Exhaust

["Eric Hambleton" <ejham@domain.elided>]

With two exhaust-related posts in the same AD, I can't hold back.
Opinionation follows:

No matter how much of a do-it-yourselfer you may be, there are some
things you might not be able to (or want to) do yourself. A/C work is
often best left to a shop equipped to locate leaks, bench test
compressors, and fabricate the odd hose. Body work can be done on your
own...but at the possible expense of your marriage/relationship
(especially the welding and painting portions.) I have found that
heavy-duty exhaust work is best left to others as well.

This is the caveat for all outside work: you must find a shop you can
work with. Smaller shops dedicated to their specialty are almost
always the best and national chains are probably the worst of choices.

An example: a two-man exhaust shop fabricated a new central exhaust
section for my GTV6, replacing pipe from the header flanges to the
tri-bolted joint prior to arcing over the axle. They used 2-1/2 inch
pipe merging into 3 inch pipe at the new 3" bore catalytic converter.
All pipe was aluminum-coated steel...perhaps not as good as stainless
but after a year in service it still looks new. The only flaw was my
failure to specify a slip-joint in the midst of the new segment in
order to allow drive-shaft access (although it's not that hard to
remove the entire thing.) The total price-tag including catalytic
converter was $300. Post-installation inspection showed that they even
used anti-seize on the header flange bolts and the O2 sensor...guys
after my own heart. They had never worked on an Alfa and were not at
all familiar with the GTV6; we ended up standing in the shop under the
raised car for about 20 minutes talking about DeDion rear ends, the
51-49 weight distribution, and other Alfa benefits.

I found them in the phone book. They were the only ones who gave me a
rough feeling for the cost of the work and issues affecting the cost
prior to seeing the car or even knowing what make it was. They KNEW
exhaust systems and were willing to discuss specifics.

My A/C shop experiences were the similar...the Alfa was not viewed as
some strange exotic but as yet another car with an air conditioning
system which operates on the same principles as all other A/C systems.
They recommended dumping the mini-York compressor, but had no ready
solutions and were perfectly happy when I purchased and installed the
Sanden 'upgrade' kit from APE. They happily finished the job by
replacing a leaky hose and the drier, flushing the system, and
charging it.

Communication is key: if the shop won't communicate, don't use them.
Cookie-cutter chains are neither communicative nor innovative.

- - Eric Hambleton, Marietta, GA
1983 GTV6 -- Felicite

Ps. - Anyone know of a body shop in the Atlanta area which matches my
definitions of a good shop?

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