Exhaust Manifold - Turbo Connector

[Jerry Winchester]

We'll be having a technical session this afternoon at the Anaheim RV Resort covering how to change a cracked exhaust connector for any 8V92 wannabe guys.

Seems this piece gave it up somewhere on the road from Houston to Tucson and there were none of them to be had in Southern California, so I had the part shipped from Stewart & Stevenson in Houston. This is not an uncommon thing for it to crack at the flange where the clamp holds it to the turbo.

I had them put the part on Loc's account as he got off pretty easy last trip there. I'll bring you the old one for your carbeque wall of fame.

Good thing I brought a lot of tools. It's like I own a Harley. :rolleyes:

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

We'll be having a technical session this afternoon at the Anaheim RV Resort covering how to change a cracked exhaust connector for any 8V92 wannabe guys.

Seems this piece gave it up somewhere on the road from Houston to Tucson and there were none of them to be had in Southern California, so I had the part shipped from Stewart & Stevenson in Houston. This is not an uncommon thing for it to crack at the flange where the clamp holds it to the turbo.

I had them put the part on Loc's account as he got off pretty easy last trip there. I'll bring you the old one for your carbeque wall of fame.

Good thing I brought a lot of tools. It's like I own a Harley. :rolleyes:

It's a good thing your on vacation! It gives you a lot of free time to do all these repairs. Start to educate the whole family how to work with tools. It's never too late / early;)

[Jon Wehrenberg]

The failure of the turbo inlet pipe on an 8V92 is common. They never fail when you are home so like Jerry you will have to locate one and get it in your hands. Once you have it the replacement involves about 10 minutes and a wrench.

What all 8V92 owners should know is that when one of the inlet pipes fails several things happen. First, you get to see a lot of black smoke coming from the exhaust pipe because the turbo is not going to work anywhere near as well as it should.

Second, you will be down on power. If you are at high altitudes you will be able to time your acceleration to highway speeds with a calandar.

Third, your engine compartment is going to get very black from the soot now spewing out from the break in the pipe.

Lastly, that soot is accompanied by some flames, so if you insist on driving a long distance after the pipe fails, wrap the break as well as you can with thin sheet metal or something similar that can take heat and clamp it as well as possible. You may have to be creative. I did my temporary repairs in a Lowe's parking lot using some sheet metal and clamps that I bouight there.

Jerry's trip will be shorter, because he is going to spend megabucks for a bent piece of tubing, especially if it is the pipe with the flex portion.

[Jerry Winchester]

This is the part I removed

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[Jerry Winchester]

First you need a good helper and the right tools.

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[Jon Wehrenberg]

Caught it in time. When it breaks completely that little sooting you see finds its way everywhere.

[Jerry Winchester]

I was lucky to catch it this early. I had the window slid open when we were driving west of Kerrville and when we would go thru one of those places where they cut the road thru the rocks, I could hear a hissing noise that was strange. Yes, stranger than the harmonic of rock hardened bay door latch bumpers.

Next fuel stop, the engine was running at high idle and I walked around to the back and opened the door. That's when I really heard it and then I stuck my hand up between the pipe and the top of the engine and I could feel the exhaust.

By the time I got to San Diego, it was leaking worse but not bad enough to shut down and wait for the new part. I am going to install it after my swim and requisite vacation nap, so stay tuned for more pics.

I'm glad Jon is back to critique my work......

[Jerry Winchester]

You need a hammer and a stout screwdriver to remove the clamp.

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[Jon Wehrenberg]

Jerry did a good job catching that before complete failure. You cannot hardly buy excitement like you get when it lets go completely because you not only cannot see anything behind you due to the excessive black smoke rolling from your exhaust pipe, but you cannot see the engine when you open the doors because the entire engine compartment is a rich deep black non gloss finish due to soot.

The exhaust system on an 8V92 is something that should be on everybody's list of things to check as part of a pre-trip inspection. The turbo inlet pipes will fail where Jerry's photo shows, but the iron exhaust manifolds are prone to cracking, and the manifold gaskets will blow out over time.

The net result is a loss of turbo boost, heavy sooting around the failure point, and diminished engine performance. Replacing the manifold or manifold gaskets is not a particularly challenging task, but if you do decide to do it yourself be aware that the studs are prone to coming out (instead of the nut coming off) and that results in a loss of engine coolant. I think Dale just completed the project of replacing the gasket and he lucked out and did not end up removing studs.

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

Great young helper you have there Jerry. Keep making those memories:)

[MangoMike]

JDUB,

Great tutorial, worthy of Prevoman.com.

I trust you're able bodied helper is as good with the air wrench as she is with the 50 caliber.

Mango

[Jerry Winchester]

Well this is the end. Pretty easy install. I dressed the turbo and manifold connections with a wire wheel on my cordless drill, so it was pretty clean. The new part showed up with cosmoline or some preservative on it and I cleaned it as best I could without any solvent, so we should look like Cheech and Chong when we pull out from Anaheim and it starts burning off.

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And that chick is handy with a 50cal or a CO2 powered ratchet.

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

What about the other side?
How long do you think it will last?
Did the pipe come with a new clamp, or did you order it separately?

[Jon Wehrenberg]

The pipes on my 8V92 seemed to last about ten years. I tried to keep them clean and rust free with high temp paints but I doubt if I extended their life. Running in the rust belt may not have helped.

The other side will also fail. With each it is just a matter of time. As Jerry points out it is no big deal to replace them unless your wallet is empty when they fail.

The clamps are extra and are not included. Jerry wisely replaced the clamps because they tend to stretch over time.

[Jerry Winchester]

They tend to fail at the flange where they are coupled and it is usually a fatigue or crack failure, so there is not much you can do about that.