My dad was riding with me today to move some furniture and he commented on my exhaust leak. My truck leaks where the cat bolts to the pipe and there is maybe a hole before that on the downpipe.
He said I should get it fixed because if there isn't enough back pressure my exhaust valves could be burned. I 've only been it driving like this for 2-3 weeks.
Do I really run the risk of burning any valves?

I'm hopefully going to make enough money in the next few days to get it fixed this week or next.

I didn't think that an exhaust leak was really that big of deal besides noise, I still get 19 mpg mixed city/highway.

 

I dont think it will cause a huge problem because its so far down. I could be wrong tho

 

nah you should be fine, i think the only way it gets bad is if the manifold gasket is done or its loose. mainly at the flange?

 

depending on the size of the hole it could...if you can fit a screw driver through it....get it welded..

if its MICROSCOPIC..like a pin hole then i wouldnt worry about it..

of course ANY holes on the manifold itself or close to the manifold on the downpipe should be fixed regardless..

although i have a few holes on the collector of my header (on my 22r) i have yet to burn any Ex. valves...of course its only been 6000 miles..and no cold weather yet

 

you don't have that much to worry about if the leaks are after your o2 sensor(s). If you have a cali emissions vehicle, it may start throwing things off anyhow because there is another sensor after the cat. I don't know about the burnt valves, but if anything will raise the temp on a 3vze at ALL risking HG damage, it should be avoided at all costs. I'm not entirely sure you have much to worry about from the heat in your case, tho.

 

From what I can tell it's leaks the worst at the flange and I think it may leak a little on the the downpipe after the manifold but I'm not sure.

I think my dad was just trying to act like he knows something about cars, and he doesn't really

Either way that pushed me over edge, so I guess I'm gonna bite the bullet and get a new exhaust this week.
There is a guy in the next town over who will weld me up a custom exhaust for $450 with a two year warranty.

I figure that's an ok deal.

mines a 22re and it doesn't seem to run hot

 

i havent seen any burnt valves from holes in a down pipe. however i have seen burnt valvesthe from no down pipes. i would get it fixed, but if the hole is small it shouldnt be a high dollar fix. i work at midas, and we charge like 20 bucks for a complete exhaust inspection. if we do the fix you pay only for the fix, not the inspection

 

450 sounds high.

 

My entire exhaust is so rusted out, I'm just gonna get all new exhaust put in by a local guy

Lou's custom exhaust in westport mass
he quoted me $450 from the manifold back
that sounded like an ok deal to me

 

really, you think $450 is too much? For all new pipes, cat and muffler?

 

Well, I'll post up some pictures of the new exhaust for you guys when I get it

I'm working the next few days so the earliest I could get it done is Friday or early next week

 

If it includes a cat and a muffler, that's an OK price I would say - not a screamin' deal, but not a ripoff. My custom exhaust cat-back (with muffler) was like $200.

Be sure to ask him to tuck it up as high as he can.

As for your original question - the big issue with exhaust leaks is damaging wiring etc near the leak due to the hot gases.

 

As long as there's people around running straight exhausts on the 22RE's with no problem I think you'll be fine with your leak. Back pressure moves the peak hp around on the powerband but it's not like the engine won't run without it. As for the price on the exhaust, if it includes a cat it's on the high end but not a complete rip off. I got a cat back done on mine for under $200 as well though, but that was a smoking deal.

 

As long as the leaks are after the o2 sensor, should be okay...

$450 for a new system sounds good to me. Make sure you keep your OEM cat, and sell it

 

If you are getting a new system go larger as well. If you can jump it up to about 2 or 2.25 she'll flow much better.

As for the leak you gotta get it fixed. Mine was leaking at the collector and after I got that buttoned up she ran much better.

 

what do you think I could get for my OEM cat?

 

scrap it! The old cat I mean. last i knew they were going anywhere from $50-$100 in scrap due to the rare metals inside (platinum and silver iirc). That was a year or two ago......not sure now

 

Nice, I'll definitely ask for my cat back.

Also, I talked to the guy and asked him why it was so much and said the new cat was $200, so I'm gonna go talk to him next week and tell him I'll just buy a cat that he can weld in.

If he's down for that I should be able to get a new exhaust system for $300 which is more what I thought it should cost to begin with.

 

I saved my old cat too to sell but I've just been lazy. I did see them going on ebay for about the amount quoted above last year. Just be sure to cut the ends off to make shipping cheaper.