Ferrari exhaust lifespan? | FerrariChat

Ferrari exhaust lifespan?

Discussion in 'Ferrari Discussion (not model specific)' started by bpu699, Dec 22, 2005.

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  1. bpu699

    bpu699 F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Dec 9, 2003
    16,210
    wisconsin/chicago
    Full Name:
    bo
    Well, I am tinkering with my car as driving season is over. Looking at the exhaust in detail, I see it is starting to rust, as are the catalysts. It is only present in a couple of spots (by o2 sensors, bottom of one cat), but its irritating. In the summer I will replace thse little 1 inch areas and tack weld some new steel on...

    But it begs the question, how long does the stock exhaust lasts? Seems that even if you don't drive the car, it will rust. It doesn't appear to be stainless steel.

    I may just replace or upgrade, but am not sure. How long did your original exhaust last?
     
  2. Bullfighter

    Bullfighter Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Jan 26, 2005
    22,352
    Indian Wells, California
    Full Name:
    Jon
    Tubi time. ;)

    I never had a Ferrari when I lived in Cleveland or Chicago, but for the cars I drove in the wet I got 4-5 years out of a muffler.

    You might just be getting condensation inside - not sure what to do about that except replace it with stainless.
     
  3. ROLOcr

    ROLOcr Formula Junior

    Oct 25, 2005
    619
    Costa Rica
    Full Name:
    ROLO
    if you start the car and don't let it get up to temp and then turn it off, the condensation in the exhaust doesn't evaporate and stays inside making it rust alot faster!
    this happens to people how sometimes jus turn on the car just to drive it out the drive way and up again, or on similar ocassions
     
  4. PAP 348

    PAP 348 Nine Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Dec 10, 2005
    99,174
    Mount Isa, Australia
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    Pap
    My 348 is 14 years old,im sure it still has the original exhaust on it?? It still in great condition too,but a capritso soon on the way!! Where i used to work,we would fit new exhausts or repair them on "Average" cars maybe once every 2-3 years. They just dont last anymore. Too much condensation in them and they rust. Cars built 20 years ago,like alot of cars my friends own,most still have the stock exhausts on them. They are made of thicker pipe and take longer to rust holes in i guess! These days they are made as cheap as possible and maybe to save a little weight.
     
  5. senna21

    senna21 F1 Rookie

    Jul 2, 2004
    3,334
    Los Angeles, CA
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    Charles W
    Does this question include 355 headers? :)
     
  6. PAP 348

    PAP 348 Nine Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Dec 10, 2005
    99,174
    Mount Isa, Australia
    Full Name:
    Pap
     
  7. 308 GTB

    308 GTB F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Feb 7, 2002
    11,166
    New Jersey
    Full Name:
    Barry Wolinsky
    The original thermal reactor muffler installed on my car in 1976 is in the corner of my garage. It's still in nice shape after six years of use. The Euro ANSA has been on since 1982. No signs of rust. I drive my car all year long, always bringing it up to temperature, as ROLO mentioned. It looks like the previous owners did the same.
     
  8. indaville

    indaville Formula 3

    Oct 6, 2005
    2,309
    Louisville, KY
    Mine is a 1983 with the same exhaust, still looks fine.
     
  9. Spasso

    Spasso F1 World Champ

    Feb 16, 2003
    14,648
    Land of Slugs & Moss
    Full Name:
    Han Solo
    Unless your exhaust is made out of .002" pot metal the basic pipes and mufflers on your TR should last 8 to 15 years (or more) unless you drive in salt water. This excludes the 355 burnthrough anomoly.

    Trust me on this. I live in the NW and drive in the rain everyday. I've had the same pipes and muffler on my GMC for 12 years. Yes it's rusty but it isn't loud and doesn't leak.

    I drive my 308 in the rain all the time and the water just evaporates off the exhaust system from the heat. There is little to none discoloration at all on the system in three years of wet driving.

    The real enemy, as mentioned before, is not running up to full temp and allowing condensation on the inside of the system. It WILL rust from the inside out.

    If you are worried about the little brown flakes of rust here and there buff it off with a nonmetallic abrasive like scotchbrite and spray over it with Eastwoods Diamond Clear.

    If and when you buff it off and little holes appear in the metal then get the welder out or buy a new pipe.
     
  10. bernardo66

    bernardo66 The Crazy Cat Man
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Dec 14, 2003
    26,281
    Montreal Canada
    Full Name:
    Bernie
    Believe it or note, my '78 still has the original muffler on it.
     
  11. bazzis

    bazzis Karting

    Nov 5, 2003
    217
    Sarratt, Herts
    My 1993 512TR has its original exhaust, but its only done 31k miles.......
     
  12. bpu699

    bpu699 F1 World Champ
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    Dec 9, 2003
    16,210
    wisconsin/chicago
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    bo
    Guys, the muffler as a whole has little to no rust on it, except for 2 spots, where it has rusted through the outside layer...

    It looks like the ferrari exhaust has 2 very thin layers with some kind of insulation in between it. The odd thing is that this has happened in 2 spots, and not on the bottom where I would expect gravity would take water/condensation...
     
  13. ROLOcr

    ROLOcr Formula Junior

    Oct 25, 2005
    619
    Costa Rica
    Full Name:
    ROLO
    water doesn't accumulate in the lower part of the mufler,because is not a large quantity of it, since its condensation, it's like sprayed water(on the walls) so it settles where ever it wants, then rust starts to form, once it starts it becomes uneven(the surface of the muffler) and water deposits more easily there(on the rough spot) and it rusts faster, but you can avoid this by getting the car all the way to operational temperature
     
  14. FasterIsBetter

    FasterIsBetter F1 Veteran

    Jul 22, 2004
    5,844
    NoNJ/Jupiter FL
    Full Name:
    Steve W.
    I just replaced the original muffler on the Mondial this past summer. The car is 21 years old and had only 23K miles on it when I did the muffler. The outer casing of the muffler was still in good condition. But the internal baffling had rusted and broken loose, causing lots of problems. Hopefully, the ANSA replacement will last 21 years as well.
     

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