Hey, I just recently tried to reinstall my exhaust manifold after a crack occured in my dc headers ... the problem is that i have everything bolted n tightened up but when i start the car it sounds like im running open header (aka it sounds like crap) ....Btw my car is a 2000 civic wit the regular d16 ... please help guys i cant drive my car like this .. ive tried everything ...thanks

 

bump

 

You didn't mention a cat, did you put it back on?

 

Did you remember the donut gasket....?

 

yea the cat has still been on there ... it was on wen the header was.. i never touched it

 

yea its in there

 

did you check to make sure the front and donut gasket are in good condition before putting it on? I had the same problem and found out the gaskets were worn out. They're inexpensive and should be replaced.

 

Change gaskets, make sure there are no other holes in the manifold or the rest of the piping somewhere. That's all there is to it

 

the donut gasket is a lil grinded but it dooesnt look too bad ... how tight is the gasket supposed to be in there? when i tightened the spring bolts it didnt seem like it tightened the cat to the exhaust manifold like its supposed to ... but i couldnt tighten it nemore bcuz the spring bolts have a stopper on them ... the spring didnt even seem too compressed

 

I would check to where the header and cat connects, you may have blown a gasket down there. That happened to me and it sounded like *** because of it.

 

what would a blown donut gasket look like?

 

if the spring bolts arent compressing the springs that would cause a problem... haven't seen this happen but the bolts may have stretched due to old age and tension. try replaceing them they are cheap. sounds to me though like the bolts are not seated correctly on the exhaust.

 

well, it was hard for me to spot it but I clearly noticed the gases leaking out of it.

Do you notice where the air is leaking out?

 

no its too loud to even notice air leaking .... there was a clicking sound when the dc header was on ... that's how i spotted the crack .... BUT now that the stock exhaust manifold is back on there has to be something wrong bcuz it sounds really loud n bad

 

Look for a hole in the exhaust system.

 

This is what I would do:

1. Replace all the gaskets ($20 more or less for both)
2. Before connecting the cat to downpipe, take a set of clamps and squeeze them together forming a tight seal and making it easier to bolt them up.
3. Torque the bolts

I'm using a Mr. Gasket metal gasket up front and a OEM donut gasket. Hopefully that will work for you.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by chowmien &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Look for a hole in the exhaust system.</TD></TR></TABLE>

that's a good idea... you should do this before my suggestion.

 

Im with identify where the leak is and work from there is is most likly a bad gasket but could be warping(not likly really)

 

Its most likely the dounut gasket that bolts the downpipe to teh cat. Its a compressable gasket and is supposed to be replaced, it shapes itself to the fitting. At Honda they are 23 dollars. I haven't tried to find them anywhere else yet, but an exhaust shop may have a generic one for less.

 

ok i'll work on the gaskets n check the rest of the piping ... thanks for all the positive feedback guys

 

Ihave seen this happen many times. Make sure the manifold is completely against the head. There is a little lip on the head that will keep the flange from mating the block completely. Just loosen the bolts, lift the manifold up a little and bolt it back on.