Hello all,
Wondering if any of you know where to purchase just the exhaust flange for a 73 1.7? This is the rectangular type with two holes. I have a set of SSIs I got for a reasonable price on ebay that need new flanges. I'm not really concerned with getting stainless steel flanges, just something I can weld onto whats there. Would this be overly difficult to fabricate? Do you think a local muffler shop would have them? Thanks!

-George

You talking about these?

engman has them for 2.0 only ??

http://engmanparts.com/specialtyparts.php

jim

Yep, like those ones on Engman. Except, cheaper steel preferably. So are the 2.0s different than the 1.7s? Look the same to me.

Try JC Whitney:

http://www.jcwhitney.com/customizing-exhau...dDetailTabPanel

The 2.0 stainless and the 1.7 stainless are reported to be the same size tube, so they should work. Don't cheap out, you'll be sorry. Get the stainless.

Yes. The 2.0 is different than the 1.7. The tubes on the SSI's are the same size but the flanges are different shapes and hole pattern is different.

Take into consideration that welding of dissimilar metals casues a galvanic corrosion, especially with the heat.

Cheaper than $20 bucks?

Doh! It looks like this just ain't gonna happen. The only ones available from Engman are stainless and for a 2.0, which from what I gather won't fit a 1.7 anyway. Even then I'm not set up to weld stainless - I'd be welding stainless to stainless with regular wire. I think I'll just try to make a template from whats left and try to fab my own from blank steel. No idea how I'm going to cut the holes - hole saw maybe? I'll have to look into galvanic corrosion, but since the original ones had steel flanges, is this really that big of a deal? Thanks again guys.

Galvanic corrosion is the oxidation that forms when unlike metals touch each other.

There are some stainless heat exchangers, I've read, that only the shell is stainless, but the ones I've got are definitely all stainless, flanges included. It's just 304, not 316, so they do corrode and will be slightly magnetic. Maybe yours, though, are mild steel innards? Here are mine, the little square nut on the one on the right I've got to weld another one on as it's rusted away despite being stainless, probably from ... galvanic corrosion.

SSI got cheap with teh 914 HEs and used mild steel on the flanges for a while.
Maybe they used mild steel for the nuts as well.

You can weld stainless with mild steel wire it works, not the best choice but it works.
Welding mild steel flanges on to stainless pipes is not much different than stainless flanges to stainless pipes with mild wire.

Jim

Thanks for the replies guys. Yeah, the whole point of this is that I just need to get new flanges on the car. The flanges on the SSI's I ordered are shot, and the headers on the car now are WELDED to the exhaust (flanges were removed at some point). I'm planning on cutting the exhaust, and welding new flanges on the exhaust and the HEs. So all in all, I'll actually need 4 flanges. I think its important to note that this car is never going to be like most of yours. I'm a graduate student just trying to piece the thing back together enough for it to be fun to drive to campus every once in awhile, and to enter a Chumpcar race next year with a few friends of mine. So, doing things on a budget is a prerequisite for me. If anyone has any ideas of how I can create the new flanges out of mild steel, please let me know! Keep in mind, I don't have access to any crazy equipment.

Almost forgot. One of the SSI tubes is actually broken inside the exchanger tin. What would be the best way to go about welding this? You think cutting the spot welds, then welding the pipe and then welding it all back together would work? I'll post pictures of it this weekend, after I finish finals tomorrow.

-George

Find some one local (no shipping) with old OE HEs or mufflers that that are rusty and cut the flanges off them.



The general thought line of the board is that once the pipe has broken internally they should not be repaired and used as HE anymore. Strip the sheet metal off and weld the pipe but don't enclose the repair. The concern is a possible leak at the repair and introducing carbon monoxide into the passenger compartment while using the heater. We all prefer 914 owners and passenger live thru their 914 experience.

Jim

Jim,
I like the way you think. I would agree that repairing them is probably not the best decision. I'll weigh this one heavily, but I do have a CO meter for the cabin already. Heard that was a purty good idea.

You are actually getting in to more complicated fabrication, but still pretty easily done. You need to drill out the spot welds on the clam shells and replace the section of tube that has blown out, the re-weld. Don't forget to pickle the metal or it will rust after it has been welded.

You my find it actually easier to just have new tubes made and re-use the clamshells.

2.0 and 1.7/1.8 flanges are different.

see 1.7/1.8 on a pair of 2.0 sshe's pic.

this one set i have is stainless btw and are $30 shpd.