Loud muffler 2006 precedent

[herbieyg8]

My 2006 precedent is getting loud. I can’t find any holes in the pipes or muffler. New muffler is close to $300. Can I add a small muffler to the tailpipe without damaging the motor? Or should I not try this at all.

Thanks.

[Fairtax4me]

Couple things. First make sure the nuts on the header flange where the pipe bolts to the engine haven't loosened up.

The heat shield has several spot welds that hold it on the header pipe, and the spot welds rust out under the shield and cause leaks that are not obvious. They can often be repaired by a competent welder.

Worst case, the noise is not the muffler. The FE350 likes to chew up the balance link rods and it can make a heck of a racket when the bearing on the outer rod goes bad. This will be very evident if you drain the oil and find a lot (I mean a LOT) of glitter in the oil.