Where to get custom exhaust clamps made?

[simonknee]

Hi all,m

In my eternal quest for proper heavy duty, low profile clamps for my y-pipe I have tried many.

U-clamps: rubbish
Mikalor: too wimpy
C-clamps: OK but distort.

I have now found Jetex clamps:

These are suitably heavy duty and very low profile but the smallest size is 1.75" and I need to go to less than 1.5" if I wish to clamp my y-pipe tight enough so that kissing a speed bump does not break the gas tight seal.

Do any listers know of somebody who could manufacturer a copy of this stainless steel clamp?
Jetex don't do custom clamps as they don't make this part themselves.

Simon

[jono]

...I'm surprised, always found Mikalor clamps pretty much bullet proof

[elansprint71]

You could move out of that London?

[elanman999]

You've no need to make clamps, just use motor bike exhaust clamps - simples. Available is SS or MS.
Cheers
John

[nebogipfel]

You've no need to make clamps, just use motor bike exhaust clamps - simples. Available is SS or MS.
Cheers
John

Which are pretty much the same as the OE clamps ....apart from the chrome of course.

I find good old cheap and cheerful exhaust clamps as used on pretty much everything on the road up to the job and they clamp far better than the OE ones. OK it's a bit of a fiddle to rotate them so that the threaded bits are not pointing down (if you get my drift) but if I can do it I would have thought anyone can

[bcmc33]

These are the sort I've been using: http://www.cbsonline.co.uk/category/Exh ... mps,b.html

[simonknee]

Thanks guys,

Thing is with the Mikalor clamps (that you show in the pics) I find that I have stripped the thread before I have gotten them tight enough. Why so tight? About once a month part of the exhaust will bash a speed bump - often the rear box. When I inspect I find it will have slipped the y-pipe join about 1mm. This is enough to break the gas tight seal and it's poisonous fumes in the cockpit ahoy (see my threads over the years about the trouble with fumes in an fhc).

This is exacerbated by my fully welded stainless steel exhaust meaning the only weak point is the y-pipe. Plus it is a thicker walled pipe than cheapo stainless or mild steel so harder to get a good clamp on.

So it's

1. Get a proper clamp
2. Be an old lady and take speed bumps at less than 30mph.
3. Move out of London

Number 1 please!

Simon

A note on number 2. The faster you take a speed bump in an Elan the better. I trash the front valence of my modern mini if I do more than 20mph. The Elan just glides over like it's not there!

[JJDraper]

If your ground clearance is causing problems, surely you need a weak spot, otherwise the shock will be transmitted further up the assembly - exhaust manifolds/gaskets. Those rear boxes do cause problems, but there is usually scope to bring them up a bit to prevent disaster (see pic - sorry Bob).

Question - How many people does it take to fix the exhaust on an Elan. Answer 6, one to do the work, one to hold the umbrella, one to hold the torch, one to offer helpful advice, one to take the picture and one to fall about in helpless laughter...

Jeremy

PS take sunscreen for Silverstone - bright sunshine.

[nebogipfel]

Simon,

I'd go for number 2. The problem with thrashing over bumps is that you do tend to feel them less but unfortunately the car doesn't.

There's always....

4. Fit a standard Y box which will clamp properly. Even a MS one will last years in all the heat and oil under an Elan

PS. As for moving out of London, moving in would be one of my worst nightmares

[simonknee]

Box is right up as far as it will go. I don't ever actually catch anything just skim it so the shock is not that bad. There is enough flex in the whole thing that I am in no danger of ripping off the manifold

Standard y-pipe needs yet another clamp. But for the fact that I couldn't get it all off again I'd weld the whole damn thing up.

All you rag-top owners out there probably have leaky exhausts any way! It's only us that drive the proper sportscar version of the Elan that have to be super careful about this. The cabin is at negative pressure and carbon monoxide is not fun.

C'mon enough with the alternative clamps, it's old fashioned I know but does nobody know of a company that will make things???

Simon

The rest of the world is nice to visit but you wouldn't want to live there... (Shakespeare)

[JJDraper]

"When a man is tired of London,.. he has come to his senses"

Jeremy
(My memories of living in London get a kick in the groin everytime I go back - what's with these lanes with 5 rings in them? Fortunately the cameras tend to be forward facing and can't pick up the reg on the Lotus, like the congestion zone ones)

[simonknee]

The olympic lanes are so my Lotus can get to the stadium quickly to do a couple of laps around the F1 track they are building in there. #newsoverload

[AHM]

are you using the gearbox bracket and clamp?

[nebogipfel]

Simon,

I was going to suggest a little tack weld on each joint to stop them pulling (you could carefully grind it off to remove the exhaust) but that's not going to stop the pipes flexing and cracking the seal.

I know it's not what you want but I would still favour ordinary exhaust clamps, they do vary in quality and good ones grip very tightly. Custom clamps, unless made in quantity are going to be expensive.

The best solution would be to stop the fumes getting in the cabin but I detect from your comment you have already explored that pretty thoroughly. I will just say are you sure you are not dragging exhaust fumes into the boot from the tail end? It's a very common source of fume problems.

[simonknee]

I like that tack weld idea - might explore. It always gets shifted back by 1mm when it breaks the seal. So it is not so much the flex more the shock. Yet a tack might just stop this.

You assume correctly about me and the fume issue. Any leak under the car is a big headache for an FHC. The y-pipe is about the worst being furthest forward. Being "airflow" compounds this. With negative cabin pressure there is no such thing as a sealed cabin - though if I ever did a complete body off restore I would be obsessive about this aspect.

The other thing is that to get a proper state of tune with minimal over-run popping and to allow your wideband o2 sensor to work even the slightest leak is a no no.

The obviously work for you but I find the U-clamps distort the pipe at a few hotspots rather than even pressure right round.

Yes I do have the gearbox mount and it is rigid but can still move enough to cause me a seal break come a box whack.

Simon