shwert

i have an exhaust leak on my '02 gt, could this be the culprit for my less than great fuel economy? i can't tell if its coming from the driver side header, or maybe a little further back. is there some way to check? because you can only tell when you put a little load on the engine, just idling or revving it up doesn't help.

SXGT

leaks like that cause AWFUL mpg, a muffler shop can usually spot these problems for you, dont try to fix it yourself.

WannaBeGearHead

With all do respect, that is TERRIBLE advice!

OP, why do you think it is an exhaust leak? You can check by turning on the car and getting under and trying to listen for leaks. Have you changed your oil recently? Have you had a tune up lately? Have you been driving differently? Is your air filter dirty? There are a lot of things that could cause bad MPG.

If you can jack your car up, put a jack stand under it and know how to use a rachet DO NOT take it to a muffler shop to get it fixed. Total waste of money when you can do it yourself.

hpwrestler220

Try to do anything yourself before you take your car to a shop...

BUT, the exhaust is a b*tch to get at with our cars. the drivers side header to midpipe connection is very hard to get to. you will need extensions

shwert

the filter is clean, the oil is changed using castrol GTX 10w-30, and i've gotten under the car to find the leak. idk if i said this before, but you can only hear it when you put a load on the engine, mostly during any acceleration and you can hear it bigtime on the highway. i got under it today before changing the oil and could hear it a little around the drivers side header area.

hpwrestler220

That's exactly where mine is. Over the spring time i am going to take off the midpipe and re-position it. if that doesn't work, i am going to use some kind of sealer. If that still fails, i may bring it to a shop, or Longtubes and a shorty midpipe might be considered

hpwrestler220

The drivers side header/midpipe connection is a ball and socket type connection. So there is no gasket to help prevent exhaust leaks on that side... It's tricky to get this side lined up.

shwert

well i failed to mention, i have a magnaflow system i believe, so idk if it may have the same fitting from the header to the midpipe. also it sounds like it may be a little further in front of that, like maybe straight from the headers where the mount to the heads. i talked to a mechanic where i work and he said that with aftermarket stuff you have to re-gasket them more often, is this true?

WannaBeGearHead

I'm not sure if you have to put a new gasket on there (highly advised though) but if you put new headers on recently they could have come loose and just need to be retightened.

shwert

great idea! i'm going to check that tomorrow actually.