DIY: E36 Exhaust Hanger Fix

[HighandFast]

This DIY is a final (under normal conditions) and "forever" replacement for the stock E36 rear exhaust hangers. It really couldn’t be simpler.

For a car that isn’t driven on the track, this fix shouldn’t be necessary. But for those of us who do track our cars and suffer the indignation of at-least annual replacement of the hangers, this is the fix for you. (Read post #25 if you aren't going to use this solution. Also, there are more options that have been added to this thread. Guess which is my favorite.)

When completed, your exhaust will be aligned exactly as it would be with the OEM hanger, except that it will not move unless you beat on it, which I have demonstrated (beating on it, that is) and documented the results with photos at the bottom of this post.

Materials I got from Home Depot:

• Angle bar
• Brass stand-offs (only needed if you don’t have an easy way to cut the original pieces in half)

Step 1
Jack the car up from the rear high enough to get under it and remove the rubber doughnuts from the center exhaust support. Of course, support the car with jack stands before proceeding to work on it.

Step 2
Support the muffler with a floor jack.

Step 3
Remove from the muffler the metal holder and bracket and lower the muffler enough to get to the tops of the hangers where they attach to the car. Remove the hangers. Tip: Spray the hell out of the brass nuts and studs with thread penetrant of your choice.

Step 4
Cut two pieces of the angle bar, each seven segments long -- with an oblong hole at each end of the narrow bend (this is important). Install the stock metal muffler holders by inserting the bolt through the center holes of the angle bar oriented as shown in the picture. The bolt is only threaded toward the end, so you need to use something for a standoff or use a different bolt. I cut in half the piece that was part of the original hanger, even though the only good picture I took shows it full length. All you have to do is cut through the plastic sheath and it will come in two (shown in the blurry pictures of the installed hangers.):

(Do not follow the "Attachment" link...I can't get rid of it.)
Attachment 619222
IMG_0288 1.jpg

As an option, I could have used the plumbing piece shown as a standoff:


IMG_0286.jpg

Step 5
Reassemble, placing the angle bars oriented as shown in the pictures:


IMG_0289.jpg

IMG_0290.jpg

Here's the alignment of the tail pipes after. No adjusting required, this is just how it turns out:

IMG_0293 1.jpg

Below are pictures of what it looked like after I damaged it when I drove off a curb getting out of a weird parking lot. The curb hit the underside of the muffler and pushed it up (the muffler was undamaged except for some scratches). The nice thing to know here is that the angle bar crumpled and bent to the side in a way that relieved stress at the attachment points. There was zero damage to the car. I was at the track when I noticed it, and all it took was a hammer to straighten out the angle bar to get back in business.

[bmwdirtracer]

Well HI there, my friend! Great to see you here, and thanks for contributing!

For all reading this -- we both instruct, and I saw the quicky track repair to the curb damage. The car was out on track in just a few minutes, and my friend here beat living hell out of it for three days straight afterwards.

I'd like to say that cars which are tracked are usually FAR better maintained than "street" cars, and I personally think that driving Bimmers (and Porsches) very hard is good for them. (Don't try that with VW/Audis, or any Japanese cars - they break.)

[rohner88]

After finding out that my muffler hangers failed again, I found this DIY and just completed this in no time and only cost me $11. Looks good and hopefully holds up. It looks and feels sturdy so I think it will for a while. Thanks for the write up

[HighandFast]

Thanks for saying something. The appreciation is appreciated

It has lasted 2 track seasons (~40 track days and 10,000 mi to/from). No sign of giving up.

[bmwdirtracer]

And where the heck were you this past weekend???? It was WONDERFULLY WET at VIR! (I think you know how much I love the rain)

[HighandFast]

Hey there. Too much was going on, too many track weekends back to back. Shenandoah this weekend.

[rohner88]

Thanks for saying something. The appreciation is appreciated

It has lasted 2 track seasons (~40 track days and 10,000 mi to/from). No sign of giving up.

Your thoughts on this thread...
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...ts-from-the-UK

[HighandFast]

Interesting. Those are so nice looking, it's a shame they're hidden.

I would have to disagree with the guy who says they're solid, though. I didn't go to the web site, but it seems clear that the mounting points for the actual hangers are bushings -- not solid. Even my solution isn't "solid." It provides the ability to accommodate any expansion (lengthening) that occurs in the exhaust system due to heating. And there's a little bit of play side-to-side, as well, just not much. In these two respects, I think my solution is actually a little more forgiving than the after market ones ($20 vs $200 is a nice advantage, too).

Where they seem to have an advantage is in isolating vibration because of the bushings. How soft they are, I don't know. But you know from experience that even my solution is not noticeable with respect to vibration and/or noise in the cockpit, so there's not much going on there. I guess we're guinea pigs or, if your prefer, test pilots for whether it makes any difference to the welds and attachment points on the exhaust.

For sure, the stock hangers give a lot more in all ways than either of our solutions, unfortunately they also give out!*


* For anybody who's replacing their mounts with the stock ones, it's important to remember that there's a proper orientation for the mounts (and preloading) that, if ignored, will cause premature failure, as if they didn't fail fast enough already. That is, if you look at them, they are not symmetrical and that is not by mistake.

- - - Updated - - -

I have to take back something I said. The Brit's solution also accommodates expansion of the exhaust system exactly as mine does. So no advantage there. Really, the only advantage seems to be cost -- big advantage. And like I said, in terms of appearance, he smokes me, hands down!

[rohner88]

Interesting. Those are so nice looking, it's a shame they're hidden.

I would have to disagree with the guy who says they're solid, though. I didn't go to the web site, but it seems clear that the mounting points for the actual hangers are bushings -- not solid. Even my solution isn't "solid." It provides the ability to accommodate any expansion (lengthening) that occurs in the exhaust system due to heating. And there's a little bit of play side-to-side, as well, just not much. In these two respects, I think my solution is actually a little more forgiving than the after market ones ($20 vs $200 is a nice advantage, too).

Where they seem to have an advantage is in isolating vibration because of the bushings. How soft they are, I don't know. But you know from experience that even my solution is not noticeable with respect to vibration and/or noise in the cockpit, so there's not much going on there. I guess we're guinea pigs or, if your prefer, test pilots for whether it makes any difference to the welds and attachment points on the exhaust.

For sure, the stock hangers give a lot more in all ways than either of our solutions, unfortunately they also give out!*


* For anybody who's replacing their mounts with the stock ones, it's important to remember that there's a proper orientation for the mounts (and preloading) that, if ignored, will cause premature failure, as if they didn't fail fast enough already. That is, if you look at them, they are not symmetrical and that is not by mistake.

- - - Updated - - -

I have to take back something I said. The Brit's solution also accommodates expansion of the exhaust system exactly as mine does. So no advantage there. Really, the only advantage seems to be cost -- big advantage. And like I said, in terms of appearance, he smokes me, hands down!

Thanks for your response...the only thing I was really focusing on was the necessity of having rubber hangers for more play(lengthening as such)as opposed to a more "set" mounted solution like your DIY. Like you said, I guess we're guinea pigs it some sense so it remains to be seen. So far, so good thou...n as far as appearance, don't sell yourself short cause neither solutions are visible without having to look under there

[bmwdirtracer]

Yeah. and the day I hang my muffler from polyurethane and aluminum pretty things is the day after I win the Powerball. I'm with you, HighandFast.

[zasi76]

Excellent write up! Excellent solution...I have been looking for a solution like this for years.

[HighandFast]

Almost three years later and a couple of track seasons and I haven't had to touch them (except to remove the exhaust a few times, that is). I think it's safe to say, the verdict is in — it works!

[bmwdirtracer]

And, Zasi....when HighandFast says "a couple of track seasons", you need to know that he's an instructor, and jumps big curbs at absurd speeds, all day long, many days a year.....

[M3 Pete]

Almost three years later and a couple of track seasons and I haven't had to touch them (except to remove the exhaust a few times, that is). I think it's safe to say, the verdict is in — it works!

I don't suppose you could post 1 or 2 pics to show how this works? Photobucket's change in policy has destroyed virtually every thread on here.

[RRSperry]

Yes please... repost the pictures

[golgo13]

Guys, just use Google chrome and get this extension:

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/d...pkaon?hl=en-US

[RRSperry]

Cool, old fart thanks you...lol

[golgo13]

Cool, old fart thanks you...lol

@42 years old, I'm no spring chicken lol

[M3 Pete]

Guys, just use Google chrome and get this extension:

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/d...pkaon?hl=en-US

Very cool, thank you.

[bmwdirtracer]

DAMN !

Golgo, I'm a summer chicken too. Worse yet, I hate computers, except for the DME and ABS. And maybe Autologic, and ISTA.

But you know, your link instantly made the damned pictures reappear....and I use Firefox (attached link to the one you gave).


Thank you, sir!

[golgo13]

Cool.

So, back on topic - what causes these hangers to fail? This is the first I had heard about this so now I'm all freaked out.

[zactastic]

hey, im able to view the photos with that chrome extension. thanks so much

[HighandFast]

Crap, I didn't see where the Chrome extension had solved the problem. I just went headlong into replacing the links. I would have at least left the last two photobucket links since bfc limits 5 photos/post.

[golgo13]

Stole this idea from the MotoIQ article:

[HighandFast]

golgo13, thanks for posting that; it's a great addition. Now somebody looking for a solution who lands on this thread has three viable options, one of which is really cheap — and among which you must choose one — or you will be back at it in the near future! If you think you're alone, just look at how many views this thread has...The stock hangers are a problem.

Note to all who are here, especially if you've already purchased the stock part:

(1) pay attention to orienting each of them correctly, it's actually important (they are not symmetrical), as shown in golgo13's post and per BMW (and UUC, and elsewhere, but not, oddly, Bentley); eh orient.JPG

(2) apply preload, per BMW, Bentley, and others (~15 mm);

(3) don't use the silicone fix. There's a thread started by khaos and the "silicone trick" is no treat. I'm rescinding my endorsement (and you know what that was worth...). It seems that, objectively, really, my solution is actually the best one out there. (BTW, it's been over 5 yrs and no reason to think it will ever fail.)

Closing anecdote: You can count yourself lucky that you weren't doing this 6 or 7 years ago when BMW sourced the part from a manufacturer that skimped in every possible way on the materials. If you think the current part is crap...! It was a real lesson in how BMW can't be trusted to QC the parts they sell. But, at least, after a lot of customers' money, time, and frustration, they switched back to the sturdier, yet still terribly flawed original construction.