You know it has been an unfortunate day when you hear a loud clang, go to check the damage and see part of your exhaust system sitting on the ground… The day might be ruined but the first good news is that your car is easily repairable.
If you are currently sitting roadside and wondering what to do, you should pull over immediately if possible, and place your hazard lights on. You will want to call a tow company if possible to tow your vehicle to a qualified mechanic. The tow company should hopefully be able to transport the exhaust system to the mechanic as well.
However it is not possible to always to immediately repair your car and you should read on to find out what to do in the meantime.
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How Harmful Are Excess Exhaust Fumes?
Your car’s engine will still remain operative even when your exhaust system is no longer fully connected. The exhaust system is responsible for moving harmful exhaust gasses from your engine bay to the rear of the vehicle where they can be safely dispelled.
Depending on where the exhaust system has broken off, there is a chance that you will be breathing in harmful pollutants as the exhaust gasses could be expelled near the cabin. Here are some harmful pollutants found in exhaust gasses that you would not want to be breathing in!
- Carbon dioxide – this accounts for about 60-80% of the exhaust fumes and is something that you breathe out rather than in, you can imagine you don’t want to be inhaling excess amounts of this.
- Carbon monoxide – an odorless and very harmful gas that can be lethal in high concentrations.
- Hydrocarbons – Unburned fuel molecules that contribute to smog and may cause respiratory issues if breathed in.
- Sulfur dioxide – A gas that is formed when fuel containing sulfur is burned. It can cause respiratory problems and contribute to acid rain.
An older vehicle is likely to be more harmful to drive around without an exhaust system as the engines generally produce more pollutants. While it is likely safe to drive around for a short distance, you would not want to spend too long in the car due to the threat of breathing in excess exhaust fumes.
All exhaust systems in modern light vehicles are equipped with a catalytic converter. A catalytic converter works by using a chemical reaction to convert harmful pollutants in the gas into less harmful ones. They usually double in function as a muffler as well (in order to reduce the sound).
If the break has occurred prior to the catalytic converter, this makes it more dangerous to drive around without getting the exhaust system re-attached.
If you do not repair your exhaust system in a timely manner, you will also be contributing to pollution and general smog, not something you should strive for as a caring citizen!
Noise Pollution
Depending on where the break has occurred on your exhaust system, you will have likely noticed that your car is a lot louder than you remember! This is because the exhaust system contains a series of mufflers and resonators.
These components are effectively ‘sound chambers’ which will cause the sound waves to bounce around inside the mufflers.
Not only will your own ears be moaning but you will be causing a lot of ‘noise pollution’ by driving around without your mufflers. This will also attract the attention of law enforcement officers as there is a maximum noise limit that your car exhaust system can not exceed.
Repair Considerations
When your exhaust falls off, you will want to get the exhaust system transported to your mechanic so that they can hopefully reattach it. The exhaust system will likely be very hot if it has just fallen off and you will want to wait several hours if it is safe to do so, prior to transporting.
However, if you are stuck on the side of a busy road, you will need to get a tow company to assist with transporting the components. Your mechanic will be able to assess whether the exhaust system can be reattached or not.
Firstly, they will need to identify whether the exhaust system has been physically damaged or not. Minor dents/holes are able to be repaired relatively easily, however any large impacts may require complete replacement of the specific muffler or exhaust piping.
Luckily, most mufflers can be custom made to fit your specific vehicle, the same applies with exhaust piping. A qualified mechanic will be able to weld the specific component back into your exhaust system.
An exhaust/muffler falling off is usually caused by mounting points that may have rusted away or been destroyed by a sharp impact. Your mechanic may need to order new exhaust mounts or fabricate a custom mounting. Luckily exhaust systems are mainly composed of simple metal, which makes it easy for custom solutions to be had.
An item that is not simply composed of simple metal, is the catalytic converter. The catalytic converter has precious metals inside in order to convert gasses. These metals can include platinum, palladium, or rhodium. If the catalytic converter needs to be replaced, this can be a costly item even second hand due to the rare metals inside.
Modern vehicles also have multiple sensors and wiring that is connected to the exhaust system. The purpose of which is to detect exhaust temperatures, if the temperature is too high, then warnings are shown on the dashboard in the form of a check engine light.
If the exhaust falling off has torn the wiring, then this will have to be replaced. Additionally there are often sensors connected to the exhaust which may also need to be replaced.
Better Safe than Sorry!
While in theory, it can be safe to drive around with the exhaust system disconnected, you will want to get this reattached as soon as possible. Luckily the cost of doing so is usually quite cost effective as the exhaust is easy to access and materials are cheap!
