Well, my van sounds like a loud diesel. But the wife thinks the engine is ready to blow.

The exhaust pipe on the passenger side connecting to the exhaust manifold has separated. It seems that the pipe has a flange plate that makes the flared end compress into the manifold. This flange plate kind of looks like this ...



HOWEVER, mine just rusted and broke halfway off. Of course, the bolts and nuts are solid rust to the exhaust manifold too.

My course of action thus far is to figure out how to remove this rusted flange plate, get the fused heat rusted bolts out of the exhaust manifold without breaking anything, possibly cutting the very short "Y" section, slipping on a "new" flange plate to bolt to the exhaust manifold and to place a "new" exhaust coupling to repair the leg of the cut piece of "Y". :help: Is this possible to do? :help:

If taken to an exhaust place, I could be looking at a new Y-pipe, new flange plates, gaskets, and a new CAT. $$$$$$$

If anyone has changed the oil in any of the 3.9L, 5.2L or 5.9L engines, the Y-pipe to exhaust manifold sits right next to the oil filter by 1-inch.

Years ago, I fixed a friends Ram Van, 1977 by using a mere metal coat hanger slipping it through the flange plate and the bolt hole in the exhaust manifold with vice-grips. It held tight all that summer.

 

You can fix the flange without taking everything apart by welding two 1/2" long sections of 3/8" hollow round stock to opposing sides of the bottom of a new flange. Then, carefully cut the flange in half with a hacksaw or sawzall, put it around your downpipe and reconnect the flange halves with 3/8" nuts and bolts. Then, complete repairs to the manifold studs and reassemble the downpipe flange to the manifold.

 

Hey, I'm new here. I've been lurking for a few days trying to solve a problem on my 00 Ram Van 1500 (3.9 engine) and found this afternoon that I have the exact same problem as you. Did you end up getting the flanged fixed? Did it solve the "loud diesel" sound? I was worried at first when I started hearing it ping like that. It's also been cutting off when I put a load on the engine (say, accelerating while going uphill). Did yours do that also?

In my case, one of the bolts that holds the flange together broke off. The flange itself is so rotten I don't think I'll be able to salvage it.

I might try this trick to repair it:
http://www.instructables.com/id/repa...lytic-convert/

Have a nice day.

 

Uh Oh, there's a new Sheriff in town!
It had to be said.

 

I ended taking the van to a shop that can do custom exhausts. Actually, they were the only ones in the region that would even touch it.

They could not order the flange plate from anywhere in the area or in any metro nearby city nor on-line. It seems that the Ram Truck for the similar era used these flanges too. So a doner truck at a salvage yard that was in good shape for the exhaust took care of the flange plates.

The cat was nearly clogged too. So, a complete exhaust system was installed. The muffler and CAT are high flow and the power increase is noticeable.

 

Alright, I found a flange plate that looks like what Rusty93RamVan described at a parts store for $13 (same part would sell for about $3 in the US). It solved that part of the problem. Now I've gotta find out where the knocking sound comes from...