We have all seen a car, barreling down the highway, muffler
sparking as it bumps along the road. It
is an ugly thing, not to mention terribly dangerous. If you even hear your muffler making that
clunk, clunk bounce as you ride along, you need to see what the problem
is. You are likely looking at a broken or
badly worn exhaust strap (also called an exhaust hanger). An exhaust strap is a lot like a heavy duty
strength rubber band. Over time, that
rubber begins to deteriorate and stretch.
As it begins to lose elasticity, it slowly loosens its grip on the
muffler. If your exhaust hanger has
broken completely you get a dragging muffler.
Lucky for you, replacing an exhaust strap is an auto repair that you can
do yourself.
First, you will need to find the exhaust straps on your
automobile. Start at the tailpipe and
work backwards toward the muffler. You
will find one or more thick, black, rubber exhaust straps, or exhaust
hangers. If one of them is totally
broken it will be pretty easy to see. Check
the hangers to see if they are tight. When you determine which one or ones are
the problem, you’ll need to remove and replace them.
To get an exhaust strap off you will remove
it from the top mount attaching it to the car and the mount to the muffler
itself. Keep in mind that the strap may
be in more than one piece if it was badly deteriorated. Be sure that you remove all of the pieces.
Now it is time to install your new exhaust hanger or exhaust
strap. You should start by attaching the
side that mounts right to the car. Just
let the strap hang where it is for now while you are prepping to attach the
muffler. This is where having a helper
comes in handy. If you are working
alone, be sure to check out the mechanic tip below this section. Have your helper hold the muffler in place so
you can attach the new exhaust hanger.
Mechanic Tip: When you are working solo and need to replace
an exhaust strap, you will have to slip the muffler into the hanger at the same
time you are securing the muffler in place. To install the new exhaust strap
using only one hand, use a crescent wrench as your helper. Grab a crescent wrench with a large hole and
slide the handle’s end through your exhaust hanger. Next place the hole in the handle over the
exhaust mount. Now just slide the
exhaust hanger over the mount! And you
thought you needed a helper…
And you are done! It
is as simple as 1, 2, 3! Locate the bad
exhaust strap, remove the faulty exhaust hanger and replace it with a strong,
new strap. No more clunking!
It is one of the easiest of methods that can be sued for fixing a broken exhaust strap.
ReplyDeleteThanks
Bruce Hammerson
Hammer Bits