I found a shop to fix that darn exhaust leak

[AZRickD]

A friend told me of his buddy that owns an Olde-Skool repair shop in north Phoenix off I-17 and Deer Valley Road.

Turns out the owner's son had a Ram that had the exhaust manifold replaced (under warranty by the dealer) four times in 100,000 miles.

As you would expect, the dealer insisted on replacing with new OEM exhaust manifolds which warped after 15,000 to 20,000 miles. In again. Rinse, Repeat. He finally did it himself with aftermarket parts and not a problem since.

The shop does about one or two Ram exhaust leaks a month. Although they usually use after-market exhaust (manifold or headers), they have a nearby machine shop that does several Ram exhaust manifolds a month. The machine shop charges about $50 for the belt-sanding with a few hours turn-around time.

So, they'll do my passenger side exhaust and give my Ram a good once-over (and run the scanner to see what component of my Cruise Control (brake switch, steering wheel switch, etc) isn't working. Maybe do the driver side if need be.

Probably about $200 labor and $50 for the belt-sanding. Add another $60 for parts.
They fear no broken bolt.

*** The mechanic asked me if I wanted any special parts (gasket, bolts) and so I post this here to ask that question.***

Also, any other advice is appreciated.

 

[Livinalittle]

ARP hardware is all that comes to mind. I need to replace my heat shields as well but I just put the old ones back on for now.

 

[Taylor513]

What shop in AZ? I too am in AZ and need to get my manifold bolts taken care of

 

[NJMOPAR]

ARP bolts & Remflex gaskets.

 

[misfit77]

Tucsonian here, curious about this fix

 

[DILLIGAF]

ARP bolts & Remflex gaskets

 

[AZRickD]

Shop is ACR.
NE of I-17 & Deer Valley
Directly north of Little Dealer RV.

Owner is a dirt biker, so he’s creative.

In a pinch, is using OEM bolts and gaskets okay?

 

[AZRickD]

I'll need components that are readily available at the local NAPA down the street.

Neither the shop nor I want to wait for a UPS delivery.

 

[DILLIGAF]

I'll need components that are readily available at the local NAPA down the street..

You'll end up with the same problem if you dont get quality parts unfortunately

 

[chri5k]

Actually I believe NAPA has some "OE Solutions" aftermarket exhaust manifolds, gaskets and studs that others have found fix the issue.

 

[Wild one]

Shop is ACR.
NE of I-17 & Deer Valley
Directly north of Little Dealer RV.

Owner is a dirt biker, so he’s creative.

In a pinch, is using OEM bolts and gaskets okay?

If they're resurfacing the original manifolds,you'll probably be okay with using the factory bolts and gaskets,as the manifolds have taken a set,and shouldn't warp anymore then they already have

 

[AZRickD]

Wild 1, I agree.

 

[AZRickD]

I found this Ram exhaust manifold bolt replacement video on the BIG Exhaust Manifold thread:

https://www.ramforum.com/threads/exhaust-manifolds-warped.155217/

 

[AZRickD]

Part 2 (Installation) was not linked in the BIG Thread, so here it is:

 

[ChevySlayer69]

Part 2 (Installation) was not linked in the BIG Thread, so here it is:

I'd definitely recommend the factory gasket, it has a nice built in heat shield that keeps heat away from the valve cover... also the factory (or doorman) bolts are just fine assuming you're resurfacing your factory manifold. I'd recommend sticking with them so the other heatshield can be reinstalled which is nice to have.

 

[AZRickD]

ChevySlayer,

The shop appears to agree with you. And after watching the videos above, I was beginning to suspect the same benefit.

 

[AZRickD]

I dropped it off this morning.

Plan is to check the passenger side to verify exhaust leak (heck, it could be a cam, but it's not).
Do the passenger side.
If able, send the cast iron exhaust manifold to the machine shop for truing.
Replace with OEM bolts, gasket, etc.

Check the driver side. If there is a leak, or if bolts are broken, do that too.

Do a check of the vehicle and look for other problems.

Diagnose and repair inop Cruise Control.

Diagnose and repair inop windshield washer.

More later.

 

[AZRickD]

The shop just called.

So far as planned.

1) Passenger side with a couple broken bolts. Exhaust manifold off to the machine shop for some whittling.
2) Couldn't find any issue with the driver side manifold. They will give it another check.

3) Cruise Control issue is the famous "clock spring." Going with Mopar OEM.

4) Windshield washer issue is the pump.

They are going with aftermarket exhaust kit (guessing Doorman) because they've had good results with it and the Mopar OEM is at least double the cost.

 

[Wild one]

The shop just called.

So far as planned.

1) Passenger side with a couple broken bolts. Exhaust manifold off to the machine shop for some whittling.
2) Couldn't find any issue with the driver side manifold. They will give it another check.

3) Cruise Control issue is the famous "clock spring." Going with Mopar OEM.

4) Windshield washer issue is the pump.

They are going with aftermarket exhaust kit (guessing Doorman) because they've had good results with it and the Mopar OEM is at least double the cost.

I'd have them resurface both manifolds and do new hardware on both while it's down.

 

[AZRickD]

That's an option I discussed with them.

But they're "just around the corner" from me, so I can always have it done later, if needed.