cracked manifold.

[Quicksilver300]

Oh so very angry, I got back to the place that recently changed my front exhaust pipe, because it was leaking. Guy tells me it's the manifold and it's cracked.

Now I agree that it's the manifold, but the heat shields were still on, so I don't know, could it just be the gasket, or is this a common thing? He said to come back next week and he'd try to weld it. My thought has been, go to a junk yard and change it myself. Now obviously I should take the heat shield off to check, all the bolts are seized.

So instead of WWJD what would you do?

[Venom_5]

the heat sheild bolts wont come off? they should come off with like .0005 ft-lbs of tq, i can almost turn them with my hands

or are you referring to the exhaust manifold bolts themselves? because those would probably be rusted on

either way, DIY .... no sense in welding the old one back together, it will just give you problems further on down the road

or if youre ballin, get an aftermarket

[Quicksilver300]

yeah I once tried to get the shield off with a ratchet, no go. and what the hell is a catalytic converter doing there? I've never heard of such a thing. All right so DIY it is.

I didnt want to trust this guy, because it could potentially be a trap, "well, I broke it in half, luckily I've got a new one right here," that and I dont trust this guy.

Well tomorrow in the daylight I'm gonna try to get that shield off.

[Venom_5]

the shield should be effortless ... i take mine on and off all the time ... those bolts werent made to be torqued on

if you have to, get a 1/2" drive ratchet and bang it with a hammer - dont worry, you wont break anything ... if you do, it was already broken :p

[Quicksilver300]

oh now you tell me. See that's the problem, nothing fits them, I just tried, theyre not rounded off. 12mm seemed right...I tried 1/2, 9/16, 11mm. Finally I tried vise grips, but mine isnt big enough, got one loose(very easy) someone "borrowed" my large pair. Guess, I'll try the hammer, and if that doesnt work I'll get back to ya in a week. Guess I'm driving the ford home for christmas. just kiddin it isnt that bad, could be a chevy. lol more laughing about how everyone hates every other brand

[Venom_5]

if youre gonna be on later, i can run in the garage and check the size for you ... after i eat dinner (and check for cheaper prices on suspension bits before i buy them tomorrow)

i just got home from the dorms today, so im happy to finally have the Camry & garage back

[ghettosled]

ahh, just cut the heads off the rusty bolts. who needs a heat shield anyway?

[Venom_5]

and .... the upper heat shield bolts are 12mm, the lower heat shield bolts are 10mm

[youngflashycamr]

Originally Posted by Quicksilver300

and what the hell is a catalytic converter doing there? I've never heard of such a thing. .

dude i said the same exact thing when i first got my baby...

[MIC0417]

Originally Posted by youngflashycamr

dude i said the same exact thing when i first got my baby...

Millions of Camry's on the road with that much less pollution I guess was the idea since there are millions on the road. I swear I see a Gen 3 at least 10 times a day

[felonyr301]

That's only on 96 and up 5sfe equipped cars with the cat on the manifold part because of obd-2.

[eurohazard]

Originally Posted by felonyr301

That's only on 96 and up 5sfe equipped cars with the cat on the manifold part because of obd-2.

My 1993 has the cat right below the manifold also. But it is California emissions.

The reason it's mounted so close to the exhaust manifold is so it heats up quicker. The catalytic converter works best when it's warm. Not sure if the question was rhetorical or real, but I answered it anyway!

[Quicksilver300]

I got back up here yesterday and using the advice to hammer the socket on the bolts worked. Used an 11mm socket and got the top shield off. So then I leak checked, couldn't really find anything. So I went back over to that shop. The guy, lets call him asshole, looks and says oh here's the crack underneath the manifold. Yeah see that black mark(pointing under the lower shield the I hadnt taken off. ) This guy is unbelievable, the crack seems to be where ever you cannot see at the time. If you argued over the sky being blue, he'd probably convince you it's green somehow. Wish he was the type I could lay into, but I'll admit he'd kick the shit out of me.

So I got home really pissed and got the lower shield off, nothing there. There's no black mark on the shield, no exhaust leaking, nothing. So I'm fairly convinced it's the front pipe/cat seal, under the car. Gonna check that today, since it's not too cold.

I just want to kill this guy after all the shit I've gone through trying to find the leak in the manifold, when the problem is most likely the same problem I was having after they changed the pipe.

Oh, fyi, the 92 camry, or at least mine, doesnt have a cat attached to the manifold, it''s just a manifold, and I must say it's not as ugly as some I've seen. I'll post some pics, after I check out the rest of the system.

[Quicksilver300]

who would have thought? I was right, the flange in between the manifold and front pipe was leaking. I found it using a tube to isolate the noise. The front bolt was loose about 3 turns. Kind of funny, a guy brings back a car after you just changed that pipe and tell him now his manifold is cracked, no let's not check the bolts. Let's completely screw with the guy till either A. he gives us shit loads of money to fix nothing or B. He fixes it himself. I would guess this little problem was on purpose. Being someone who knows quite a bit about cars, this was the first fucktard that really really tried to screw me. Lesson learned.....well I dont know the lesson, but I'm pissed and at the same time happy since it's over.

[Venom_5]

glad you found the problem