Update! 488,800 km exhaust system refresh front to back with pictures:
So I finally replaced the flex pipe by hacking off the old one and clamping in a new 2" by 12" piece I picked up at Canadian Tire:
I am not very proud of the above flex pipe install, I applied generous amounts of muffler cement then loosely slipped it over the existing pipes and clamped them. This pipe SHOULD be welded in but that would involve taking the down pipe off and I really didn't want to go there (nuts, studs, gaskets, etc). So anyway it is done and it only leaks above 3000 rpm when you get a strange whistling noise but I figure that will go away when the cracks get clogged with soot and rust.
The original catalytic converter went back in, but I did revisit the repair from three years ago with the clamps and the adapter pipes behind the cat, here is a picture from three years ago:
I ended up removing the far left exhaust clamp and welding that piece directly to the back of the cat, only because I broke the 3 year old clamp when trying to remove it and the used pipe adapter did not want to stay clamped to the cat with a new clamp. Sorry no picture of the welded up piece. I re-used the original VW clamp from the far right of the above picture but picked up some new 3/8" by 3" long carriage bolts because the old ones were too short to re-install without too much wrestling of rusty old parts.
Now the exhaust was nice and quiet, too quiet, so I decided to cut the muffler off. Here is a picture looking at the front (input) of the muffler:
Here is where I cut it off near the axle. I used a piece of a rusty old U-bolt as a hanger which I welded to the original beefy (thick walled) exhaust pipe on the left. In the center of the picture below is a 2-1/4" exhaust clamp. To the right in the picture is the first of two 18" sections of 2" straight pipe (fits very tightly inside the original pipe):
Each of the 18" sections cost $10 and I debated trying to find something cheaper. Turns out that with two sections I did not have to do any trimming and I could telescope the sections inside of each other to get the length absolutely perfect on the car. I welded the last 2" exhaust clamp to another piece of old U-bolt and put that through the rear muffler hanger with a nut on either side of the rubber mount to keep it in place. When I was happy with how far the tip was poking and how high it was tucked up against the bumper I tightened the clamps and am very happy with the alignment. If I ever want to change anything back here I can just loosen these clamps and the two pipes will slide right out. So for a few extra dollars I am happy with my fully adjustable system.
I had cut the bumper a few years ago in preparation for dual exhaust tips which never happened, but it doesn't look too bad:
In total the exhaust refresh took place over three nights during the past week. Major costs were flex pipe at $57 and the straight pipes at $10 each plus about $15 in clamps and cement. The total was around $100 including tax. I probably could have had the same job done cheaper at an exhaust shop but it would not have been as much fun, and I probably would not have been happy with where the tip ended up.
The only thing left might be a nice chrome finisher, or not: