Catalytic Converter

[alexm]

Not sure if this is the right section but anyways..

It seems my catalytic converter is giving up. When im idling, the car splutters and moans like theres no tomorrow.

I went to renault today just to ask how much a new 1 would cost. The answer i got was somewhere in the region of £760. Which is ridiculous.

So iv been searching online and have found an aftermarket 1 for around £170 delivered with a 2 year guarentee.

Thing is, it looks alot different to the renault 1 which has 2 tubeular looking parts to it, where as the aftermarket 1 looks to just have 1 rectangular part in its place.

So my question is: will there be a noticeable loss of power if any, with this perticular Cat ?

Thanks, Alex.

 

[mattjk]

are you sure its the cat, what have you done to come to that conclusion?

 

[alexm]

Took it to the garage that does all the work to my car. Mechanic seems 100% sure its the cat. Iv already had the exhaust replaced, so makes sense the Cat would be the next thing to go faulty

 

[Jamesstone]

Unless the guy who fitted the exhaust did a shite job & its blowing & now wants to bill you to take the cat out?? i have never been able to tell if a cat is blown & i have owned a few motors.. signs like a very strong smell of petrol & emissions lights usally point in the direction but 99% of the times its only picked up when you go for an MOT.... & its fails

 

[Lagerlout]

You can buy a brand new sports cat for abour £250 iirc. Would be the best bet imho.

 

[alexm]

deffinately isnt a blowing exhaust. it sounds as if its coming from the cat.
The mechanic is a family friend aswel. he said its not going to effect the emissions test, but its just noisy.

my friend who works for honda racing thinks its the baffles (whatever they r) in the cat aswel.

usually with sports cats u hav to goto the garage that supplies them to get them to fit them right?

i looked at getting a "zorst" cat, but they said i had to goto their garage for them to fit. which is miles away from me.

 

[john182rs]

get a decat pipe...
yea the £760 is abit ott i think.
Ill call some one tomorrow an see if he still has his old cat for sale as he's had a sports one from milltek fitted. Unless my milltek cat comes soon then ill sell you my old one which renault replaced about 6k ago.

 

[alexm]

with a decat u hav to go thru the hassle of getting a cat fitted every time u hav an MoT.

 

[Mark One]

Be aware the a Ph1 172 has a different style cat to a Phase 2. The Phase 1 has two cylindrical cats side my side and the Ph2 has one small normal shaped cat.

I know I say this to everyone, but I would say that your lambda sensor could be at fault tbh (this can also cause poor MPG and bad emissions which lead to a new cat being required).
Signs of lambda are bad Idle and sometimes a dead spot when using small amounts of throttle when engine is cold.

Get a decat pipe if you can find a bent MOT. Great short term fix.

 

[alexm]

its not just a bad idle. it really rattles badly. and also if i put my foot down, the noise after 5k revs is not too good at all i tell thee!