FF Stainless Sidepipes both rattling after only 1,500 miles

[Darren]

So I have the Factory Five stainless steel side pipes and after 1,500 miles the glass packs have broken their tack welds and are now vibrating freely inside the muffler section. The vibration is such that I refuse to drive the car until it is fixed. It is horrible. I did some research on FFCars.com and it appears to be a very well known issue and very few have been successful in getting replacements as stated in the different threads. I haven't called Factory Five yet but plan to so I'm making no assumptions as to how they will handle it at this time. I'm more curious if this is something that is still happening or not. Also, the screw fix seems reasonable but I really don't want to drill into my pretty stainless pipes if I don't have to.

Options I'm considering:

1. Gas-N (I prefer a beefier sound at idle though)
2. Cut the pipes apart and replace the glass packs and weld them appropriately as it should have been done in the first place, pay to have them welded.
3. Screw fix
4. Hope that FFR will send replacements. (I am not confident that it won't happen again after looking at the inside of a set of their pipes)

Have you done the screw fix? How long has it lasted? Some say it is only a temporary fix.

Darren

[UpstateCobraGuy]

That sinks! I was also unhappy with my FFR side pipes. Mine were ceramic coated but were rusting and sounding poorly. I just bit the bullet and purchased new Gas-N's. Sorry to say, but by all accounts, the FFR pipe's glass pack will evidently burn out. Since you already have invested in the S/S pipes, I would have them cut open, replace the glass packs with a more durable solution and reweld them up. Fix it right the first time.

Good luck!

Pat

[seagull81]

A friend in our club had the same issue and FFR replaced the pipe. Later the other one had the same issue and it is in the mail right now. Give them a try. It's you cheapest option and you can always change them out later.