones get a coat of surface corrosion, they'll blend in. Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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