Since ten years of New England has finally taken its toll on my car, I'm looking at replacing the whole exhaust system. I'm already planning on eliminating the resonator and replacing the rear muffler with a Magnaflow 14816 (my friend has a similar setup on his E39 5 series and I like the result).

My problem also lies with one of the catalytic converters (the one on the right)...I originally thought the flex joint had simply come loose, but it seems that I have to replace the entire catalytic converter...I have seen bolt-on's for 1.8s (I have a 2.8) and they're like 200-something bucks, and then I see universals for like 60-70 bucks. Are universals easy to install (I'm assuming they're weld-on?) or should I be looking for bolt-ons for my 2.8 (and what/where would be the best place for such cat?)

 

If you have a MIG or TIG welder at home or have a buddy that will do it for you for cheap then universals are great money savers.