Melted fuel tank!

[kukuxumusu]

Hi everyone!

One major problem happened two weeks ago on my 2007 170k km Vibe-that-I-love: a gas leak. It smelled awful and it left a clear mark in the snow. So I brought it to the garage this morning and the diagnostic is: the extension pipe is touching the plastic gas tank, which made the tank melt over time. There was no protection shield to separate the two parts. So the garage tells me the melting had been going on for some time - according to him, even before October, when he installed this new extension exhaust pipe (without any protective shield!). I don't believe the melting started before October. I feel he just wants to shy away from his responsibility... which could have been fatal (right?)!

My question to the Vibe community: in the original Vibe layout, is there any chance the extension pipe could have been installed THAT CLOSE to the plastic gas tank?

Thanks for any input you may have!

[andrewclaus]

I just worked on the section of pipe in front of the tail pipe, and from what I saw there's no way the right part installed correctly would contact the fuel tank. If it had been, you probably would have heard it.

It's possible that the heat shield was lost some time ago and not noticed by someone working on the exhaust. Some people take the chance even if they notice it missing--you can find discussions like that on this and other forums. Radiant heat from a correctly installed exhaust pipe could damage the fuel tank without contacting it.

To tell the truth, when I worked on my car, I inspected the heat shield directly above the pipe I was working on, but didn't even look at the one for the tail pipe. I'll be checking it before I drive again.