A week ago the middle section to back box exhaust pipe decided to drop off because of rust.
I'm rebuilding that section myself out of stainless steel and welding it to the back box.

However while working under the car I gave the rest of the exhaust a good once over and noticed the flexi that connects to the cat at the front has frayed mesh and the actual flexi bit itself has started to disintegrate, but not rusted through yet. No idea how long this will last so preparing for it now.

Annoyingly the flexi is part of the cat and down pipe, why I don't know?
So it looks like the whole thing would need to be replaced. Of which I wouldn't do and it looks like a real pain to remove.
My idea is to simply cut the old flexi out and join in another one using clamps, but it looks awkward to get to.

Any tips/advice from anyone who's tackled something similar?