Exhaust tip on sportivo

[Charlie Trout]

Hey guys,

Went to go look at an 05 corolla sportivo today, car was pretty immaculate. Only downfall with the car, is that the exhaust tip was removed and i think an ascent exhaust tip was welded on. I asked the owner and he said that the stainless steel tip was too loud for his liking so he got it removed and put a "quieter" exhaust tip on instead. I was scratching my head with his reasoning, and i figured the car must have been in a rear end accident. He says it hasnt been in an accident before, which it doesnt look like. When i took it for a test drive i couldnt really make out any difference between the stock stainless steel exhaust noise or the after market one.

Any guidance is appreciated.

[DJKOR]

Firstly, I would be guessing he was referring to the muffler and not the exhaust tip. I've heard people call them the same thing before.

Secondly, the Sportivo exhaust is indeed different to the non-Sportivo's. Not exactly the best thing to do to the Sportivo, but it would reduce the exhaust note.

[Kenshin X]

did it look like it was welded on from the exhaust tip? minute difference. on our stockish cars, most sound comes from the intake...

[thegourou20]

did it look like it was welded on from the exhaust tip? minute difference. on our stockish cars, most sound comes from the intake...

That's coz u don't have the varex fully open all the time! :-P hahaha

[Charlie Trout]

did it look like it was welded on from the exhaust tip? minute difference. on our stockish cars, most sound comes from the intake...

He specifically pointed and showed me that it was cut off from the muffler, then a new tip was welded on.

[Kenshin X]

if you are really concerned... just take it to any exhaust shop and they will weld a brand new tip for you for around 100 bucks. if the rest of the car is good buy it ;)

[Charlie Trout]

if you are really concerned... just take it to any exhaust shop and they will weld a brand new tip for you for around 100 bucks. if the rest of the car is good buy it ;)

That doesnt make any sense. I want to know if the reason the exhaust tip was switched is valid. I thought someone with experience in this aspect of an exhaust or the car in general would be able to deduce better reasoning than taking it to an exhaust shop. If it has in fact been in a rear ended accident, im not willing to invest in someone elses problem.

[IMB055]

Changing the tip alone would make an almost ZERO difference to the noise output.

Such bu115h1t makes me suspcious of the seller - either he is a liar or has little clue.

I'd look at further evidence of panel repairs - panel gaps, mismatched paint on rear bar etc.

Without going overboard, pull the spare wheel out and check the wheel well for evidence of damage or water entry - sometimes if a car has had a hit at the rear and isn't repaired properly the panels may look OK BUT not seal openings as well as they used to and have inconsistent gaps, sometimes where it is hard to see (eg: top edge of hatch).

Also, pull the tailgate rubber off to see if there is any evidence of repair (overspray, non factory lookiing work) If the seller has nothign to hide he should be OK with this.

If he has changed the whole rear baffle (often referred to as axle-back) and not just the tip then yes it would be quieter - but it would also go worse!

If everything else looks like it adds up and it is the car you want a professional prepurchase inspection (not NRMA) would be a decent way to go. Maybe find someone on here that has the exact model you are after to come and look at it with you could be another way to reassure yourself that it is a decent example.

Best of luck.

Edited February 7, 2011 by IMB055

[Charlie Trout]

Changing the tip alone would make an almost ZERO difference to the noise output.

Such bu115h1t makes me suspcious of the seller - either he is a liar or has little clue.

I'd look at further evidence of panel repairs - panel gaps, mismatched paint on rear bar etc.

Without going overboard, pull the spare wheel out and check the wheel well for evidence of damage or water entry - sometimes if a car has had a hit at the rear and isn't repaired properly the panels may look OK BUT not seal openings as well as they used to and have inconsistent gaps, sometimes where it is hard to see (eg: top edge of hatch).

Also, pull the tailgate rubber off to see if there is any evidence of repair (overspray, non factory lookiing work) If the seller has nothign to hide he should be OK with this.

If he has changed the whole rear baffle (often referred to as axle-back) and not just the tip then yes it would be quieter - but it would also go worse!

If everything else looks like it adds up and it is the car you want a professional prepurchase inspection (not NRMA) would be a decent way to go. Maybe find someone on here that has the exact model you are after to come and look at it with you could be another way to reassure yourself that it is a decent example.

Best of luck.

Cheers mate, finally some proper information that i can actually use. Ill go back and get a proper look at the seals and what not. Only issue is that he has after market wheels on it, and the spare in the back is a factory wheel. He said he got the set of 4 after market wheels cheaper because he traded in the 4 original wheels in.

[IMB055]

Cheers mate, finally some proper information that i can actually use. Ill go back and get a proper look at the seals and what not. Only issue is that he has after market wheels on it, and the spare in the back is a factory wheel. He said he got the set of 4 after market wheels cheaper because he traded in the 4 original wheels in.

Sounds fair enough. Either that or the 4 stockies were scratched and had old tyres and it was easier to get a set of aftermarkets than repair stockies. Some people go mad for the standard wheels - stuufed if I know why - 16's on a Corolla look small, particularly with the standard springs!

If you do end up with this car, one point to consider is that the wheel nuts that hold the aftermarket wheels on WILL NOT work with the standard wheel that is the spare.

Corolla Sportivo stockies have a different type of nut to aftermarket wheels (I think they call it a shanked nut - straight body rather than flared seat) - I learnt this the hard way when I had a flat on my old 18's, tried to put the stocky on and the wheel nuts were incorrect. The four tyre shops nearby did not carry the wheel nuts - they said toyota was the only place to get the nuts for the stock alloys. This was a lesson I learnt the hard way, so bust him down a few more $$$ as you should get a matching aftermarket wheel to use as your spare so you don't have to carry specific nuts for the stock wheel to have a functional spare.

Bargain hard!

[Synthetic05]

I would think that the sportivo exhaust and ascent exhaust have a big difference in size? even without the tip on (for the sportivo). If you have driven/seen other sportivos you might notice a difference. Would be a good idea to have a professional check out the car is your worried about it being in an accident and not repaired properly

[Dixon]

hey mate

wouldnt have a clue if you know this but if the car was in a serious crash it would have been recorded.

https://www.service.transport.qld.gov.au/vehicleinformationcheckQt/Welcome.jsp

we do it every time before buying a car. PLUS it tells u if theres any outstanding fines on the car

hope it helps. just read around that website. theres others like it but its government website so id say it the most reliable?

[Charlie Trout]

hey mate

wouldnt have a clue if you know this but if the car was in a serious crash it would have been recorded.

https://www.service.transport.qld.gov.au/vehicleinformationcheckQt/Welcome.jsp

we do it every time before buying a car. PLUS it tells u if theres any outstanding fines on the car

hope it helps. just read around that website. theres others like it but its government website so id say it the most reliable?

cheers mate, thanks for the info. I had another look at a different sportivo, same year model, one thing i did notice is that the muffler was smaller on the one that i thought had been in an accident compared to the stock one. Must have had the whole exhaust replaced after a rear end hit.

[RedSportivo]

If you think its been in a rear end hit get under the car and check the piping the Stock Sportivo one is a 2.18 i think, and the standard is alot smaller i dont even think its 2inch piping you could also check that but yeh its kind of shifty how he stuck a ascent exhaust considering they look disguisting as well

[dyslexik]

Owner could had possibly swapped the mufflers around from an ascent for his/her mate or so.

If it looks dodgy, then best to just move on from it.

Ascent muffler is pretty damn quiet compared to stock sportivo muffler. How do I know? Because i've driven them both - Ascent rental and my friend's dead stock sportivo.

Do you have a link to photos of the car or the advert itself?

[Guest]

I think this has run its course, OP has his answer.. no real need for any further comments. It can be closed now.

[Corolla Sportivo]

Hey,

When I was shopping around for a Sportivo, I found ones with new wheels can be a sign of a accident. Two of them had different wheels and ended up being "repairable write offs". It only takes two of the wheels to be damaged (rear end) for them to change the wheels. Spare may be a front wheel.

Its no guarantee, just my experience. Previous pots on checking for overspray, water leaks in boot and panel gaps also good points.

Do as many checks as you can....

[xoom]

topic has been cleaned up ...... guys stay on topic please.

cheers

Bill

[LFT-OOF]

have you compared the exhaust on your to a exhaust on a sportivo if it is just a tip cut it off and change it

[Kenshin X]

have you compared the exhaust on your to a exhaust on a sportivo if it is just a tip cut it off and change it

OP originally stated that whether the exhaust switch was valid or not. its not the problem of the exhaust tip being changed.

FYI - outlet of the exhaust tip for a STOCK sportivo muffer is 2.25. the ascent models are 2inch. so if the seller welded it on and if you checked it, there should be a section of the tip that is larger than the ascent exhaust tip. that section of the pipe shoud also be stainless steel.

either you didn't make your question clear or i read it wrong, thats why i gave that suggestion i did up above in the first place. but since someone else suggested it the same thing i did maybe you should word your questions more clearly so everyone can understand and help you getting the answer u need. i didn't tell u to invest in other people problems. me like many other people in this forum are trying to help you so please be a little more clear next time when asking questions

kenshin out

[Dixon]

ahmm question? why are we trying to be told to stay on topic and even end the thread? why so serious?

[Guest]

ahmm question? why are we trying to be told to stay on topic and even end the thread? why so serious?

The thread was cleaned up considerably. Some people took others comments personally and an argument ensued.