11 Attachment(s)
DIY: Fixing exhaust squeak at idle 2014-2015
So, for nearly the entire time I've had my 2014 Mirage, I've had an intermittent squeak at idle. I figured it was just a loose accessory belt, so when I had a chance, I tightened it up. That did absolutely nothing. So, I got myself a new belt. That also did absolutely nothing. At this point, I figured it may be a bad bearing in the A/C compressor or water pump and I didn't feel like fixing that.
Fast forward a while, and the squeaking has gotten worse. It now is a continuous squeak at idle. So, a bit more investigation was done. I put the car up on ramps, and got under it to see where it was coming from. Here is what I found.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRyJ...ature=youtu.be
So, the exhaust was squeaking. The movement of the engine at idle moves the exhaust back and forth and it squeaks. I decided to fix this today.
To do this, I had to remove the catalytic converter. There are two bolts with springs on them at the back side.
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The next step is to remove the CV joint heat shield. This one is a little tricky. One bolt is readily accessible, but the other is above the shield and you pretty much need a flexible socket joint to get at it. Here is a bad picture that shows the two bolts.
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There are also two bolts with springs holding the CAT to the manifold. Again, that flexible socket joint will really help you here.
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You will also have to unplug the oxygen sensor.
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With all the bolts out, I pulled the rubber exhaust hanger off of the chassis hook to drop the rear exhaust down and out of the way. This allows you to pull the CAT section out.
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Here is the front of the CAT section. You can see it seems that it has been rubbing since its got shiny metal vs dull or rusty metal.
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The back side didn't seem to have any noticeable rubbing marks on it.
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My solution to this issue is to try and put a coat of anti-seize on the joint. This will lubricate it and stop it from squeaking. I'm not sure how long it will last, but anti-seize is made to handle high heat, so I hope that it'll hold up for a while. My other option I was thinking of was brake caliper pin lubricant, but I wasn't sure it was safe for oxygen sensors and CATs...
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I also put some anti-seize on the back. I figure it can't hurt.
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I buttoned things back up in the reverse order. All in all, it was pretty quick and easy.
I do wonder if anyone else has this issue? I found it very annoying as anytime the car would idle, it would squeak.