Find attached a picture of the resonator pipe to muffler pipe connection that is leaking on my '03 Legacy GT sedan with 107k on the clock.  my guess is the flanges will not put up with me taking them apart.  Once apart they will never go back together again.  Is my best bet replacement over flanges, and new donut and call it fixed for awhile.  Or is there a stainless kit I should put in it and fix it right?  Cause only thing I am finding on Rockauto and at local autoparts stores is Walker aluminized stuff?

Edited December 16, 201411 yr by shortlid

No one has developed a leak like this between the muffler flange and the resonator/midpipe?

I absolutely have, it broke off cutting off my muffler. Ill upload a picture of my... "Fix" later

Great thanks for the help!  Need to have the car inspected this month!

believe it or not, this held together very well. my car has taught me to do some very redneck repairs that work. (Its also taught me when to give up). I wouldn't recommend this, if you can afford to go for stainless steel flanges, or do what I ended up doing and cut out the flange all together and weld a small stainless steel pipe in the gap, eliminating the new flanges/redneck repairs that have a much higher possibility of failing than a weld.

 

Or just slap 2 pounds of exhaust putty on there. that works. not for long, but it works!

I don't know what the book says in New Hampshire, but you can usually pass inspection with an exhaust leak. the book here in new York states that exhaust parts must be "secure." pretty ambiguous and it may be different there, but I cant imagine there being too many differences state to state.

I believe that there can't be a exhaust leak under the passenger compartment.  Which would allow exhaust to get into the vehicle while warming up etc.

Again, the laws may be different there. in New York the exhaust must be supported and exit away from the passenger compartment, but Ive seen manifold leaks, failed muffler patches, and sketchy flanges pass. It depends on where you go for inspection and how lenient they are, because some shops will pass it just to get it on the road, while others will fail it so they can get the inevitable exhaust job. Youre on the fence, I would do some research on inspection laws before you dump tons of money into repairs. if the leak isn't major, it should pass no problem.

 

The inspection book is public domain, under some obscure article number with the DMV. You can usually view it as a .PDF from their website if you can either find or google it.

Edited December 17, 201411 yr by pginter96

Is there a system available in stainless or at least with stainless flanges?  If there is I have not come across it in my searches?  Only a Walker system with aluminized piping and a stainless muffler body.  Has a lifetime warranty, in New England what is lifetime 3-4 years?

Ended up having a local custom exhaust shop cut out the two flanges on the resonator, and replace with sections of pipe.  Hopefully the rest of the factory system will last for awhile.  Was $140