Catalytic Converter

[bosanel]

My catalytic converter crapped out on my Toyota Rav4 and I just want to ask you guys a few questions.

Do I need it?
Is it Illegal to not have one?
How hard is it to re-weld one?
Whats the price range for one?
If I do not need it;
How does a vehicle run without one?
What could happen if one is not on a vehicle?

Any other tips are appreciated..

Thank you.

[kylejw]

I know they're illegal to remove in a lot of places, but I'm not sure about here.

'High flow' cats are usually cheaper than regular ones as they generally have less precious metals in them. Thing to keep in mind here is your old cat may be clogged, but if you can find someone who recycles them, they are sometimes worth quite a bit.

A turbo car will run better without one because it can breath better, and a non-turbo car will usually gain power higher up but loose a bit lower down because of the loss in backpressure. The gain higher up is usually more significant than the loss lower down.

*Edit: If you can't find someone locally who buys old ones, These guys (http://www.martin-metals.com/) buy them up, you send a picture and he'll give you a price.

[Kloubek]

Cats are illegal? I never knew that! lol

Actually, the car will not smell like rotten eggs without it. The rotten egg smell you're talking about is actually CAUSED by a dying cat when the sulfur components break down.

1) You're killing the environment without it. That should be reason enough not to forgo the cat.
2) Your car will be louder.
3) Your car may or may not have a little more power.
4) It is technically not legal to have a cat removed. It may require it if it's an older car that needs to be inspected.
5) If it is dying, you cannot just re-weld it.
6) They do cost a fair amount - depends on the vehicle. $150-$500 maybe?
7) If you do choose to weld in a test pipe or straight pipe, it will probably set you back about $50.

[kylejw]

Originally posted by Kloubek

Actually, the car will not smell like rotten eggs without it. The rotten egg smell you're talking about is actually CAUSED by a dying cat when the sulfer components break down.


I was... misinformed

[bosanel]

What kind of price am I looking at? I haven't had a chance to call or go to napa or auto value..

I don't know if I want to go into the shop...

[djayz]

I just had a 2.25" put in at Carline for $260. They moved my resonator back and put a cat in plus gave me a brand new cat so it's not too much.

So depending on pipe size you should be looking at around $200 installed.

[VetteRacin]

Originally posted by Kloubek

4) It is technically not legal to have a cat removed. It may require it if it's an older car that needs to be inspected.
. [/B]

It's perfectly legal to have them removed...AB does not have emissions laws (yet) so the gov't here could careless if a vehicle has a cat or not

Now if your rav has an oxygen sensor after the cat then it would be a bad idea to remove it completely as your car will no longer run right, since the sensor measures the exhaust gases and helps tell the pcm what to do

[CelicaST-162]

What year is your RAV4?

[bosanel]

1998

[DanDB64]

lol i can only imagine the sound of a catless rav4

[bosanel]

Even now it sounds like a high pitch whistle. But that doesnt bother me, it's the barely any power that annoys me...

[VetteRacin]

Originally posted by bosanel
Even now it sounds like a high pitch whistle. But that doesnt bother me, it's the barely any power that annoys me...



no offence meant but it has no power cuz it's a rav, they were not powerhouses by any means when designed

[bosanel]

Thanks for the info. I don't need your opinion on that. I just want the regular no sputter power back.

But thanks for the very selfish answer anyways.

[Kloubek]

Originally posted by VetteRacin


It's perfectly legal to have them removed...AB does not have emissions laws (yet) so the gov't here could...

Perhaps *I* stand corrected then! :) I just looked and could not find anything to indicate that they are even "technically" legal to have removed, and really the only info I could find supporting that was on a 4X4 forum.. and... well....

I'm going to blame it on being from BC. Where, even though there is no emissions test in smaller areas like Kamloops, it is illegal to remove a cat and replace with a test pipe. (Though I still had the biggest shop in town willing to do it on my 91 z28 back in the day. It DID sound badass after that; almost like headers. :) But that was a 305 V8... not a 4-banger. lol

PS: OP: If you want people to give you advice, it's best not to lip them off when they never really said anything that bad, and preceeded it with a notice of not trying to be offensive. He was simply stating a fact. Cry somewhere else.

[bosanel]

i just looked online it looks like they range from 180 to 300+ dollars, but i do still need someone with a welder to weld it on for me....

otherwise it seems im paying 4 hours at the shop i go to...

[rc2002]

If you buy an OEM cat and your bolts aren't too badly rusted, you could just unbolt your old one and bolt in your new one, no welder needed.

4 hours to change a cat is ridiculous. It should be 1 hour (maybe 1.5) even if you have to cut out your old one and reweld a new one in.

One more thing that hasn't been mentioned - If you decide not to run with one you will probably trip your O2 sensor CEL since your 98 is OBD2.

[bosanel]

Im planning on replacing it for sure, I just don't know if it comes with any piping or is it just the piece itself?

http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z246/bosanel/cat2.jpg

OR

http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z246/bosanel/cat1.jpg

Because if its like the second image states, mine doesnt have the bolts, mine is directly welded on.

[VetteRacin]

If you want when there's daylight out just take a quick look underneath the rav, that way you will know for sure whether or not it will be direct bolt in or welded