My wifes front muffler and complte rear exhust all the way to the rear muffler took a crap, the rear muff was okay but everything in between had to be replaced as well, being it was a muffler i took it to midas figured a lifetime warranty you could be had it all done same day for $200.00 might want to think about having someone like them do the muffler and fic any old or ready to go piping under the bottom, cant beat the fact if it ever fails again it costs you nohthing.

I, too, have used a Bosal header pipe from FCPGroton. The fit was perfect. I also installed a complete cat-back Starla system on a previous 740 I owned. Everything fit correctly then, too.

My understanding is that both Starla and Bosal are good brands, and I've had good experiences with both.

As for the necessity of the front muffler, omitting it will probably cause some "blatt" sounds under load at low rpms, but if you can live with that, it isn't absolutely necessary. As for me, I would probably keep it.

Best of luck.

--
Guid ('88 244DL 216k, '92 745 165k)

Interesting price discrepancies. Here's what FCP Groton sells:

840-105 Front Pipe/Header Pipe fits all 88 and 89-92 w/o EGR $95.00 Bosal

6842565 Front Pipe/Header Pipe fits all 89-92 models w/ EGR (California models)
$68.00 Starla

Looking at the listings I would guess it's the Bosal one you need.
I have a new Bosal front pipe on my 88 740GLE, from FCP Groton, and it works and fits right. I'm pretty sure my front muffler was a Starla... but it's been awhile since I changed it. They're all fine. For the rear exhaust, the only one of different quality is the Volvo factory "muffler kit", a set of all the parts and hangers, etc. Runs around $300, lasts longer than the others.
Something to consider when you're replacing everything.