loud exhaust problem

[Fahrfrumfuelin]

I have a stock 96 passat (except for a K&N panel filter and shocks) that seems to have a lounder exhaust sound/vibration. I notice a vibration at idle which dissapears when I rev it up just a notch. I was wondering if anyone has experienced either failed mounts, bad muffler/cat, or idle problems. My mileage is good, and the car seems to have normal power, but this may have evolved over a long enough time to make it hard to distinguish. My father-in-law (who has an '02 Golf TDI) noticed that the exhaust was much louder than his and vibrated under load. Could this be due to the K&N?

Thanks,
Matt

 

[oilhammer]

Matt, do a search for "flex pipe" in the forums. The addition of a flexpipe on the B4 Passat should fix your problem.

 

[impala]

I have a 96 Passat, with K&N as well. I had my left rear motor mount fail, which put some undue stress on the flex pipe for the exhaust, so my car is a little louder up front because of that. My dad has an '01 Jetta, and mine is a little louder than his.
I also had a Muffloectomy done over Christmas, and am impressed with the results. I can not tell the difference over having the muffler in place, although I did leave the resonator.

Edited because I am on Dad's computer and am logged in under his name. Here is me http://forums.tdiclub.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_profile;u=00005808

[ January 27, 2003, 17:18: Message edited by: impala ]

 

[GoFaster]

B4 Passat diesels ALL have a problem (eventually) with resonance and noise from the exhaust system. I don't think anyone has pinpointed the exact cause but there are quite a number of different solutions (including the extra flex pipe behind the catalyst mentioned above).

My solution was replacing the whole thing with a 2.5" straight pipe ...

 

[John Beyer]

Is it especially loud at about 2400 RPM? If so, here's how to install the flex pipe.

http://pics.tdiclub.com/members/johnbeyer/ExhaustNoiseFix.doc

Here is one picture. Email me for more.

http://pics.tdiclub.com/members/johnbeyer/FlexandPipe.jpg

 

[brownnugen]

I just experienced a similiar problem with my 96 Passat. It turned out to be 2 bad exhaust hangars. Not sure if that is your problem or not, but it sounds awefully similar.
-Nick

 

[Fahrfrumfuelin]

Thanks for all the replies. I will look into the flex pipe as well as bad mounts and report back asap.

Matt

 

[natescape]

My 96 Passat rattles like a madman at idle. If I rev the engine to 1000 RPMs, the vibration goes away. I have a new engine mount and cat/flex pipe. I've largely resigned myself to the fact that it's going to do this. Unless, of course, someone has some other ideas...

 

[Fahrfrumfuelin]

Still? You've done the flex pipe AND a new mount? That is disapointing to hear. I hope that's not my case. As I have 77K miles, I will give the dealer a go to see what may be covered under warranty.

 

[Rick P.]

How's your serpentine belt tensioner? My engine was bouncing all over the place until I replaced the tensioner. Also, did you replace all the mounts or just the front one? If all, how hard are the back two to replace?

Rick

Originally posted by natescape:
My 96 Passat rattles like a madman at idle. If I rev the engine to 1000 RPMs, the vibration goes away. I have a new engine mount and cat/flex pipe. I've largely resigned myself to the fact that it's going to do this. Unless, of course, someone has some other ideas...

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