79 Rx7 Heat Exchanger Sound Reduction?
 

Installing an AEM UEGO, so I have some of my exhaust removed. What an absolute pain removing rusty exhaust bolts/nuts are.

My heat exchanger has some pretty significant rust holes in the bottom of it that are causing an exhaust leak.

How much louder would my exhaust become if I replaced the heat exchanger with a bit of straight pipe?

Thanks

Edit: I seem to have stock exhaust from the header back. So no air pump or thermal reactor, nor is the heat exchanger actually doing anything besides carrying exhaust.

What is a heat exchanger? Your cat? if you don't have emissions testing where you live, and the air pump is already removed, and the cat is rusted out..... yeah toss it and install a straight pipe (loud) or a presilencer / resonator (loud-ish).

There isn't a cat on the 79-80 cars. They had the absurd thermal reactor system thing, as far as I know. It looks like a cat on the outside, though the heat exchanger is much different on the inside.

It'll still have the stock muffler at the end. Its run a little with the rust holes in it and it doesn't seem too loud. I only want to replace the heat exchanger with pipe because it won't pass inspection like it is.

Ah, prehistoric emissions.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...bcd541c641.jpg

I thought it was a cat when I was going to remove it too, until I saw the inside of it. Did some research and found that picture. I couldn't find it mentioned anywhere in my Haynes manual either.

I'll probably just get a bit of pipe and replace it with that. Save some weight while I'm at it too.

If it ends up being too loud, can always pick up a presilencer then.

You do what you can when you're 19 and on a budget.

I feel ya. I'm 46, make good money, and still can't afford to fix this cheap little car!

I have barely driven it any for how long I've owned it. Just an idea, but maybe I should have spent more time on getting it running versus rubber seals for doors and the like.

But, hey, at least it doesn't leak water as it's parked under a carport. :blush: