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I finally got my reactors off, but the muffler shop put the gaskets with built-in heatshields on upside-down. They said they didn't line up right the other way.

I think theyre full of it, but besides this, how important are these heat shields ?

Any harm in not having any heat shields at all?

I'm sorry for all the NOOB questions........

Did you or the Shop source the parts ?

I did! I ordered from bavauto. Could they have got it wrong?
Perhaps the shop was right.......

BUT I honestly think they just messed it up and then told me that the gasket "just fit weird the other way." Apparently one of the guys was there very late, maybe he didn't know what he was doing. I don't know.

So now I have these heat shields under the manifolds.....ridiculous.

I've been doing a little research and it SEEMS, I may be able to get away with using some exhaust wrap, and may even be better off...

I don't know I'm new to all of this. So far the car is not only running again, but running much better after all these small changes mostly thanks to this wonderful site.

I also made a new wiring harness from the fusebox to ignition coil, etc...... It definitely also added a bit of zip to the car that was missing before, and now its starting to feel like a real bmw {i had an 88 735i and a 2000 323i in the past}

You need some sort of shielding there in order not to cook the spark plug cables. I've got to think the shop either didn't understand the shields bent to shape or they just plain screwed up, it's always been pretty damn obvious to me. Mickey Mouse stuff like that is what makes older cars unreliable, get it done right one way or another.

The good part is you can probably just remove and reuse them and the nuts should still come off easily. They did use proper new copperlock nuts didn't they?

no they didn't use the copper nuts.....

I spoke with the guy and told him he has to flip them.

I think his employee just had no clue like you said-
they didn't know that they bent.

I also read something about exhaust tape......
anybody have any experience with this?

I agree with Mike.

Get the shields installed properly and use the copper exhaust nuts. If you can't get them where you are, let me know and I can send you some. They are not cheap, but I can get them locally.

It is too bad that so many shops are willing to do poor quality work.

Blaise wrote:I agree with Mike.

Get the shields installed properly and use the copper exhaust nuts. If you can't get them where you are, let me know and I can send you some. They are not cheap, but I can get them locally.

It is too bad that so many shops are willing to do poor quality work.

I think competency is more of a problem than anything else. Plus everybody wants everything cheap (including me). At the right places at least the copperlocks aren't expensive, .40 ea at Autohaus. Their advantage is they are a locknut (and I have had exhaust fasteners fall off) and they are removable at least the first time, not that big a deal, but again, the sorts of things that make old cars turnkey reliable.

http://www.autohausaz.com/search/produc ... %20Washers

I'm disappointed reading stuff like this, after all, like Mike says, this is the sort of thing that causes problems. Best of luck in getting it sorted.

In the position they're in, they're really not shielding any heat, either, since the actual shield is facing the block (cannot imagine how they could have put the 90° angle in).

Sounds to me like the mechanic is going to get some hell for this comeback.

Mechanic insists that they didn't fit the other way---
Upon closer inspection, they did use copper nuts....

It is possible I ordered the wrong gasket.
I know BMW sometimes flips the way things screw-in......

Maybe I ordered the wrong gasket!!

Where does that leave me?
Pretty much as if I put in those single gaskets without a heat shield.

I guess I'm going to have fashion something to protect my plug wires,
I will try out some exhaust tap on the manifolds and see what comes of it too.

What a pain!

If they went on the studs, I think it's safe to assume you got the right gaskets. I don't know if they guy is trying to put them on backwards, if they already have some bend to them or what, and it's harder to say without being there. But I still think he screwed up.

Make the so-called mechanic install it the right way,,,period!!
There's no reason to try to mickey mouse things because he screwed up.
Good luck,,,,Greg