I'm replacing the axle pipe on my recently purchased car because it was rusted through. I discovered it after hearing a loud hum while riding in the back seat.

I used a dremel on the slit in the axle pipe to free it from the front muffler back. Then on a bench I beat the axle pipe, sawed off most of it, attached a vise grip plier to the remaining piece and pulled the remaining bit out.

Is anti-seize compound ok to smear onto the metal where the pipes slide into each other? I hope to prevent so much trouble separating the parts in the future.

Does the picture linked below indicate whether there is about to be a rust hole in the exhaust pipe? If so I wouldn't mind going to get a new muffler for the car, probably one a little less constriction. If it is possible to use anti-seize, the axle pipe will come off easily, and the muffler will be ok for a while I'll just throw the old muffler back on.

Muffler
Muffler close-up

Thanks,
Nathan