loud exhaust noise at 3000 rpm?

Question

hi all, i'm hoping someone has an idea of what is causing a very annoying noise on my car. First off i have a protege 2.0 with a mazdaspeed( oval tip) exhaust. When my engine hits 3000-3500 there is a very loud droning that is making it annoying to drive the car. I've had noises like this before ( last winter) and i thought it was the muffler so i took it off, the noise was still there but not as bad. I was reading through a bunch of posts last night and i was wondering if it could be a heatshield issue or something with the cat. I also have a rattle at startup which also made me think of something heatshield related(since it sounds like really thin metal rattling). has anyone had any issues like this on their car? i'll probably switch back to my stock muffler but that won't really solve the problem. I was thinking that in the spring i would try taking off all the heatshields and see if that helps. any help would be appreciated :)

Answer 1

could be a heat shield that has broken loose or part of the exhaust system is hitting on the frame someplace, just get underneath it and check it out, I had the same noise a few years ago on a car that I had and it was the heat shield above the catalytic converter that had come loose rattling against the converter.

Answer 2

the exhaust heat sheild could be a very good possibility of your noise and if if is not then have someone sit in your car and you look and listen to see if you can hear where it is coming from but being a mechanic that is my opinion

Answer 3

Look at your catalytic converter heat shield, usually thats what rattles

Answer 4

it somewhat is a head gasket, blowing out compression. it may correlate with the valve sound, in my recommendations. Do you spot any variety of ability loss? perhaps get a gauge and verify the cylinders for compression.