Hey everyone, I have a 2007 Outlander. Today I noticed that a piece of the heat shield that I'm assuming was previously above the muffler was dangling next to the muffler and then fell off when touched due to rust at its edges. I am about 500 miles from my home town so I took it to a local place and they looked at it and said not to worry about it because it wasn't really needed. I'm questioning this since I'm assuming it had to have performed some function previously. Does anyone know the purpose of this shield and any ramifications from driving it while the shield is not in place? Thanks for any input.

 

Many have removed it without issue. I've hosed clamped it back in place.

 

How an exhaust heat shield work https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_shield

I cut the heat shield of my 2005 Mitsubishi Outlander to installed the trailer hitch. No problem at all after that

 

Same thing happened with my 2015 ASX at the weekend. Just back from the local Mitsubishi dealership who have removed the shield They said it wasn't necessary and the part where it bolts on was corroded so they couldn't put on a new one. Strange' iIf Mitsubishi thought it necessary to put one on at build then it must have a purpose. Why would any motor manufacturer pay for something not necessary? I'm also concerned that the underside is rusting so much after 4.5 years.


QUOTE=wright100;320822]Hey everyone, I have a 2007 Outlander. Today I noticed that a piece of the heat shield that I'm assuming was previously above the muffler was dangling next to the muffler and then fell off when touched due to rust at its edges. I am about 500 miles from my home town so I took it to a local place and they looked at it and said not to worry about it because it wasn't really needed. I'm questioning this since I'm assuming it had to have performed some function previously. Does anyone know the purpose of this shield and any ramifications from driving it while the shield is not in place? Thanks for any input.[/QUOTE]