Exhaust Repairs in Ivybridge

Ivybridge lies on the southern edge of Dartmoor beside the A38, and a great many of its drivers commute towards Plymouth. Mornings and evenings mean queues, slow crawling and a lot of cold starts, with steep roads up to the moor for weekends.

At Automaster we repair and replace exhausts and diagnose catalytic converter, DPF and emissions faults on petrol and diesel vehicles. The notes below cover how commuting affects an exhaust and what to tell us for a quote.

Does commuting wear out an exhaust?

Not always from distance, but from pattern. Queuing in traffic keeps revs low and the system cool, so water condenses in the silencer boxes and corrodes them. Over a winter, a box that looked fine can have a pinhole or a split seam.

Heat cycles also stress the welds and the flexible sections. If your commute has become noisier or you spot rust along the pipe, an inspection on the ramp will show how far it has gone.

Diesel and petrol cars alike suffer. Petrol engines may not have a DPF, but their catalytic converters and oxygen sensors still need to work properly, and the same wear patterns apply to the pipework and silencer boxes. Automaster treats the whole system as one connected job.

• Louder at idle
• Drone at A38 speeds
• Rust on the box
• Pipe sitting low

My diesel has a DPF warning on the commute. What is happening?

Stop-start traffic is the classic cause. The filter needs a long, hot, steady drive to burn off soot, and a crawl towards Plymouth does not give it one. Eventually the light appears.

Do not wait. A loaded filter can lead to limp mode, poor economy and, if ignored, a part that cannot be cleaned. We diagnose before suggesting cleaning or repair, checking the pressure sensors, the exhaust for leaks and the engine, since a fault there can load the filter faster than normal driving.

What does a failed MOT emissions test tell me?

It tells you that something in the engine, fuel mixture or exhaust is not right. It does not tell you which part to buy. The catalytic converter might be worn out, but equally an oxygen sensor, a misfire or a leak in front of the converter could be responsible.

We work through those possibilities with diagnostics so you pay for the right fix.

Is there a garage near Ivybridge for exhaust and DPF work?

Our garage is at Longcombe Cross, Longcombe, near Totnes, TQ9 6PL, and drivers from Ivybridge come to us along with those from South Brent, Ermington, Modbury and Kingsbridge.

If you commute and cannot tell whether the noise is serious, tell us what it sounds like and how it changes with speed.

What should I include when asking for a quote?

Exhaust work varies with the parts, the rust and the vehicle. A small repair is a short job, a catalytic converter or full system takes more, and a DPF depends on the diagnosis.

The more detail, the more accurate the advice.

• Make, model and year
• Petrol or diesel
• Warning lights
• What you hear or smell