sickofitall1113

is there?

-Todd-

Shove a metal pole in it and hollow it out... thats the only way I know how to unclog one.

sickofitall1113

what about an extremely high octane fuel

Dogginator

Higher octane will not help. Why and how badly is it clogged? Was the car running rich or were you burning coolant?

sickofitall1113

ummm yes it is running rich, i could just stick something in there and clean it out

g0tgot

yo uneed a pressure hose and pressure wash that out....its easy if it is bolt on

Dogginator

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sickofitall1113 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ummm yes it is running rich, i could just stick something in there and clean it out</TD></TR></TABLE>

The inside is a fine mesh, ceramic honeycomb with a small amount of platinum on it. Physically cleaning it is going to be difficult if not impossible. The easiest way would be to burn it out, but that would require special equipment.

Have you fixed the rich condition?

sickofitall1113

i thought i did, i got a new evap canister and 02 sensor for the front but after a week the code came back on, p1457, along with a new one, p0420 which is the cat.

Dogginator

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sickofitall1113 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i thought i did, i got a new evap canister and 02 sensor for the front but after a week the code came back on, p1457, along with a new one, p0420 which is the cat.</TD></TR></TABLE>

P0420 could also mean that the secondary O2 sensor is bad. It does not mean that you catalytic converter is necessarily clogged. The catalyst could also not be functioning.

What year is your car? Is it stock? Several years (96-98 if I recall correctly) are under a recall. You may want to contact Acura first. Keep all of your receipts.

grjp1988

have you tried running the car hard on the highway drop it in third at about 70 and let it loose you could probley see black smoke out the back if it is clogged. its good to do once in a while

sickofitall1113

well i know the cat is clogged because i took it off and stared through it and i could barely see any light out the other end. my car is mostly stock. the front o2 is brand new. the rear could be bad but that only tells the computer if the cat is functioning properly. i know the cat isnt because its clogged, therefore i would ASSUME the secondary o2 sensor is functioning correctly

g0tgot

well if you burn it, make sure you dont forget the bamboo skewers and that all original american A1 bbq sauce

Dartanian

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sickofitall1113 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well i know the cat is clogged because i took it off and stared through it and i could barely see any light out the other end. my car is mostly stock. the front o2 is brand new. the rear could be bad but that only tells the computer if the cat is functioning properly. i know the cat isnt because its clogged, therefore i would ASSUME the secondary o2 sensor is functioning correctly</TD></TR></TABLE>

You aren't supposed to see much light out the other side of the catalytic element. I don't think it is clogged.

Now, if you were burning massive amounts of oil, I could see a clogged cat.

Are you throwing a CEL?

sickofitall1113

yea like i said above there is a p1457 code that i thought i took care of when i replaced the evap canister. and p0420 for catalytic malfunction bank one. i could be burning oil im not sure. it runs fine. im getting ok gas milage but not spectacular, im not really sure.

Dogginator

If the catalytic converter was clogged, the fuel economy and power would be significantly reduced. Run the car hard and change that secondary O2 sensor.

sickofitall1113

ok. i have an extra one that i took off the front, i'll try to put that one on for now.

VTECth1s

or if its too much of a hassle, by a new cat

sickofitall1113

i tried that, they sent me the wrong one, for 94-98. told them about it, they havent emailed me back so im screwed on that. if anyone has a stock cat or something that would fit let me know. i have a 99 ls.

VTECth1s

or just a run a test pipe or straight pipe and ditch the entire use of the cat.

INDYGSR

If you do that with the test pipe plan to have that check engine light on for good. I went through this with my 98 GSR. To make a long story short the factory cat replacement is outrageous. I replaced the secondary o2 sensor. Still the light.... Maybe the cat was bad or maybe Acuras standards are a bit to high on the emmissions. Bought a generic high flow cat... still the light Maybe because the high flow was throwing it off.

Found some tutorial on putting some spacers on the 2ndary o2 sensor so it sits higher. That solved my problem for good. That cat light is a PITA

ac_attak

If you run a test pipe, all you need to do to get rid of the check engine light is use an o2 sensor simulator.

sickofitall1113

yea thats what it was pretty much, it was an obx cat/text pipe type thing but they sent me the wrong one. i was gonna do that and the o2 simulator. i almost got the other one to fit on there even though the bolt pattern was wrong. it seemed a lot louder from the front end and i didnt really want that. what did you guys notice about increased noise with a test pipe

mtny

Bump because I have the same issue. P0420. Both sensors are brand new. My Random Tech. cat is about 3-4 months old too.

I'm not running rich and I can't tell a huge difference in the power.

ImportAuto99

How shitty does it sound if you knock out the insides of the cat on a stock exhaust?