Still Leaking

Yesterday I set about tackling my exhaust leak. I borrowed I trick I learned from  Wheeler Dealers (which is an excellent program if you're into classic cars), which is to get a bit of kitchen towel, and move it around the area where you suspect the leak to be coming from, with the engine running of course. Once you find the hole, the escaping gas will make the towel flutter, and you've found your leak. I found that my leak was indeed on the join between the exhaust manifold and the top of the exhaust pipe. This is clearly quite a troublesome joint on my car, as it was heavily coated in exhaust sealant paste. The hole I found was quite big; about 1 and a half inches long and a half inch wide.


As I was investigating a man who lives in my building walked past. He used to work on Minis a fair bit and told me the only way to seal the joint properly was to take it apart, readjust it and fit a new gasket. He's probably right, as more sealant is just going to wear away after a while, but it's a good temporary fix. I might be looking at a new exhaust system, as my current one is 12 years old now and a bit past it. However, that can be something for the summer, when I have access to a friend's ramp. However for the moment, some exhaust sealer paste should plug the hole quite well. I popped over to Halfords and bought some "Gum Gum Silencer Repair Paste". It comes in a circular tin much like shoe polish does, and it looks very much like wet mud, and it even has the same texture and consistency.


You simply warm up the exhaust pipe by running the engine, and then wet the gap, for some reason, and then cram the paste into the hole. Then you leave it overnight, and the next time you start the car, the heat will harden it up completely. Unfortunately, I found out today that it didn't completely fix the problem. The rasping noise and chuff chuffing are quieter now, but are still present. However the paste I put on the hole is holding firm. I did another tissue test, and found that the hole was a bit bigger than I though, and it seems to extend underneath the exhaust pipe where I could not see it.


So it looks like more paste will be needed, as well as a mirror so I can see where to put it.