exhaust tips

[93SHOPlester]

i just bout a 93 gen 2 but the exhaust tips that are on the car are aftermarket and i like them but unfortunately they are pretty "used" looking. is there any simple way to clean them. i really dont want to cut them off. already have brand new cat-less with turbo mufflers

 

[frosho]

Stainless? Go to town with some scotch-brite pads and soapy water.

 

[93SHOPlester]

yeah i believe they are stainless. ill try that this afternoon. worth a shot. any other suggestions guys?

 

[93SHOPlester]

on rack

getting final pully done today so i'll have a pic or two of the tips later on

 

[SHOGUN88]

It depends what the are... if stainless like frosho said or if they are chrome, clean them then use a metal polish on them.

 

[93SHOPlester]

well... just by looking at them i'm not sure if they are stainless or chrome

 

[frosho]

If you don't know, I wouldn't get too enthusiastic with the scotch-brite pads. They will remove chrome if you're not careful.

Do they have a "grained" finish, or are they more mirror-like?

 

[93SHOPlester]

ya know they are so *ahem* "used" its hard to tell but at one point it lookes like they were a smooth mirror type finish so i assume they are chrome

 

[93SHOPlester]

as soon as i get the car back. most likely tomorrow afternoon i'll post pics of the exhaust i had some trouble locating a bearing and mounting hardware for my drive belt tensioner that snapped but luckily i got a tip from someone on the website so it should be wrapped up tomorrow

 

[frosho]

Stainless can be polished to a mirror finish, too... but if they look that bad, the scotch-brite pads probably can't hurt too much, even if it is chrome.

 

[93SHOPlester]

alright well i'm almost certain they are chrome. i'll post pics as soon as i give it a shot, b4 and after

 

[93SHOPlester]

Stainless can be polished to a mirror finish, too... but if they look that bad, the scotch-brite pads probably can't hurt too much, even if it is chrome.

so if it is chrome... after i get some off with a scotch brite pad i'm gonna be a little jumpy on tryin to get ALL of it off because i dont want to ruin the finish. and suggestions for that?

 

[frosho]

You could try some chrome wheel cleaner. I know I've used wheel cleaner on my stainless tips to remove some of the soot. You can also use a lighter duty scuff pad with the cleaner. Most grocery stores have "delicate" or light duty pad that is a lot softer than the scotch-brite. They might only come in a combination pad/sponge, but that's not a bad thing.

 

[93SHOPlester]

thanks frosho i'll give that a shot

 

[93SHOPlester]

got the car back tonight. i'll have some b4 pics posted tomorrow then gimme a day or two with work and such before i actually try and clean em then i'll post some afters

 

[93SHOPlester]

well here are the before. i changed my mind i believe they're stainless. excuse the dirt, drove in the snow last night and this morning

 

[93rev2sev]

Use crumpled up aluminum foil. Won't matter if it's stainless or chrome. It'll be a lot cleaner without scratches.

Oh...now that I see your picture...you could use a hammer and it wouldn't make them worse.

 

[93SHOPlester]

but the mufflers are new! :woo-hoo: haha

 

[itwonder]

They look rusty in the shots. The quick and dirty route would be to sand and paint them flat black with high temp spray paint. If you can get them off of the mufflers, you could probably have them re-chromed, if the base metal has enough thickness remaining.

 

[93SHOPlester]

looking at them close up it appears to have no rust. just a bit of dirt in the pic that appears to be rust. i was thinking about the exhaust paint option but i'm still going to try and clean them first. tomorrow afternoon. as far as having chromed. id need to cut em off and i dont have that sort of experience to weld em back on. AND other things i could spend the money on rather than having someone do it hahah