Swifty89

2001 jeep cherokee sport leaks water at flange just before muffler while running. It's water, not coolant. I know water is a byproduct of combustion, but is it escaping before the muffler a problem? The engine runs fine, maybe a little loud, but other than that it's fine. Image is attached, you can see a drop of water still hanging on.



Is this a big enough leak to notice a difference in loudness of engine, or even possible loss of power?

rnmcguire

Normal condensation from a cold motor.

Swifty89

It does it hot or cold. Im pretty positive it's a leak, I want to know if it's big enough to cause any obvious adverse running conditions. Basically sprays as much water as the exhaust does.

askingxforxit

It's condensation, like stated above.

Pelican

Look at it this way, where would water be coming from?

Swifty89

The condensation shouldn't be escaping there though, should it? You can see the carbon build up in the photo. And after a trip, the condensation would have to stop, wouldn't it?

Let's assume I have a leak at the flange, what are the side effects it can cause?

Swifty89

Water escaping the inside of the exhaust still sounds like a leak. I mean, condensation isn't forming on the outside of the exhaust.

askingxforxit

Seriously? Let it go, dude. It's not a problem.

Pelican

What difference does it make where condensation escapes? If it can escape at the flange just before the muffler, then you could also have some noise generated there. It won't hurt anything but if it bothers you, you can have your exhaust system rebuilt with non-leaking connections or even welded connections.

Again, water dripping where it is in that picture will not hurt anything. You can see it there, what could it hurt? Heat and moisture do corrode piping and mufflers unless they are stainless. Your choice if the rusty piping bothers you.

Swifty89

I really wasn't trying to sound like a jerk but I understand condensation, I wanted to know if the amount coming from the flange would qualify as an exhaust leak.

If you guys consider the flange as good as it'd get then that's all the answer I was looking for.

gotsnowboards

Find the hole.
Take some muffler/exhaust putty
Follow directions on packaging
Seal hole

Taaaaadaaaa no leak.

Pelican

I didn't think you were being a jerk but did think you might have spent a bit too much time in the early summer heat until I realized you were probably concerned primarily about an exhaust leak and not a bit of water.

Once we forget the water thing, an exhaust leak can, of course, be a serious problem. As a practical matter noise and odor will probably cause most of us to correct the leak before it is a serious carbon monoxide threat.

Gotsnowboards has one solution or you can play with it mechanically or take it to a shop. I'm not going to tell someone they don't have a problem with an exhaust leak no matter how small--your call.

Aljay

Um my 01 does the same **** , its a normal thing on these smog laden late model gasser turds .