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Thanks again ToolPants! Mission complete!! Having a whole week to think about this provided the answer to gaining access to the transmission/muffler bracket top bolts. The answer is to remove the nuts from the top of the muffler and back the muffler off on the long bolts – it will not come down. Now you can get to the bolts on the top of the transmission bracket. My process was this: - Rear wheels driven up on home made ramps about 3”. Just enough clearance for me but this was troublesome later. I cold not get enough leverage to lift the new one back in place. I did the whole job alone lying on my back. - Undo the sleeve clamps on the pipes that attach to the CATS and slide them back on to the CAT pipe. I left the pipes in place because it’s a real pain dealing with the muffler side as they are seized in pretty good. - Remove nuts on the transmission/muffler bracket on the top of the muffler. The bolts will not retract. - Undo all other muffler mounting pieces. Now the muffler is loose but will not come down. - Push the muffler to the rear of the car and this will give you access to the top bolts holding the transmission/muffler bracket. Remove top and bottom bracket bolts. Hang-on because it’s coming down. - Lastly I had to muscle it out just a bit because I still had the pipes in place. Install: - Move hardware from old muffler to new. Leave the tip for last. - Put the bottom bolts in place on the tranny bracket and attach the tranny bracket to the muffler bracket upper bolts with nuts. Leave very loose. - Now, because I was working alone and flat on back I used a floor jack and jack stands for assistance. Idea from another thread I can point you to. - Lifting with the floor jack and maneuvering the muffler at the same time to clear first the rear bumper then stop. - I angled the left side of the muffler up and held it there with a jack stand. Then over to the right side. This gets the brackets that attach to the CATs on top and helps support the weight. - Now align and get the lower tranny bolts in about 50% - Now take the nuts off the upper muffler bracket bolts and maneuver the upper part of the tranny bracket in place an install the bolts. - The rest is straight forward. Put all pipes, clamps and brackets together and leave loose. Shake, align and tighten everything. Two hours 15 minutes start to finish. Now after all that, I’m under whelmed with the sound. It’s different, it’s better and not as deep, throaty and loud as I expected. I can’t imagine ever wasting the time or spending the money to hook up the electronics. Does it better over time? Thanks again!

Thanks for your help Tool Pants. I'm out of time and I have to put this project on hold for a bit and I don't have it figured out... :wacko: If Peter can shed any light on this, there's always next weekend... :) Dealer and other Porshe shops say 1 - 3 hours. Can't be more that hour and half - if you what your doing. :D I'd just like the satisfaction of doing it...

Great pictures! Thanks... I've been trying to reconcile them to what I see. Your second picture shows what seems to be a spacer of some sort with three bolt-throughs between the muffer bracket and the transmission. I don't see this set up, not to mention I don't see how there's enough room to get at the upper bolts, but obviously there must be a way. I wonder if the spacer is in a non-S 5 spd where mine is a 6-spd S. What I see are two bolts at the bottom of the muffler bracket into the tranny that can be turned with a box wrench. It seems like there are two more bolts at the top of the bracket into the muffler with the heads recessed into the bracket. If I can figure this out, it will indeed be an easy way to change out the exahust. Update: I just noticed the exhaust tip in the bottom picture - non-S. That would explain, perhaps, the 3-bolt spacer between trans and exhaust bracket. I confirmed that there are two bolts at the top of the exhaust bracket through to the trans. They are the outter two on the bracket. I cannot wiggle even a short socket on to the bolt head without the rachet handle and since the bolt head is recessed there no chance for any other wrench. Magic... :(

This doesn't appear to be all that difficult and I'm in middle of removing the old exhaust. Problem, two long bolts on top of muffler through tranny bracket. The bolts are affixed to the bracket some how which makes getting the nuts off easy (you don't have to hold the bolt head). The problem is the bolts will not back out. I thought about dropping the muffler with the bolts in the bracket but sine they are about 3" long (the tranny bracket through hole is at least 2" long) there is not enough room to back out the muffler with the bolts in place. I did get a socket on the bolt head from the rear of the car and it doesn't turn. Any ideas here? This is model year '03 so there may have been changes.