Ahhhh exhaust work ya gotta love it..
Have you tried loosening the motor mounts,then jacking the motor up so you have more room to work with them?
I had to do this with my Mac 1 5/8 long tube headers,they went on without a problem after I jacked it up and slid the headers up from underneath(of course you won't have to do this
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Paxton Blown 87GT
ICQ#91504337