Time for a new CAT?

[andrewclaus]

I've been chasing an exhaust leak in my '07 Base Vibe, with 233K miles, for a couple of years. I found the flange at the joint with the manifold was badly corroded, and the only way to reasonably fix that was to replace the pipe with the two CATs back to the resonator. Instead, I tried repairing the flange with exhaust cement, with limited success. The last couple of drives, I could hear some exhaust noise from under the hood when the engine is cold. Then yesterday it threw a P0420 code.

So now it's time to just replace the CATs and take care of that leak at the same time. I was surprised at the low cost, starting from under $100, about $200 from Rock Auto, for a non-CARB part. This sounds too good to be true, but if it lasts another couple of years (I drive about 5K miles/year), it'll be worth it to me. I don't expect to resell the car, and I've never heard of a CAT inspection in Colorado. I can do the work myself quickly and easily.

Anyone have a bad experience with a low cost, non-CARB CAT? I will pay for the better of the cheap stuff, if that makes any sense.

[jolt]

OEM catalytic converters are warrantied for 50,000 miles, and that may have been changed to 80,000 miles, as required by the Federal Government and the EPA. This does not apply to aftermarket converters unless you live in a state that is CARB compliant. That is why the aftermarket converter is so much cheaper then the OEM and CARB converters; they do not have the same amount of expensive convertor material in them. They do not have to last as long and are made cheaper as a result. They generally do not and can not convert emission gases as well as a OEM converter does. Most repair shops will not install them because of issues with not meeting emission standards like a OEM converter will, and possible come backs form early failures of emissions.

From what I have read about the PO420 code on Toyota’s, it is a big problem if a OEM converter is not used. Toyota’s seem to be highly sensitive to the converter and this fault code. I have seen articles of people that have replaced their converter, only to have the fault code come back a few weeks later.

There are a few work a round’s, that are illegal, to trick the code off. Converters do wear down over time. Think of the material in a converter as being like a battery with their chemical reaction. A small converter is like a small battery; undersized for the job and will wear down quickly.

That being said, I did replace a converter on a 1996 Dodge Ram may years ago with a aftermarket non-CARB convertor. It worked fine, but a ‘96 Ram pickup is not a ‘07 Toyota.