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B&B exhaust problem?

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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 06:38 PM
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Default B&B exhaust problem?

I've had the B&B exhaust since 2008 and I keep the car washed regularly. I noticed this past year that the exhaust started to look like this(see pics below). Is this normal for this type of exhaust?










After B&B's polishing










Last edited by Number 23; Mar 26, 2011 at 01:55 PM.
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 06:43 PM
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Do you think any wheel cleaning chemicals have been oversprayed onto the exhaust? Call B&B, see what they have to say
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 07:16 PM
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Number 23,

That does look unusual. It is almost as if something has been "cooked" onto it when the exhaust got hot. One thing I can tell you is I have seen some really ugly, negelcted exhaust system that we have polished back to new appearance. That is 16 gauge 304 Stainless Steel. I would recommend pulling just the tips off and having them polished. They should return to like new. Please let me know if I can help further.

Thank you. Mike Boat mike@bbexhaust.com
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Old Feb 18, 2011 | 07:52 PM
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I bet you drive in the winter on salted roads...that looks to me like reaction products from road salt on high temperature stainless steel...seen it before when I worked in the lab at Ford on our test cars.

only other thing it could be, and it would be a longshot, is exfoliation of the metal from a bad batch of stainless steel where the alloying elements are reacting with the environment at high temps.

Last edited by $$$frumnuttin'; Feb 18, 2011 at 07:54 PM.
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Old Feb 20, 2011 | 09:32 PM
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The car is stored in the winter time. I've had it out once to go put gas in it this winter. I even tried cleaning it up with some metal polish and nothing is working. I only use mequirs soap on the car and I don't use wheel cleaning products just the soap. When the car is washed I usually dry the tips and back a little.
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Old Feb 20, 2011 | 10:00 PM
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I've had mine on for quite a few years & they look as new.
Those pipes look like they have become extremely hot at one time.
Are you running cats, & if you are, do you think they may be bad?
Is there a chance that over the winter, some mice got up into your pipes &
got up into the mufflers & made a nest or deposited a bunch of un eatened Decon pellets that ended up melting with the heat with in the mufflers?.
Looks to be, some type of restriction going on.

Last edited by bumble-z; Feb 21, 2011 at 12:00 AM.
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Old Feb 21, 2011 | 02:58 AM
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Wow, I haven't seen bluing like that since I put drag pips on my Harley! With those pipes being that far back they shouldn't get hot enough to blue. I would definitely check what bumble-z said and make sure your cats aren't bad or there is something inside there burning off... like a family of mice and their nest.
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Old Feb 21, 2011 | 12:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Number 23
I even tried cleaning it up with some metal polish and nothing is working.
You'll have to take them off and use high speed polishing to have any chance of cleaning that up.

I agree with the others, it looks like the exhaust is running too hot.

Peter
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Old Feb 21, 2011 | 02:21 PM
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I have the 2nd generation Bullets (the slip-on kind) and besides getting dirty, I haven't noticed anything like that what you posted...

...could be road grime that burnt on the pipes? dunno.....
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Old Feb 21, 2011 | 06:03 PM
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looks like heat, usually only happens to headers and mid pipes, are you running a really fat tune?
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Old Feb 22, 2011 | 08:52 AM
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Currenty the car has stock headers, cats and mid pipes. It's just the B&B Rear section. The car has 22,xxx miles on it. I've had the car tuned by cartek racing. I only put about 2,500 miles on it a year.
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Old Feb 22, 2011 | 12:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Number 23
Currenty the car has stock headers, cats and mid pipes. It's just the B&B Rear section. The car has 22,xxx miles on it. I've had the car tuned by cartek racing. I only put about 2,500 miles on it a year.
contact BB...looks like a bad batch of stainless steel, or the wrong alloy...pretty rare, but it does happen...only way to verify is a metallurgical analysis...got any friends working in a Met Lab?
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Old Feb 22, 2011 | 05:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Number 23
I've had the car tuned by cartek racing.
Isnt that the place that almost always tunes cars to run in an open loop and ignore the O2 sensors. Maybe its not tuned right? Running to hot? I could be wrong, a lot of people like Cartek.

Or try "Blue Magic" metal polish
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Old Feb 22, 2011 | 06:30 PM
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I have tried the blue magic metal polish just by hand. I will have to get one of my buddies high speed buffers and try buffing the pipes. If the buffing doesnt work then I will have to have the exhaust checked for any obstructions. The car has ran great since the tune. For the first year and something the exhaust looked great but over the summer in 2010 i noticed it starting to look like the pictures above. Once the roads are nicer I can get the car out of storage since it's not at my house. Other than what's going on with the look of the exhaust i'm happy with it.
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Old Feb 22, 2011 | 07:23 PM
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Don 't worry- B&B are a first rate company and will take care of you if it is a material defect.
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Old Feb 23, 2011 | 12:14 AM
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Yeah B&B is a great company I agree. I talked with a buddy of mine and he said to use #0000 steel wool and some glass cleaner to clean up the exhaust. I'm just hoping that one of these things works instead of sending back the exhaust. If I get time this weekend I might try and get the exhaust buffed at least.
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Old Feb 23, 2011 | 07:33 PM
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Originally Posted by Rohan
Wow, I haven't seen bluing like that since I put drag pips on my Harley! With those pipes being that far back they shouldn't get hot enough to blue. I would definitely check what bumble-z said and make sure your cats aren't bad or there is something inside there burning off... like a family of mice and their nest.


It happens. Had an entire nest inside my Motorcycle intake. IMO, it very much looks like something is burned on there. I have a B&B equipped vette and drive it year round, and don't have that discoloration anywhere.
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Old Feb 24, 2011 | 09:41 AM
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B & B has great customer service....I would contact them about fixing the problem. If you have no idea what you are doing....don't try to fake it...I am sure they will either
repolish or if defected replace the system..Good Luck
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Old Feb 24, 2011 | 11:02 AM
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Originally Posted by The Boy Racer


It happens. Had an entire nest inside my Motorcycle intake. IMO, it very much looks like something is burned on there. I have a B&B equipped vette and drive it year round, and don't have that discoloration anywhere.
I use to keep D Con mice pellets out in the garage a few years back.
When I pulled my Ti system off to put on my BB Bullets, I noticed a rattle in the Ti mufflers.
I shook out a ton of burnt up pellets that the mice had stored in there for a rainy day!!
Now I put out mouse traps instead & you would be surprised how many of those little devils you will get over the winter.
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Old Feb 26, 2011 | 01:44 PM
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Haha ok i'll look at this stuff this weekend. If I don't see any resluts then I'll have to call B&B. Also I I have to go back to the stock TI system with my car being tuned do you think that it will hurt it at all?

Thanks for all the help guys. I will keep everyone posted on how I make out.
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