AnoosGreenBerger

Hello all. It seems my A6 Wagon 2.8 Quattro is now an airplane or a harley. I narrowed the hole (I think down to a flex pipe?) It seems one was done before I purchased it, so I want one to look like the other to stop the loud sound. Inspection is in 2 days and Im not sure if I should just try to patch it with the tutorials I found on yourtube or if there is another way? I have no way to weld and don't really have the funds to get it done either. Suggestions? Any ideas on what was done to the other side that has the black band around it? Thanks in advance guys

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I can feel the heat and exhaust coming from the rubbery , ribbed side and I need a cheap way to either get it to look like that, or seal it myself with some type of goo ive seen done. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you.

Harleyguy

That bears a strong resemblance to exhaust wrap used on custom motorcycle. May be just a muffler sealing type of tape. Can't tell if there is enough room to install a wrap of some kind. You may have to undo some of the exhaust to get enough clearance to wrap the pipe.

AnoosGreenBerger

You are the man. You are helping me get closer and closer to figuring out some kind of non welding solution. I thought someone would recognize whatever that was wrapped around the pipe. Here is a closer look at the "ribbed" flex pipe. I'm not sure I'm even using the right terminology so I apologize in advance. I've seen glues, cements, and wraps and tapes available at retailers and amazon, but i'm not sure which one to use in a situation like this. Any more suggestions to get me closer to making a purchase and I'll put in the time. It's getting super cold here in the North Eastern part of America so I only have a few hours in a day to get it done if I have the right stuff. And for me, getting the right stuff is most of the battle. Thanks again for anyone that can provide any more information. It doesn't have to look exactly like the other side, I just want something reliable I can do myself and patch it so that it holds just as tight as the other side.

[Closer Look Image at Flex Pipe Rip/Hole]

It seems to only be coming from the flexy part itself, not the areas around it, judging by look, and feeling with my hand for the puffs of air.

4Driver4

You are going to need to replace the flex joint. Find a good muffler shop that will weld one in.

AnoosGreenBerger

Gravy. Thanks. That sounds like the final solution for sure. Sounds like an awesome expense for a broke *** like me that has to drive it temporarily until it can be welded. Until then, will one of these types of rig-jobs work? Has anyone tried this? The car is sitting about 60 miles from where it needs to go until I can get it welded/replaced.

Rig-Job on flex with some high heat wrap I see people doing, doesn't look great but maybe it would hold until it can be replaced/welded?

raj99

Exhaust wrap is used to dissipate heat around pipes, NOT as a sealant. You really need to get something welded into place. But if you have to do something else, don't waste time or $$ on exhaust wrap, what you need is muffler putty but I honestly doubt it'll do much good on the flex pipe...since it's designed to flex which is what the putty is designed NOT to do.

Flex pipe can cost about $100-$200 to have someone do it for you...that's not worth the hassle to mickey-mouse something.

twopedalwarrior

Agreed on the replacement instead of using header wrap. not a smart idea. when I had my c5 and the flex broke enough, it would bring exhaust in the cabin. replaced it and no issues till I sold it.

AudiNike12

It cost me $60-70 for parts and labour to get that fixed when mine broke

AnoosGreenBerger

Thanks guys. So I ended up finding the tear right where the plastic rimmed, pipe/hose/duct is welded to the metal pipe. It was about the size of a USA quarter to a USA dollar coin. Because of me needing to get the car 60 miles to home before i did anything permanent without being ticketed in this ticket happy area, = I ended up just buying "High Heat JB Weld" putty, it's about a full fingers (thumb) worth of putty. I just kneaded it like fkn dough, and jammed it into, and around the tear. Let it sit overnight in the freezing cold (there is still snow on the ground) and started it up the next day. And holy sheet it worked. No smoke, no leaks, no messy noise. It actually even looks like a metal weld right next to the original welded area. (it's supposed to look like that according to the back of the packaging) I then took about 3 feet of high heat wrap and wrapped it around the putty weld. The wrap I bought came with a metal zip tie type thing, and I tightened it around the wrap with 2 of those. It's nowhere near as messy as the pic posted above, it's actually super tight. It works perfect. I dunno how long it will last, but apparently this stuff holds on engine blocks and mufflers and other high heat areas. So at the very least, the $12 bucks I spent got the car home and the whole thing took me about an hour including jacking the car up and putting it back down. So when it does break, because it more than likely will at some point in the future, or the other side will go, or some other leak in the exhaust will appear, any suggestions on branded/franchised shops? I got answers from friends like Meineke/Midas etc. The $60-$70 would def be worth it and I would do it when it goes. I just needed to get the car home, and save the money because of the holidays. Makes for another gift for a child. Sacrifices.

I just figured I would update everyone and let people know that this is the stuff I used. I used the entire tube. It was like 7 bucks and another 5-6 bucks for about 20 feet of high heat wrap. It worked like a charm. I just cleaned the rest of the area. I think Amazon sells it for even less. thanks again guys.

AudiNike12

That's great Just a FYI. I knew the mechanic when I paid $60-70 and I bought a universal flex pipe which I got a discount on. So you can expect a bit more than that