Cry0

My honeycomb is broken, they started clanking around the other day and a friend scared me by saying that the broken pieces can clog your cat and damage your engine.

I had my car towed to a GM dealer because the SES light had been on and as i posted in another thread the other day the 02 sensor was shot, so i assumed that clogged that cats and caused them to break up. They were supposed to be under warranty but apparently the entire 10yr/120,000 mile warranty is completly void if there is any visable dents to the cat. So i am SoL and out $135 for their "diagnostic" consisting of looking at the cat and going "no."

Was wondering if there could be more damage caused by this or if it would be ok to drive on. I wanted to get headers/duals but i am moving and am going to have to register/smog in a new state so i am probably going to just try to get a new cat put on at a smog shop or get the broken one gutted.

Anyone have any advice it is much appreciated. My head is about to explode with the problems iv been having and ontop of that i have my dad going "i told you to get a honda." every time something else goes wrong with the car.

If i can get a cheap fix i could move then try to buy a cheap used cat and put it on myself assuming its a simple bolt job.

dimedsbc

iTrader: (2)

Cry0

I hate cats, both the animal and the car part.

OMGWTFBODY

iTrader: (5)

Any ideas about fixing or modding the car are null and void, since you are in the Socialist Republik of Kalifornia. Looks like you get to eat the cost of dealer cats, or at least factory replacement parts, unless you can get a muffler guy to weld in a new set.

Buy a stock catted y on here...

NHRAMAN

iTrader: (1)

Cry0

My last day of work is the 16th and im moving to colorado the next week lol.

That is why im pissed, all i had to do was last a week, get to colorado, get smogged then i could cut off the cats and throw them in a ditch.

I think im just going to call an exhaust shop and see what they can do for cheap, i just want something done so i can get to colorado. Once there i got a month to fix it before i have to smog. I figure i can shop around for some used cats and install them myself or pay a shop there.

Big question is will the broken up cats break ****? I read other people saying that they had them clunk around for a while then the pieces supposivly broke up and fell out. Other people said there was some sort of screen that kept the **** rattling around inside.

My friend said they could get sucked inside the engine but i do not see how the exhaust could suck the broken pieces into the engine when the air would be flowing the opposite direction but i dont want surprises lol.

usaf_hess

iTrader: (8)

if your "cats" are broken(meaning the inner material is cracked and or crumbeling) then it could restrict the flow through them and cause serious back pressure and heat in the cat. the heat could melt it into a solid piece and then cause a block in the flow and damage your engine pretty bad. FIX it.

Cry0

Ok thats what i figured, thanks. Clanking sounds are never good.

Joshiedoom

iTrader: (4)

You can probably find some real cheap *** catted y's on here and once you pass smog then you can sell them and get your headers. Do they use a sniffer? Visual Inspect? or do OBD2?

Cry0

I have heard different things but i belive they do a full smog test when you first register but after that you do not have to get smogged again if your not in the denver area. I was just looking at classified section and that looks like what i am going to do. The big problem is just getting a quick fix so i can get my car to colorado and have a chance to breath and figure out what to buy to smog it. Hopefully i can get the cat gutted or something so the car will drive without blowing up.

Cry0

Will hopefully be a good learning experience.. one of my goals for the future is learning more about car mechanics so i can stop paying other people to do things that are feasable to do yourself.

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

That's a far-fetched scenario. I had an aftermarket cat break up on me. The disintegrating honeycomb caused a clinking sound in the exhaust for a while before it all blew out. When I replaced it, the old one was in good shape internally, except that 1/3 of it had gone bye-bye.

Cry0

Well with my luck something like that would happen. Seems every time i let alittle problem go while i try to figure out the best way to deal with it something else happens. This was a bad o2 that turned into a broken up cat. Before it was a dirty MAF that turned into a nasty misfire.

Im just glad that i can pick it up and drive it to a place to get the work done and not have to get it towed around.

How hard are the stock cats to remove?

Joshiedoom

iTrader: (4)

BTW your rear 02s are there to monitor your cats. Your 02 problem is your cats themselfs.

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

Pain. Usually the bolts are rusted bad and have to be cut off. I had mine replaced under warranty and the service manager was telling me how difficult it was to get them off.

Cry0

The o2 problem was diagnosed by a shop that said they tested all 4 and the rear passenger side is dead. I didnt think about it untill now but i did bottom out on a speed bump leaving the gym the other day which is the only thing i could think of that could have damaged my cats. Apparently they have a visable ding in them so the dealer said the warranty is void. I was all happy thinking ok they broke apart, great i get new ones before i move and need to get smogged.. wrong. Instead i get a 135$ diagnosis bill, broken cats, broken o2 and a gm warranty that is void if your cats are scratched.

Pissy thing is that the SES light was on about 2 weeks ago so i really really really doubt the bottoming out had anything to do with the cats being bad, if it actualy was what dinged the cat they probably just put a crack in an already clogged up broken cat.

mglooper

iTrader: (5)

you will be fine. my cats just blew out my exhaust or at least what was left of them from me gutting them. figure out how they test in Colorado and go from there

CRAGER

I believe the cats are covered by GM until 8 years / 80k miles. Look into that, but also if / when you go into GM service dept don't let them charge you anything. o2 senors are not covered.

Worse comes to worse, take them off....punch through the cats....and get o2 simms.

Peace,
Craig.

Cry0

they charge a flat fee of $135 for diagnostic. If your cats are not visably dented/banged up then they are covered by the warranty. 10 yr 120k mile. Problem is damage from bottoming out or whatever else could happen can void warranty. They are telling me that the warranty is voided because there is a dent on one of the cats. I think thats a lame excuse to get out of a warranty but i understand the logic. They dont want to have to replace a cat that someone floored over a speed bump and crushed under a "defective part warranty." At the same time it sucks because i treat my car well and any dent on the cat was done well over a year ago before i had the car. They told me they cannot send in a cat under warranty if its dented, and i called customer service line for GM and they told me that it is the dealers descretion weather or not the part can be returned under warranty. So its a dumb situation because you have the service center, who stands to gain more by saying the warranty doesnt cover the damage judging weather or not it is covered by the warranty. The phone call basicaly went like this "ya there is a dent in the cat so it isnt covered by warranty, but we can replace the cat and the rear o2s for you for $800." (aka, you dont get a free part but we would be happy to sell you 3 parts marked up 100% + 3 hours labor for 1 hour work!)

Was a buzz kill because i was happy thinking this would work out well then i find out a simple road wear and tear dent means that i supposivly do not drive my car well and my warranty is void. great.

CRAGER

Sorry to hear about all this BS, sounds like a circus.

Who is this 10yr / 120k mile warranty through? Because if you're speaking of an aftermarket warranty division you can bypass them. Like I mentioned in my earlier post GM covers cats until 8yr / 80k miles. Your car is under 8yr and I would guess under 80k.

Now if you can try to make the GM dealership listen tell them you have scanned (did a diagnostic check) it already and it shows your cat is bad. If they do not wish to work this out ask for the number of the regional manager. Also try another dealership.

Again if all this still fails you can just punch them out and slap o2 simms on there and you're set. Or you can scope the F/S sections for stock cats. They used to be pretty much given away until the metal inside become valuable, so you might have a tough time there. If you have an LS1 aftermarket shop near you call them up and ask if they have any cats laying around that they want to sell.

But the easiest / cheapest way is to punch them cats out and slap o2 simms on. Used o2 simms can be found for around $40 in the F/S section.

Peace,
Craig.