Got the upper heat shield removed (that was a bit of a pain) and started to look at unbolting the DP and stopped because I did not want to run out of time.

Anyone who has replaced their DP, can you please help?

I know the bolts and clamp to remove, but how exactly does the DP come out? There is a heatshield between the DP and the fan that will not allow the pipe to come up and out and the flange of the DP will not pass downward through the opening in the top part of the shield.

We have a 2012 N18.

Thanks in advance!

 

As long as you get the top heat shield off, and all the associated lower heat shield bolts off the down pipe can be jiggled and finagled down, it just has to be turned 90 degrees or so off mount and with patience it will fit out the bottom

 

You will need to at least unbolt the front lower shield on the drivers side to remove the downpipe. It will drop down and come out the bottom.

 

Thanks for the replies!

 

Make sure you disconnect the battery as it is easy to contact the terminal on the back of the alternator.
In our shop we just pull the heatshield off then pull the downpipe off. It takes a few minutes to get to the bolts but less hassle to get out and put back in.

 

Thanks for all of the replies. We got started - darn is it cold in the garage!

A couple of things:

2 of the studs came out where the pipe mates to the turbo. The nut came off the third stud. Super.

The clamp holding the dp to the exhaust pipe has a nut that is rusted to hell and back and will not budge. I hit it with PB Blaster with the hope it will break loose in the morning. If not, it seems heat is the next option.

I also noticed a coolant leak that I have never seen before. I am hoping it isn't a water pump - or something worse. Can't exactly tell where it's coming from. I'm hoping when the DP is out, there will be enough space to trace the source.

Thanks for all of the help so far!

 

Job done - wow was that a PITA for a first-timer.

We found that the DP/CAT heat shield needed to be loosened, not removed to drop out the OEM pipe. The two lowest bolts and the upper bolt on the passenger side (right looking at the front of the vehicle) had to come out to allow the heatshield to move enough to allow clearance of the DP.

Sorry, no pictures, it was too darn cold!!

Mario P. is such a wonderful vendor to work with.

 

Just read this thread.

Yes, getting the OEM DP out is a major pain in the ***. When you have to figure it out the first time and putting the heat shield back was just as bad.

I found out that the front end kind of disconnects and kind of opens forward with 6 bolts and some screws. This made putting the OEM DP back on way easier but it adds about an hour of work to save your self about 30 minutes of screaming out obscenities at your MINI

 

I'll have to look into that. The dp is of course behind the radiator - so I am interested in understanding how that pulls away without draining the fluid.

 

 

Thank you for posting that video! Makes it look much easier to place into service mode compared to trying to following a step by step with only pictures.

 

Almost all the same steps. Bolts are in a slightly different area but it becomes apparent once you start

 

For anyone doing this job and comes across this thread, I found all these tips super helpful. I did the DP for the 2nd time this weekend, without putting it into service mode. That would make removing the upper heat shield bolts easier, but I have small hands and low profile sockets made that doable. I would say installing the upper heat shield bolts that connect it to the lower took more time than anything else on the job.

These tips made the job way easier than the first time I did it:

• Do yourself a favor and pull the original studs out to remove the DP. Replace with these shorter ones before installing your new DP: https://waymotorworks.com/exhaust-do...8-r59-r60-r61/ These studs eliminated the need to remove the lower heat shield and I had installed them when I replaced the turbo and it eliminated all the massive contortion I recall the first time I tried this
• Disconnect the battery as noted above, since the passenger side heat shield bolts require passing the wrench past the alternator a few times as you find the right angle
• With the shorter studs, I just removed the lower heat shield bolts on the passenger side. Used 1/4 drive with a 6" extension to make room to move the ratchet. This was plenty of room to slide the stock downpipe in and out
• Upper heat shield bolts are easier to get to with a low profile 10mm socket and ratcheting 17mm wrench. These are still a bit of a bear to line up the lower ones, I did it from underneath where I would atleast see the nut on the lower heat shield a little better. I have a set of sockets like this
  Amazon
  Amazon

Thanks to all the people above who's advice made this less than a 2 hour job taking my time.

MJ