I have a 2008. Brief: broken muffler mount point (looks rusted), looking for action steps with that and if it's salvageable. Also a broken wire on driver's side of muffler, need help with that. Lastly, error codes (p0449 + others).

Previously, the connector/gasket on the exhaust pipe between the front and rear broke, and no autoshop would fix it because the chassis had a bit of rust they didn't like. So I fixed it myself with bolts and and new flange. I think that is still fine, but stating it for context.

More context: my car wouldn't start when it was cold. I jump started, still drove it, and eventually had to put it on a charger at home. Now the battery is fine, but still getting errors. I did run it for a while at home, and it actually died while the vehicle was running and wouldn't release the key. I'm assuming this may be related to the evap solenoid, which I'll describe below. After charging the battery, I tried starting again, and it struggled. I cleared codes, tried again, it started, and it sounded like fluid moving through the dash. Maybe all of this is normal with the evap solenoid or with the purge valve, but adding it all to give a well-rounded picture.

Big issue: muffler mounting point sheared off. The muffler looks like it is directly mounted to the frame of the car. Or at least wherever it mounts has rusted enough that the muffler is tangling with a piece of what looks to be the end of the frame. Can anyone who knows more about the car help me out with if I can do anything about this? I'd like to keep the car, but I feel like if I take it to an auto shop, they'll just recommend scrapping it. I am a mechanical eng, and so I always think there's a way. But it's cold here, I don't have a lift to put it on and see what can be done, so posting here to get help before really attacking it.

With the muffler hanging on by barely anything, there's also a wire dangling, and I'm getting a p0449 error. The wires I'm seeing are black and brown, and they look solid. It's on the driver's side of the muffler, just dangling there. I need to mess around more to trace it, but it's been cold and snowy here. Google says it's the evap solenoid, and so maybe the wires are for that? That would make the most sense.

I'll try to get pictures to help more. Like I said, cold and snowy, and don't have a lift or an indoor garage to help. Posting the error page from the OBD2 in case that helps kickstart something.


Torque errors and their codes

That's a lot. Hopefully it's good context for someone and not overwhelming. I'd like to fix the muffler if I can, figure out what the wire goes to / figure out how to go about doing that, and also address the error codes.

 

Muffler hanger bracket is available on Amazon, I used an 1 1/2 clamp hanger

the codes are related to the broken wire, if it’s from the chassis harness to the O2 sensor, replace the sensor.
the battery may have charged but it’s not holding a charge, you should see 12.5 volts or more , if not time for a new battery
that P0102 code tells me you didn’t reconnect the MAF sensor

 

This style hanger works

https://a.co/d/eV7Jilz

 

Agree that battery or charging system has an issue. Possibly Serpentine Belt and tensioner need replacement.

 

Thanks for the thoughts, everyone! Update: the wire turned out to be the little red light on the bumper. Apparently that's been missing. Not sure for how long, but there is no bulb there anymore, nor a socket for it. Just wires.

I bought the hanger mentioned above for the exhaust pipe. Might have been a little big, but it seems to at least hold the pipe for now. Turns out three of the hangers broke, and one might not be salvageable (the one hanging the muffler). From what I gather, the muffler had a hanger going to a second hanger that attached to the frame. Well the mount point sheared off, and now it's floating there with a giant chunk of metal, and the muffler and it's tailpipe are more or less held on by only a couple of hangers.

The exhaust pipe also had a hole in it by the rear wheel, which is why I would see exhaust coming from there. Patched that up with foil tape for now, hopefully something better later on?

The car starts now, as I've been charging it. I'm hoping it was just the battery and the cold, and that we are off again now. And maybe it didn't like the hole in the exhaust pipe.

I did try removing the bumper, and it's in rough shape. The metal part is mostly rusted off, and the plastic is held on by the two 10mm bolts. So much rust..... I know winters here in Michigan's UP aren't nice to cars, but dang.... This looks terrible. No wonder no one will take it in. I just wish there was someone willing to take it in and help me despite it's condition, but most shops refuse. If I get a bigger issue down the road, I'm likely up a ladder with no way down.