cat converter is cloged?

Question

is their anything that i can just put in its place for now becuase i donot have the money to buy a new one and have them put it on. and i do not have a welder. so is their anything that i can jsut cut it of and clamp into place for now

Answer 1

sorry your CAT is not blocked,i guess its just past its use by date,as it collect more and more things the center starts to brake down and can not collect all the bad gases..you CAN not take this out as will increase fuel consumption as all new engines run on heat and fuel for getting MPG...you take out one link and you screwed...to your feet....just take it one step at a time...and get it sorted..and if you not got money to run the car- !!why?? as more in life than a car...

Answer 2

You have another serious issue with your car. A catalytic converter should last the life of the car. When they fail, it is usually because of something else.

Common causes
Severe lean or rich fuel air mixture.
Severe mis-fire or dead cylinder
Coolant going through the combustion chamber
Excessive oil burning

Are you certain that the problem is with the catalytic converter, or did someone just guess that this is the problem. What did they do to diagnose the problem. They test by drilling a small hole in the exhaust pipe between the exhaust manifold and the catalytic converter. They connect a special pressure gage and measure the back pressure. If the catalytic converter is bad, the gage will read above the manufacturers recommendations.

If you don't know for sure, you may end up cutting off a good catalytic converter and still have problems.

You could cut it off with a hack saw and install a piece of flex pipe with muffler clamps. Be sure to leave enough pipe to install a new catalytic converter when the time comes. This will be a temporary fix. The diameter of the flex pipe varies by manufacturer make and model. You will need to replace the flex pipe within a year. This temporary repair should cost about $15. But you really need to have it correctly repaired when you have the money.

Answer 3

There's more than one way to skin - gut a "cat." There's no law that says you can't render it useless by driving a punch through the ceramic honeycomb material and bolting back into place if you cant afford a new one.
Go on-line and search autopartswarehouse.com and Dyno Max for a less expensive replacement.
In NY at inspection time the only cares that get tubed are 98 an newer. They rarely even check to see weather it's there.

Answer 4

If your cat is indeed clogged, you can simply cut out the cat and replace it with a piece of exaust pipe. However, this practice is illegal and you may fail your state somg check (definetly in CA). But are you positive that the cat is clogged? It could be a faulty EGR valve. The check engine light is probably on. Get a scan tool and extract the codes from the OBD to aid in troubleshooting. It would suck to get a new cat and to have that not be the problem.

Answer 5

First, as others have noted, it is illegal to do that, but the important thing is what year is the vehicle and how many miles are on it. The cat system is required by Federal law to have a longer warranty than most of the rest of the car and unless you check your owners manual and accompanying paperwork, you won't know if a dishonest shop is trying to take you for a ride! If it IS still covered you take it to the dealer and they HAVE to replace it for free under warranty.

Answer 6

there is not a lot you can do with this situation, the cat needs to be replaced, legally your not supposed to remove it however the cheapest temporary solution is to cut it out with a sawzall if you have one available to you and replace it with a piece of flex pipe similar to a dryer vent only sturdier this is available at most parts stores and secure it in place with 2 clamps its best to have the exhaust pipe diameter. remeber this would only be a temporary fix and should not remain in place for an extended amouint of time. one last thought, if you continue to drive the vehicle with the clogged cat converter you run the risk of it over heating due to poor flow and ignite into flames all the heat from the engine exhaust is concentrated at that specific spot.

Answer 7

You can remove it and put in a straight pipe from Advance Auto with clamps. Then you'll never have to replace it and you'll get better gas mileage

*Edit* I'd like to see any cop get underneath a car and even point out where the catty should be. ROFL. You'll be fine, the only thing is if you live where you have to get SMOG checks, so if you don't know what those are you'll be fine.

Answer 8

They USED to sell what was called a (test-tube) but I think when they found out so many people were LEAVING them in place instead of replacing their covertor, they QUIT carrying them. It clearly stated NOT TO BE USED for replacement of convertor. Won't pass inspections !! It's illegal.

Answer 9

http://www.car-stuff.com/catalyticconverter.htm

Cats. are NOT expensive. The shops get rich off of replacing them. Get yours here and get it welded on at an honest shop.

Answer 10

it is illegal to remove them, unless you had a friend to cut it off and replace with pipe. still illegal though