Symptoms of an exhaust leak?
 

I'm thinking i may have an exhaust leak. i've only had the car 2 weeks and am still fixing 'little' problems. here are some indicators that point me toward the exhuast.
-'airy' exhaust sound
-sometimes backfires
-power loss (?) sluggish

an exhaust leak sounds loud. I had one from the block to the manifold and i could hear it going 80 on the highway. if you really want to make sre take off the parts of the exhaust and look for the gaskets that are torn or melted.

upon inspection i see that the headers through 2 y pipes and the cat are all welded together.

I just pulled the exhaust off my car for the tranny swap im dowing (in progress) and my exhaust mannifold gasket is basicaly been baked apart. I know now where my backfires were caused. We'll have to buy a new gasket before we reinstall. Then again the entire exhuast I have is pretty much all shot anyway...

why would a leak cause it to be sluggish? think about it, it only lowers backpressure. When the flex-pipe started leaking on my rabbit, it made it significantly faster.
It will be louder, just reach under the car and feel for pulses. Have a friend plug the tailpipes to force more gas out the leaks.

mine's an N/A and if i'm not correct , having too little backpressure causes HP loss. if i was a TII it would be different.

How bout no.

yes, you are not correct. Less backpressure causes less low end torque, and MORE hp!

ah, i see. i don't think i want to sacrife anymore low end torque though.

depending on where his exhaust leak is...he might be not be getting enough air to open his 5th & 6th ports...maybe???

This is BS. An exhaust leak, depending on the size, will decrease power. It is similar to running like a 4.5-5" exhaust which would make you think it would flow better, but in reality is overkill on your motor.

BTW on a turbo'd car it could easily add power because with dramatically lower backpressure it will boost a few more pounds, that is if it doesnt pop the motor.:D

[qoute]yes, you are not correct. Less backpressure causes less low end torque, and MORE hp[/qoute]

An exhaust leak in any case, turbo/ non-turbo will cause a dramatic loss of power due to turbulence in the exhaust. A leaking exhaust will have a burbly sound, like a car with lumpy cams.