Need help, new Silvia S14, has some major exhaust leaks out of nowhere.

[Kardon403]

Hi guys, I just traded into a S14 Silvia K, I'll lay out a quick timelime

Friday, viewed the car, all was running great, interested in tradeSaturday, upon re-meeting with owner he confesses the car has sprung a *minor* exhaust leak between the turbo->downpipe. He agree's to pay for repairs and whatnot, assures me its nothing too serious.Sunday, car is in my possesion, im driving it around abit, seems abit louderMonday, start the car and pop the hood, its much louder, and I believe its now leaking from the gasket between the manifold and turbo. This is new, and pretty severe.I haven't been driving the car, and now I have some questions.

Why would the gaskets go like this? What would cause failure so sudden, he said the gasket between manifold and turbo was brand new!

How much is this going to cost? I'm trying to keep my cool but oh my god I just want to sell this thing now and I've always wanted a Silvia. Could this be serious stuff or just badluck? Here is a YouTube video of the car,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oG2CaeFUeLw

How much of a job is this+what do I need to order? How much for parts and labour?

[DuckyD]

The gasket is like $20 from Nissan, no big deal.

It is a b*tch to replace though. Some are tricky enough to replace the gasket without removing the turbo, I have never had success doing this. I have always had to pull the manifold + turbo and replace the gasket.

As far as the gaskets failing.. it happens :| Seems to be more common on aftermarket manifolds. When you do replace the gasket, it might be a good idea to put nuts on both the top+bottom of the studs on the manifold. This may help from the bolts wanting to back out.

[47ronin]

Hey there I stumbled on your post, I must say that just sucks man. I have some $0.02 for ya I heard of some washers that you can buy called "Nord-lock washers" They are used in areas that have a tendency of coming loose due to excessive engine vibration they have grooves cut in them. It might be a thing to consider. http://www.nord-lock.com

[MikeDombeck]

happened to mine like 3 times in 2 months.. i used it as an excuse to upgrade my turbo...

[jcquick]

I know this is an old post but hopefully experience could help another person. I was constantly blowing those gaskets. I used high vibrating fasteners (nuts) with high temp exhaust gasket paste and nothing worked. It seem like every 3 months I was replacing that gasket. The $20 part wasn't the problem, it was performing the job which was a PITA. To solve the problem permanently I decided to take the manifold off and have the top of the stud welded to the manifold. A knowledgeable aluminum welder is preferred. Make sure you don't leave too much room on the bottom or you won't be able to fit it to the turbo. Then I used Nord-lock washers (these things are amazing) in combination with FRSport Exhaust Nuts. And, that's it. I've been running this set up for a year now and I haven't had a problem yet. I loved the way this turned out so well that I applied this set up to the manifold, Greddy Turbo Elbow and Downpipe. Every once in a while I would check to see if the torque on the nut would loosen but its still tight like that day I applied them. Hope this helps. Good luck