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Exhaust stinking up my clothes

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matmire

matmire

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I'm trying to sort out a persistent problem of exhaust working its way into the cockpit of my Bugeye and could use some input. As I got it from the PO, the car has a med bore LCB header fitted to a 1.5" OD tailpipe and a Monza Pacesetter muffler.

So far, I'm in the process of replacing the manifold gasket, and swapping out the tailpipe for a more appropriately sized 1.75" OD (it has a 1275)

As far as leaks go, I'm replacing the gasket to be rid of any leaks that may have existed there. There is a little carbon on the joint between the header and tailpipe, but it doesn't look like a big leak to me. Since I'm replacing that pipe, I'll be sealing it all up nice and tight.

My question is, could I be getting the exhaust smell from the muffler tips either sticking out too far, or not enough from the back of the car? Anyone with a Monza on a bugeye have similar problems? How far should they stick out?


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I end up smelling like my car. I just assumed it was part of the LBC experience. Mine is a '69 Sprite IV with a stock exhaust system.
 
Could be the roll bar and the luggage rack
could be creating a wierd draft
 
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Stinky or not, it sure looks nice.
 
My bugeye has a single outlet outlet exhaust in the stock location and I don't get an exhaust smell. Big Healeys, however, are known for getting a stink that can be cured by extending the rear exhaust pipes out past the bumper. Maybe try a couple of extensions on those Monzas? They do look great, though and bet it sounds good, too. Nice looking car.
 
Sometimes I think the Monza is too loud, but most of the time I love it ;)

I've read several people mention the exhaust extending beyond the bumper on other cars, but I'm not sure how to adapt that theory to the bugeye. Do I try to get it past the bumperettes (sp?) or the farthest back point of the rear body shell?
I'm not sure the bumperettes have the same effect on air flow as a full bumper does.
 
How far beyond the back of the car (let's say, the base of the indicator lens) would you say the stock tip extends?
 
I think I'd try a local exhaust shop. Most have extensions you could slip over the twin outlets to put them past the rear bodywork and bumperette. If the smell goes away, that's your problem. The stock exhaust goes to the left of the bumperette, the twin adds an extra to the right. Without a wind tunnel and smoke generator, it will be hard to figure out the effect of the Monza exhaust. OTOH, you can just add it in to oil, gas, soggy jute underlying, and stinky vinyl into a smell I call "Eau d'olde British Car". Still think I could sell a bunch if I could figure a way to bottle it.
 
Looking through pictures online, I've noticed that many bugeye mufflers are angled out to the rear corner rather than straight out the back, like mine. I wonder if that has something to do with it.
 
Won't do you much good with the exhaust you have but I always angle the end of the pipe down at about 45 degrees and cut it so that it's outlet is cut 45 degrees to the pipe and parallel with the ground. The exhaust gas is blown down at the ground and I believe that makes a big difference on what back washes into the cockpit.

Kurt.
 
While I tend to believe the smells are the perfume of owning a classic car, it might also be worth checking if something is dripping/burning on the engine itself - of the top of my head, oil leaking perhaps from the head gasket could plausibly provide the kind of smells you describe and might actually be a more "clinging" smell than exhaust.
 
Try this just to isolate a possibility
put a pice of cardboard on the rack then wrap the stanchisons with plastic wrap to the point it meets the body
see if it makes any diff. My thingk got is the disrupted air flow between the bar and the rack is creating a negative.
 
Well, I seemed to have made progress. After replacing the manifold gasket, sealing up all firewall openings with silicone caulk, replacing the long pipe (the bigger pipe definitely made things louder), and positioning the muffler 1/2" or so further out the back of the car, things seemed to have improved greatly. I believe I'm now firmly in the correct range of old car smell, and not the slightly stinging eyes and scratchy throat levels of exhaust in the cockpit. :eagerness:
 
nomad said:
Won't do you much good with the exhaust you have but I always angle the end of the pipe down at about 45 degrees and cut it so that it's outlet is cut 45 degrees to the pipe and parallel with the ground. The exhaust gas is blown down at the ground and I believe that makes a big difference on what back washes into the cockpit.

Kurt.
Click to expand...

I tried this on Baby Blue. I bought an end pipe from JEGS for $22, pulled the existing muffler, cut the tailpipe off and installed the new end pipe. HUGE difference in the amount of exhaust backwashing into the cockpit. It also made the exhaust quieter within the cabin by deflecting the sound waves down, too, or acting like a silencer on a gun. I haven't decided if that is a good thing or not, as I liked that sound, but it's more than a good trade off to get rid of the exhaust smell.

Also whenever Baby Blue decides to activate her smokescreen, the cloud is more concentrated and you can see it in the rear view mirror getting swept away from the car by the slipstream. This does come in handy when people get a little too close to the car. Had some guy in a full-sized Ford SUV up on my bumper with his HID headlights nearly blinding me. One big burp of blue smoke got him to back off. I guess it's the LBC version of coal rolling...:glee:
 
Glad you like it SaxMan!:joyous: If you want it a quite a bit louder and only just a little more back wash skip the 45 degree cut parallel to the ground and leave the pipe as stock but still with the bend down. I'm currently running just a single glass pack and I imagine the glass is blown out of it on my BE. Cuts as I recommended. Cruise is very tolerable but a bit raucous when i put my foot down!

Kurt.
 
I'm not going to mess with it. The quieter cabin is perfectly fine...of course quiet is a relative term when you're running top down at 50 mph. :eek:
 
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