porschemikeandnancy

I noticed today that there are two silver things which are just below the engine. They are each connected to, it appears, either a muffler or the cat. converters via a steel band clamp (the identical type of steel clamp you often see connecting a hose to a radiator on a conventional car).

One of my silver (they are shiny) things appears to have separated from the cat. converter (the clamp appears to have just come off). As a result, the rear end of the silver piece is hanging down about an inch or so below the other one (which is still clamped to the cat. (or muffler).

The silver thing has a sort of laticework design on the underside (the side away from the engine - on the "ground" side).

My car has not thrown a check engine light. I think whatever "tube" is connected to the cat. converter (again, not sure if it's the cat. or the muffler) loosely. So I suspect the exhaust gas flow is still getting into the cat. although there must be some leakage around the now unclamped opening.

Should this be a simple - jack up the car and re-connect the clamp or do you know there is more to this?

Thanks

TroyN

It sounds more like the connection to the hoses that bring heat to the passenger compartment. The heat exchangers connect to the catalytic converter with nuts and bolts, behind the engine, vs. below. If you had an exhaust leak that big it would be very loud and the car would probably not run right because the O2 sensor would be reading lean. Someone here will surely have a photo of the engine and exhaust.

MarkD

sounds like Troy is right but a photo of what you are looking at would certainly make it easier to help.

If you can easily see what should be clamped where, do it... if it is connected via an orange-ish hose it is the connection to the heat exchanger, that part can simply fall off of the car and they are not cheap.

porschemikeandnancy

Thanks, Troy and Mark. I looked again and there is an orange short rubberish tube connecting what is probably the heat exchanger to a metal tube that connects to it. There are two clamps. One end of the rubber orange tube has just slipped off the metal pipe that connects into the heat exchanger.

I think I can loosen the clamp, put the rubber orange tube back on the metal pipe and refasten it.

I'm not sure why there are two clamps. Only one is required (and only one appears to be clamped on the other side of the engine) to fasten the orange rubber tube onto the metal pipe. Perhaps one clamp is supposed to be on the metal pipe/rubber hose part and the other clamp is supposed to be on the rubber hose/heat exchanger input tube.

bart1

Yeah, just clamp it back on. That's part of your heater system. I think there are two clamps there that should go one at each end of the short metal piece. I'll try to find a pic when I get to a PC.

bart1

Number 9 & 7 look familiar?