I've had the exhaust pipes welded several times on various cars, including my GTA, over the years and about half the time they leak small puffs of exhaust from invisible holes in or near the weld and I have to take the car back and have it rewelded.

Is this a common thing, or the welders around here just not that great?

The welds were done to the pipes, such as inserting a sleeve and welding the sleeve to the pipe.


Thanks

 

With todays clamps you really shouldn't need to weld anything. Sounds like you need to find better welders but it is hard if welded inplace..

 

It's not uncommon if you ask shops to weld exhaust that has been run. The holes are gas inclusions in the weld bead and this often comes from contamination - the soot and other nasty deposits on the inside of the pipe. Ideally it should be welded off the car BEFORE it's run. You try welding dirty pipe that someone drove around for 3 years before deciding they need some seam welded up and they want it done CHEEP and without taking it off the car.

And it does depend on the skill/care level of your exhaust guy. My exhaust comprises of Dyno Don headers / Y-pipe, Flowmaster axle-back and custom catless mid-pipe and I have no leaks. But I have had leaks and had to take matters into my own hands. No pinholes in the welds, but the header gaskets have leaked, and the header to Y flanges have leaked. Due to improper installation by my exhaust fab guy's lackey.

So yeah - I would say that quite often with "exhaust" shops you either get guys that can weld (or think they can) but not necessarily wrench, or guys that can wrench but their welding isn't that great. Or.... it seems more common than ever now.... you get idiots that can't do either.

No one can find good skilled labor anymore. The guys I know at the dealerships are tearing out their hair trying to find qualified technicians.

GD

 

I thought about just clamping it back together somehow, since it was a clean break, but the clamp would have had to hold it from pulling apart lengthwise, and there was about an inch gap. Plus there was up/down torque on the two pipe ends. Plus I didn't think it would pass inspection.

 

These are Meineke and Midas places I've been taking my cars to for welding. The last place was Midas and they wanted $150 to cut off 2 adjoining flanges at the muffler, and weld an aluminum insert in. I talked them down to $130 cash. I think that weld did not leak.

The latest weld was the same spot, which had just broken apart over about 5 (?) years. This time I went to a different shop, in a more expensive neighborhood, and ironically, it cost less. Called first, and the guy gave me an estimate over the phone, since he knew exactly what would be required. This was a Meineke shop ( not that they are any cheaper than Midas, in general) and he welded another aluminum sleeve into it, for a great cash deal. (Too low to post online! lol). Took off the muffler too.

Got it back home and checked for leaks. Yep. A slight leak puffing out of a pinhole!! I couldn't bring myself to take it back there, after the low price I paid, so I just fixed up the pinhole with my handy tube of muffler paste. The muffler paste stuff has been great for me over the years. It stays in place forever, unless the metal rots out around it.

Speaking of competent help, when I went to pick up my GTA after they installed the new fuel pump, the manager was whining about the fact his tech had spent 7 hours on it ( 3.8 book hours). I was thinking "Oh my God, what did he do to my car during those 7 hours." I wish he hadn't told me that lol.

 

I mean - sounds like the exhaust system is a patched up ratty mess..... not that this should cause you to get sub-standard welds..... but the reality is that the "technician" and even management, to a degree, are going to treat the car with same respect they perceive the owner is giving the car.... so if the car and/or exhaust system *looks* like a dumpster fire and you're the kind of haggling customer that is always concerned about the price, then you are much more likely to get a $20 cash deal where relatively little care is taken. If the car looks legit - clean, shiny, well kept, and the customer is "discerning" and has the wallet to match - you are much more likely to get their best guy, and his finest work.

That's just how this industry works. Don't be a pain in the a$$. Don't complain about the price. And especially - if you car is a dumpster on wheels - don't act like it's gold plated and owned by a sheikh. It's not.

GD

 

buy a decent exhaust if you take pride in ownership.do you own the car just to try and wring as many miles out of it as possible before it falls apart ?
do you actually love your car? these cars get a bad reputation because back in the old days ,there would be total piles of crap driving around,this doesnt happen as much these days luckily so to me it isnt bragging telling someone you paid $10-$20 to patch a ratty old exhaust.it sounds like you are just barely keeping the car road legal,is it a rolling dumpster explosion or is it your pride and joy and it shows you take care of it? no one gives 2 ***** if you paid 50 cents to fix a worn down,crusty old exhaust.

 

A properly-performed weld on clean metal will not leak. That leaves two variables; if either is lacking, the weld will leak, and eventually fail altogether, sometimes catastrophically.

As more and more youngsters pursue internet/computer-related employment in this day and age, that leaves less and less candidates interested in craft jobs. Every industry centered on manual-skill labor is suffering from a severe lack of qualified people to perform any number of jobs in the construction and repair fields, not the least of which involves auto repair/service. And as cars become increasingly more complicated to diagnose and repair, the situation will only get worse.

Start now to learn how to work on your own vehicles; it's your only hope for keeping them on the road.