Exhaust leak?

dffusion20 · Feb 7, 2008

I was with my buddy the other day and he said he noticed a puff of smoke looking stuff coming from my manifold by the turbo whenever I revved. I am not quite sure what it is. Maybe I need new gaskets, just looking for feedback. Thanks.

iwannagofast89 · Feb 7, 2008

try tightenin all the bolts first and if that doesn't work then I would say try a new gaket(s)

dffusion20 · Feb 7, 2008

Ok cools. Thanks alot

canadiandsm11 · Feb 8, 2008

A little seafoam throw a vac source is a great way to check/find exhaust leaks

kenamond · Feb 8, 2008

Having an exhaust leak is one problem. Seeing smoke coming out of the leak is another. Was it a burning oil puff? Coolant? Or maybe just "fog" on a cold day?

Member calan recently experimented with "gasket sealers" that would withstand the heat of an exhaust manifold. He found that high-temp, extreme duty axle grease forms a very rugged black mortar after a few heat cycles that he's hoping can work as a turbo/mani gasket sealer. I have the link to the thread somewhere. Ask and yee shall receive. I think it's still a work in progress, though - preliminary and all. Apparently, high-temp RTV and copper gasket maker turn to dust when you cook them to 1000°F

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burbage2001 · Feb 8, 2008

Hey Kenamond, if you have that article handy could you post it so I could read it? It sounds interesting and I am curious. Thank you.

dffusion20 · Feb 8, 2008

I did not see any oil coming off and hitting. I am going to check my bolts and do a new seal. I would like to take a look at that article you were talking about. Sounds cool. Thanks again everyone.

kenamond · Feb 8, 2008

Sorry...I reread the PM he sent me, and I noticed that he said it's on the link forum (I assume that means the DSMlink forum). Maybe you could PM him and see if he can post the lo-down on this forum. I'm not sure if you have to be a DSMlink owner to view the forums or not. If anyone can view them, then you might be able to find it. I've never gone there. Ever.

Calan · Feb 8, 2008

Mack,

Here is the post from the other forum. You may want to have a mod move it somewhere else, if appropriate:

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I ran some tests to see what happens to different materials under extreme heat. I tested copper spray, high-temp RTV, and Super Tech (Wal-Mart) axle grease. I'd heard of using grease before, but found it hard to believe and wanted to find out.

I took a SS turbo gasket, and applied a light coat of each to different areas and let them set for 30 minutes or so. I then heated up the back side to almost red hot, let it cool, and then repeated this 2 more times.

The results were somewhat surprising. The RTV immediately turned to white powder and basically burned completely away. The copper spray powdered and flaked, but sort of stayed in place. The axle grease turned to a hard crusty looking material.

Here's where it gets interesting. After a shot of air and some wiping with a shop rag, the copper spray residue and what was left of the RTV were gone...completely (although there was some discoloration). But the axle grease didn't budge. Not only did it stay in place...it's still in place because I couldn't chip it all off evenly with a razor blade!

Here are some pics, followed by some mov files showing the process (I couldn't zap the background sound, so you may wanna lower your volume). The last pic is a bit blurry, but if you look closely you can see where I chipped at the grease a little and then realized I should take a pic first. And in the last movie, you'll notice that before I wiped it down, I hit the gasket with a shot of air.. and the RTV and copper spray residue just blows away.

Test subjects: