[Tfrazier]

Hi all,

Hope everyone is having a fabulous 4th of July weekend. 
While traveling on I-26 from Columbia, SC to Hendersonville, NC, I lost my exhaust tip and about a foot or so of the exhaust pipe. My wife kept telling me that she was hearing some sort of noise coming from the back of the coach but since I didn't hear anything, I just kept on going (dumb). Anyway, a little while later, I was looking at my outside mirror and saw something flying come out from underneath the Toad. I stopped and walked around the coach but didn't notice anything missing. We only had about 10 more miles to the campground, so we got back in and kept going. I assumed I picked up something on the highway and was dragging under the toad for a while (apparently, that strange sound my wife was hearing). Anyway, we got to the campground and while unhooking the toad, I noticed that my exhaust tail piece was no longer there.  We jumped in the car and drove back to where I saw the flying object (actually we had to go about 5 miles south of the spot to find an exit). Fast forward, no luck whatsoever. Looked and looked, pulled over several times for false alarms.

I am heading back to Columbia on Tuesday and have about a 2.5 hour drive. 

Questions:

What, if any risks do I have driving without the tail piece? 
Should I be concerned about the exhaust heat going back up in the engine compartment and causing the engine to run hotter? 
Could the additional heat on the fiberglass rear cap cause it to catch on fire?

Below is a picture of what the tail piece looks like on my '92. Does anyone know if Newell will still have these available or am I looking at having to get one fabricated? I plan to call Newell on Tuesady but thought I would ask you guys as well.