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exhaust brackets

15K views 18 replies 14 participants last post by  Rubik 
#1 ·
On my 64 plate Cactus Flair, the middle and rear brackets for holding the exhaust have corroded to the point that the exhaust is now loose and resting on the rear suspension (so thankfully not trailing the ground).
Anyone had this so early, should I be questioning this with Citroen?
 
G
#5 ·
That happened on my old C4's rear exhaust (although not that soon) and the brackets were part of the exhaust not separate so it meant a new exhaust, you don't want to know the cost. Needless to say it was a trip to the local exhaust centre.
 
#6 ·
Same here with rusty bracket 02/11/2017 Called into KwikFit who had taken over independent dealer old school fitter told me it would be new Exhaust £390 to £420 only fix's ? . If it was Back in the day they would made strap for exhaust, Kwik fit don't do this, he could but not in Kwik fits time. So I went to my Local independent garage who where able to weld a bracket to exhaust. Just passed MOT yesterday 24/11/2017. I did'nt think this was possible it would rust so quickly ?
 
#8 ·
Standard Citroen fault, C3 Picasso also has the same one, designed in, Decent quality exhaust with second rate brackets.

Some main dealers lie and say it cannot be fixed without full system.

It can, our 8 year old C3 Picasso was welded up by local independent, the weld has outlasted the original bracket.
 
#9 ·
i think this should be fixed under warranty based on my own experience. I had a DS3 diesel and the rear box was replaced because the bracket on the front of the box had badly corroded after a year. I had similar problem with my DS3 petrol after a similar time and again this was fixed under warranty, albeit by some fairly shoddy welding! I think the corrosion of Citroen exhausts, particularly the brackets is very widespread. I am surprised that that they haven't re-designed them
 
#10 ·
Just heard that my Cactus has failed it's first MOT ( a month short of it's 3rd birthday). The failure was due to a broken clip securing one of the front CV gaiters. But as an advisory Robins & Day (Hatfield) have reported a rusty exhaust bracket that needs rewelding. They said they would do it for £72 (plus VAT perhaps) yet surely this is a build/design/product fault and not wear and tear?

I will pick the car up tomorrow and will have a moan but judging by previous comments the dealer will not offer to fix it for free. But perhaps a mention of postings on this forum and other social media might give them something to think about.

Next year i will go to my local independant garage whom i've used for years.
 
#11 ·
That exhaust bracket is unsurprising. Lots of Citroen do it. I had exactly the same problem on our C3 Picasso at 3 years. The exhausts last well but the brackets are cheap mild steel . The weld on our car took 5 minutes at my local repairer and MOT tester (not a dealer) was free and five years later has well outlasted the original bracket. Scandalous charge at Robins and Day but take heart some dealers do not offer to weld!
 
#17 ·
As most exhaust brackets are bolted to what nowadays is classified as a chassis, and is either rubber mounted to a probe type hanger on the pipe or silencer unit. I would not let them weld it in situ. Or they may blame a non existant previous apprentice mechanic, if they set fire to your interior or bitumen underfloor covering. Next time they have it up on a ramp, ask them to view their idea. They will (as usual) refuse this request

At Mot time this is normally an advisory, if two or more failing/failed cause the exhaust to sway a lot, or Failure, as your exhaust may hit your brake, fuel pipes emergency brake system.
You would be more at ease to drive your car either on a high pavement, or find someone with ramps. Or drive it up on two old wheel rims, use a trolly jack or a piece of wood to hold the exhaust up and fix it yourself by cable tie'ing, around the new rubber after you place it back on. A bag of ten premium cable ties costs about £1.75. So put on one or two around the exhaust rubber isolating. As they normally fail as they degrade quite quickly due to enviromenal issues, but the cable tie should still hold it on. Larger rubber isolators should be strengthened by use of a wormdrive/jubilee clamp. And no more exhaust mounting problems.
 
#18 ·
CactiBhoy said:
As most exhaust brackets are bolted to what nowadays is classified as a chassis, and is either rubber mounted to a probe type hanger on the pipe or silencer unit. I would not let them weld it in situ. Or they may blame a non existant previous apprentice mechanic, if they set fire to your interior or bitumen underfloor covering. Next time they have it up on a ramp, ask them to view their idea. They will (as usual) refuse this request

At Mot time this is normally an advisory, if two or more failing/failed cause the exhaust to sway a lot, or Failure, as your exhaust may hit your brake, fuel pipes emergency brake system.
You would be more at ease to drive your car either on a high pavement, or find someone with ramps. Or drive it up on two old wheel rims, use a trolly jack or a piece of wood to hold the exhaust up and fix it yourself by cable tie'ing, around the new rubber after you place it back on. A bag of ten premium cable ties costs about £1.75. So put on one or two around the exhaust rubber isolating. As they normally fail as they degrade quite quickly due to enviromenal issues, but the cable tie should still hold it on. Larger rubber isolators should be strengthened by use of a wormdrive/jubilee clamp. And no more exhaust mounting problems.
This isn't a unique thing, it has happened to my (64) twice now. The agency said the bracket needed welding back on so naively I said do it. They charged me £58 to weld the bracket back on.

Now a couple of years later the knock has come back, I know what it is but this time I am taking it to another garage (not Citroen) and see what they have to say.
 
#19 ·
This isn't a unique thing, it has happened to my (64) twice now. The agency said the bracket needed welding back on so naively I said do it. They charged me £58 to weld the bracket back on.

Now a couple of years later the knock has come back, I know what it is but this time I am taking it to another garage (not Citroen) and see what they have to say.
 
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