MG Midget Forum

Like most vehicles, exhaust hangers were replaced with whatever the installer had at the time and if the pipes had slightly different bends and such, you wound up with a frankensteinian mish mosh of pieces, particularly if the replacement wasn't OEM.

Mine is such a relic. The PO removed the cross piece at the tail pipe end and went back to a straight pipe. For the tailpiece, they fitted a Monza knockoff (as in cheap facsimile) with a 14" - 3" diameter silencer into a double outlet. The problem is that the silencer isn't supported properly where they installed a laughable #12 sized bolt though the trunk floor space onto the tailpipe, leaving the next hanger down (approximately near the driver's seat) to do the heavy lifting. That was a standard modern hanger u-bolt to a rubber hanger bolted into the underside of the car. The rubber has since deteriorated. There is one other hanger toward the transmission before it manifolds up to the engine. When I shut the engine off, the whole things rattles like a tin can parade for a wedding car.

What is the best approach here? Try to return the hanger system to original or just use some shade tree mechanic ingenuity and shure it up where I can?

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1972 MG Midget MKIII "The VB Weller"
55,400 Miles
Watkins Glen, NY



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2024-04-11 12:47 PM by scotty1998.

Hi Scott, the PO here did a similar thing, except they eliminated the first clamp after the exhaust manifold, eliminated the muffler and installed a pipe under the axel, installed a crappy after-market hanger rear of the axel, and kept the resonator with one clamp right above the tailpipe on the passenger (right hand) side. Two clamps, both in the rear of the car, and nothing until where it connects to the exhaust manifold. I went to AutoZone and found clamps that fit perfectly and look similar to original. I did have to fabricate one mounting bracket for the forward clamp. Eventually, I'll redo the entire exhaust system, but for right now, at least the exhaust pipe has more support than just the exhaust manifold and 2 weenie clamps in the rear.

When I redid my exhaust I just bought all of the 1967 spec parts (straight back), as even through '74 (I think all the way to the end of production) all the mounting points were still provided on the body so everything just bolted right up.

Thanks for your opinions. Really, I need to jack stand the whole vehicle and crawl under there with an exhaust diagram and take a count. I think they even cobbed the transmission mount for some reason. The rattling is bad.

Whether I go with OEM type hangers or parts store, I need to figure out how to suspend the tailpipe section where the silencer is. I would think a 3" diameter pipe clamp and hanger might do the trick. The other though I had was to try and get the tailpipe off and then weld a mount to the top.

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1972 MG Midget MKIII "The VB Weller"
55,400 Miles
Watkins Glen, NY



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2024-04-12 06:08 AM by scotty1998.

You haven't said whether the original exhaust hanger fixings are still there. On the tub, where the break in the rear bulkhead and floor joint meet, there is a mounting point for a rubber exhaust hanger. At the rear near the spring hanger is a stud welded to the trunk floor. Sometimes if either of these are damaged, you'll se that field expedients have been used.
I suppose you could just return to stock as it's already thought out. I probably would have done that if I hadn't gone with a performance build.

The stud at the rear is there but the problem is that it sits just off to the side of the silencer. Sooo, the PO installed a second "stud" using a #12 threaded bolt through the trunk floor. It's wiggly and flimsy and is trying its best to not snap off but it buckles the floor every time the car shakes.

The rubber exhaust hanger that you mention near the transition between the floor and the bulkhead is what is broken at the moment. I still need to investigate what its doing further down the line.

Scott

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1972 MG Midget MKIII "The VB Weller"
55,400 Miles
Watkins Glen, NY

Scott, the original exhaust on my '74 had three hangers at the rear: one on the rear bulkhead and one on each side near the rear corners of the fuel tank. These were two bolts with welded nuts at each place. Not sure where the studs came from unless your '72 was different. Over the years the exhaust has changed, the piece across the rear is long gone, but the current pipes are held with exhaust store clamps that are bolted into one of the holes on the bulkhead and the left rear of the tank. The other holes have bolts screwed into them just to plug the holes. You should be able to find a hanger that will bolt into an existing hole and will attach to your pipes.

You'll figure it out. You definitely need to get your head under there and have a good look at what's left. The mount at the rear bulkhead has captive nuts, so the old one, which may still be there, might need some persuasion on the bolts before it comes off. However, it is the "heavy lifter" supporting the pipe between the manifold and the muffler. The muffler hanger is a crazy bent bit of flat steel so that it sits offset from the line of the muffler which is why the stud under the trunk is off to the side.
The front mount that attaches to the transmission bolts is more of an anti-rattle brace. It doesn't really hold up anything. I deleted it.

The main purpose of that front transmission mount is to maintain the integrity of the seal between the manifold and the downpipe. Early cars used a simple clamped joint between the manifold and downpipe that leaked most of the time even with the trans mount hardware in place.

That's what I said. Keeps the pipe steady.

No, you said it was for anti-rattle. That's different from securing the joint between manifold and downpipe.

In what way?

When they went to the crossover extension the straight back rear mount changed and the stud was moved slightly.
I experienced the problem when mounting the Moss Sport exhaust on my 69. Its rear muffler mount is designed for the later system mount. Had to customize a bracket. No doubt there are variations knowing BL.

https://mossmotors.com/spm-014f-exhaust-system-1275-1968-69

https://mossmotors.com/spm-014g-exhaust-system-1275-1970-74

When I get back to it this week, I'll snap a few pics and show you what's there (or isn't).

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1972 MG Midget MKIII "The VB Weller"
55,400 Miles
Watkins Glen, NY

lol There is a big difference between "ant-rattle" and "securing the joint". At least where I live.