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fixing exhaust leak...

18K views 16 replies 7 participants last post by  Mr onetwo 
#1 ·
So i had my truck in the shop to fix a leaky gasket. and while in there i had them check for an exhaust leak. Well sure enough the flange that connects the header to the Y pip is pretty well corroded and is likely the culprit for the leak.

My mechanic confirmed that the leak is from the corroded flange. But informed me it would be roughly...400 to fix. because i would need a new header, Y pipe and then labor. So i said ok, just leave it.

My question to you guys is how HOT do headers get? if they are within a certain temperature range i might attempt fixing the leak with some epoxy. I know of this stuff called PC Fahrenheit. Its used for high temp fixes. Ive used it before, but that was for a HID projector retrofit. That stuff was perfect.

so anyways her is a link to it, tell me what you think.

http://www.mcguckin.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_315&products_id=973
 
#2 ·
it says not to use over 500*F... i wouldn't use it to fix that...

if you wanna fix it on the cheaper side... just go to the junkyard and look for a dakota, check for the Y pipe and offer 20-30 bucks and negotiate.

if you got the stock exhaust manifolds... get some $150 ones from ebay and take those 3 items with about 3 hours worth of work (can be done in the driveway) would save you a good amount of money.
 
#4 ·
its really easy to do, honestly. but the easiest way (that i found) to do the headers was to put the front of the truck on jacstands, remove the front tires, and the plastic inner fender liners... then its straight shot for everything. only difficult part is the drivers side with the brake stuff right there.
 
#5 ·
Yea i dunno it i wanna spend the money to replace the headers, cuz this truck is just a winter beater.

But ive heard that exhaust leaks cause loss of power and gas mileage. sooo it might be worthwhile to fix it.
 
#6 ·
hell yea they caus a lot of loss of power i hot the 3.7 and had the cats replaced and that jank ass shop cut off the rear flanges and jus clamped it and had two half dime size holes and i got 1 welded but the other was right next to the frame so we couldnt get to it so i tried some of thoes fix a hole in your exhaust clamps and other crap which didnt work... i finaly got a 3" body lift so we could finaly get to it and welded that hole up and its like a gained a extra ton of power...

but even if it is a beater y not jus pick up some ebay headers for 150 or 200 and get a y pipe from a junk yard for 50 and have a combined cost of $200 or $250 which would be cheaper than haveing your stock stuff replaced you could do it yourself and you would bump your HP up aswell
 
#9 ·
I would be up for doing new headers and the y pipe, but im just nervous about breaking bolts off in the engine block. Since they are pretty old and rusty. I dont want to be in a situation where the truck isnt drivable. know what i mean.

whereas if i take it to a shop. i dont have to worry about it.....just pay out the ass. lol
 
#11 ·
my friend did his headers in the 318 he told me to try the bolts and see if you can turn them and spray them with some pb blaster every day for like a week or 2 before you wanna change them and they should come right out due to the penetrating lube and the heat helping it go through the threads... but if you dont wanna take off the old manifolds cuz you are afraid of breaking off the bolts then take it to a shop and have them take off the manifolds and y pipe and rent a car dolly and toe it back to your house... think they like $50 a day... and slap on the new headers and y pipe
 
#16 ·
My bolts looked rusty as hell too. As he said, use lots of PB blaster. My bolts actually came loose with a surprising lack of effort.
 
#17 ·
If its only the flange that is rotted you don't need to replace all that stuff.Exact same thing happened to my truck.Car quest has a split repair flange and an exhaust bolt kit for Dodge 3.9V6,5.2V8 and 5.9V8. The flange should measure 21/2" across the hole and 3 3/4" between the bolt holes.The bolt kit kit consists of 3/8" x 2 1/2" bolts,nuts and special retainers.Just cut your old bolts with a cutting torch,pass the bolts and retainers down thru the manifold bolt holes,put your new flanges together around your y-pipes and bolt everything together.Took my mechanic less than 1 hour to do both sides.....very common Dodge repair!Your mechanic is either incompetent or is ripping you off big time!If your manifold bolts are broken that is another story all together.Also ,be aware that there are no gaskets on either head/manifold or manifold/y-pipe.All metal to metal connections.I hope this helps!:funny:
 

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