Hello,

I own Hyundai Santa Fe 2(CM) 2.2 crdi 4x4 155 hp diesel 2007 milage 227.000 km/aprox 142.000 miles which for a Hyundai is high mileage.

I seem to be having exhaust manifold problems/leaks and my car sounds like a tractor,it sometimes leaks a lot of smoke in the engine compartment when I start it and then it seems to go away  make because of metal that it's getting hot and expands or I don't know. I am a non mechanic ,nobody tought me anything but still I decided to take it apart a little bit,the problem is that I started from the top and it seems that there are a bounch of hoses and wires that I don't want to mess with. My question is is my approach good or it can't be done without an car elevator,or from the left wheel passage,how should I approach it cause I seem to be lost and would rather run to a mechanic but unfortunately in my country there are not too many mechanics that know how to handle asian cars,most of europe's cars are german ones especially vw,audi,bmw and mercedes.

Should I try to access from the left wheel passage(as the bottom is blocked by the gear box) or should I bring it to a mechanic? Thank you