Between waiting for parts from Sunset (I'm on the east coast so it takes a full week) and finding time to work on it too many weeks have passed by. I'm itching to drive it!
The down time started when my water pump began to fail. Fortunately it gave me a lot of warning and didn't leave me stranded or make a big mess. I figured if I was replacing the water pump I may as well flush and replace the coolant. Then I decided to install the LN 160 degree thermostat. The serpentine belt had 20,000 miles on it so I replaced it.
I was also due for my annual oil change (I only drive it ~3000 miles per year). I used Red Line 0W-40 for the first time.
Once I had the undertray removed for better access to the water pump I noticed how much more clearance it created to the exhaust manifolds. I've been wanting to replace them as well as add secondary cat delete pipes and a new muffler. I've been watching the thread started by 2K3_BOXSTER_S with much interest even though I have a 2.7. I had been leaning heavily toward the complete Maxspeed system for some time now. Maybe it isn't as nice as some of the other systems available but the price point was on point for me. So since the undertray was off and the car down for a while I ordered the system.
Previously I had a Stebro Sport muffler and everything else OE with the exception of the snorkel being removed. The first year with the Stebro was fun. It droned in the expected range but I don't too much driving in the 55-60 MPH range so it wasn't too bad. During year two it seemed to annoy me more. I don't know if the drone got worse or if I just got a year older and more easily annoyed.
Lastly I'm installing a drop-in BMC air filter. I installed the exhaust system today, but haven't yet driven the car. When I finished installing the water pump and new serpentine belt one of my idler pulleys started making a noise. So I'm replacing both of them as well as the tensioner pulley while I'm in there. I'm waiting for the parts to arrive from the west coast so hopefully I will be ready for a drive later this week. I couldn't resist starting the car so now I'm anxious to try it out. Down the road I would like to do an ECU flash and squeeze a few more ponies out of the 2.7. BTW, I followed the advice given by others here and used new OE header bolts as well as new OE header gaskets and header to mid-pipe gaskets.
ddb
Here are some pictures:
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