Vertical exhaust, can't remove it to open hood

[Snezzy]

My Mahindra E350-DI, diesel, maybe 30 years old, has an air cleaner and a vertical exhaust that poke through holes in the hood. It's a common-enough arrangement, and preferred by many. But I can't open the hood because I can't remove the exhaust. I think it's supposed to just lift straight up (as the air cleaner does), but no amount of wiggling and hammering seems to work. Not even a pipe wrench. I've only tried when the exhaust is cold, not when it's hot, fearing that I might get burnt.

Any suggestions? Am I missing some crucial magic button?

 

[5030]

Take a propane torch and heat the joint up and it should release. Probably corroded together. On my Kubota's with vertical through the hood exhaust, they come with a blanking plate that fits through the hood that allows the hood to be raised and not interfere with the vertical pipe.

 

[Snezzy]

Thanks, but my joint is below the hole in the hood, and if I try the torch, who knows what I will fry. I'll at least wreck the paint on the hood. I'm about to start thinking about lifting it up with a chain from my Kubota's FEL.

 

[5030]

Not gonna fry anything so long as you are careful, it's all metal.