A VERY TEMPORARY Exhaust Repair [Flex Pipe]

[Tugger5000]

I jammed my exhaust with the last snowstorm in Columbus. I couldn't get out of my driveway backing out into the street and I think I started the eventual failure of my flex pipe. I ordered another from All Hyundai Isuzu & Kia Auto Recycling, Inc. - Car Pickup Truck SUV Parts, but it won't arrive until the end of this week.

Last week, it became much louder, so I took several wraps of fiberglass cloth and wrapped it around the braided portion of the flex pipe and secured it with a hose clamp at both ends. It failed after 3-4 days (approximately 700 miles)... I think it was a combination of the cloth unweaving and the trip I took down to TN from OH... It's been almost unbearably loud...

I got under the car tonight and discovered that the braided metal cover/flex pipe separated completely from the pipe that goes to the mufflers and realized that the fiberglass cloth won't do a damn thing to help... I had a metal reducer from when I had the Audi, but it was too big to insert into the pipe and too small to go over the flex pipe. I looked around my garage for something that might work and realized that the Monster energy drink (in the photo, it is the Chai Tea Energy) cans seemed to be about the right size. I unhooked the hangers near the middle of the car to give me some room to work.

I cut the top and bottom off and inserted it over the flex pipe portion (but under the braided metal cover). It takes a little bit to work it on, but if you have a clean cut on the can, it should slide on. Slide the other other end over the pipe that goes to the back and secure it with a hose clamp. Work the braided metal part back over the can to help hold it in place.

A permanent repair it is not, but it quiets the car down enough so that you can continue to drive the car without all of the strange looks... (or pissed off looks from those f-ers in convertibles)...

[I just rolled 190,000 miles tonight!]

[krazymikeyGT]

umm. fail..... jk


next time goto autozone, and buy flexible exhaust pipe. cut your flex pipe off. buy one more clamp, and call it a day.

[Tugger5000]

Normally i would, but this only has to last me a few days... It's not worth the extra expense or time (I don't have the cutting tools for that repair)...

[187sks]

I've done that with a tin can. It's 100 times more durable. I just can openered off the ends and split it lengthwise with shears and wrapped it over itself a ways and put on a few hose clamps.

[Danath256]

I've seen coffee cans before.. this is kinda just improvisation

So whatever works till you get your parts!

[Tugger5000]

Yeah... the alunimum can didn't work... damn it. It was almost completely blown out after about 50 miles. My hope was the it would be flexible enough, but it ended up tearing about 60% of the way around the circumference of the pipe.

I replaced it with a "sleeve" made from a spray can of Ortho Hornet/Wasp Killer. Not as quiet, but should last more than a day... I might still wrap the whole thing with fiberglass mat to take it down another notch but hoping this works...

[187sks]

But the real question is did that help with the buzzing?

[Tugger5000]

lol... not as quiet as the alunimum can, but not as loud as 4" of open pipe.

[187sks]

Bee killer...buzzing...

Ok I'll go home. Lol!

[Tugger5000]

Received my replacement pipe today, but I noticed this weekend that my gas mileage dropped from 36mpg to 32mpg, thought it might be the gas, but it was too drastic of a drop. I'm way overdue for an oil change, but when I got under the car to fix it, I noticed all of the printing on the spray can turned to a white powder.

Pulled it off and found the same white powder on the O2 sensor. Luckily, All Hyundai Isuzu & Kia Auto Recycling, Inc. - Car Pickup Truck SUV Parts sent me a pipe with the sensor attached ($300 worth of parts for $80 - Cha-ching!). While it was almost entirely covered in clay, there was almost no oxidation present on the part... Intalled the new pipe and O2 sensor and there doesn't appear to be any issues (after 12 miles)...



The key thing here is if you're going to jerry-rig an exhaust repair up front... burn off all of the plastic from the metal... most cans are lined with PE to prevent corrosion, printed on the outside with less than "hi-temp" inks.