Not another problem...exhaust leak?!

[AmuletOfNight]

1994 Grand Marquis

Just noticed tonight when I took it out for a ride that the exhaust sounds different. The thing already doesn't have a muffler on it so I'm really hyper sensitive to the changes in exhaust noise. As of tonight, it's started to make a noise like one of the cylinders is missing all the time, but that can't be because there is no jerkiness to the acceleration, it just sounds louder and "clunkier" than usual. Also, now the exhaust coming out of the tail pipe is not a "tut tut tut tut" sound and more like a "shhhhhhhhhhhh" sound.

[SVT98t]

So, it's straight piped?

-ryan s.

[IPreferDIY]

With any luck, its just a flange leak after the cats. When the nuts rotted off my flange bolts in the past couple of years, it was making funny exhaust sounds under the hood even though the problem was under the car.

[AmuletOfNight]

So, it's straight piped?

-ryan s.

Not exactly straight piped. Both cats are in place, but the muffler is removed. Also the heat shield for one of the cats is removed. But I don't think any of those cause exhaust leaks, unless there is a bad weld where the new pipe replaced the muffler.

[sxcpotatoes]

The exhaust pipes are stainless IIRC on '92up and should never rust out, where they develop leaks is at a donut where the headers meet the pipes, should be a cheap fix.

[SVT98t]

I wish they were all stainless.

-ryan s.

[slack]

My exhaust started leaking again this year as well. I think this might be the summer of dual exhaust.

On topic though, when mine leaked is sort of sounds more like a droning farting noise... not really that cool of a sound.