Help! Catalytic converter content.
#1
12-12-2009 | 12:40 AM
Thread Starter
|
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 2
Help! Catalytic converter content.
Hello all!
Okay, so my mom's 2004 Mazda Tribute (3.0 24v Automatic 2wd) has a problem. The Idle Air Control Valve went bad in the past few months. This caused the engine to run at higher RPM (1,500-3,000 at times, then finally staying at 4,000 at some times.) and temperatures of the exhaust went up, I'm told. They had it replaced, and thought it was fine.
I'm told the catalytic converter overheated and turned cherry red due to the bad IACV and the strain put on the engine. The Cat ended up going bad and getting clogged. This caused the EGR valve to burst. Pic below and more detailed info also.
So, my problem is, the catalytic converter is bad. There are three of them on this vehicle. one coming off each exhaust manifold and one right after the y where they meet. They called the dealer, it's a $1,200 part. What do you guys suggest? Does anyone know of a way around this $1,200 "Dealer only" part? I think that's sorta on the crazy side. Any help is appreciated!
p4c
Never seen anything like that before. I'm glad it blew the EGR instead of raising the compression..
People on a local forum were no help at all. They kept trying to say my family's ASE Certified Master Technician doesn't know what he's doing and he's trying to get over on us.
My family trusts him, with their vehicles.
I should probably say we live in the middle of nowhere, so we drive a lottt.
The whole thing started when my mom got gas. The CEL came on, then turned off. Turned on again within another hour of driving stayed on for about another 20 minutes and when she got home and turned the truck off it went away. I told my parents to take it to the parts store and have them scan it and see if it was throwing a code. Nothing, no code.
Later on it started to rev high at times. Then it would turn off. CEL came on and stayed on. Threw a code P0401-EGR flow insufficient. It stopped revving high so my parents just kept driving it. About a month later it started to idle at 1,500 to 2,000 RPM. My parents couldn't get it into the shop for about 2 weeks and you need extra arms and legs to take it to the dealer. So, they just drove it. Finally it was idling at 4,000 RPM
and they got it into the shop. The shop determined that a spring was broken in the Idle air control valve and the IACV needed to be replaced along with a few vacuum line o-rings. They said when they started it and let it run the catalytic converter would turn cherry red. After the shop replaced the IACV everything seemed fine. The vehicle ran like it did when we first bought it. Everything's fine right? A week after we got it back, at the most it rained really badly. I went to pick my mom up from work and on the way home I hit a big puddle of water. It ran fine got home parked it and it sat for a day because it rained so badly, no one drove it. So, 2 days later my dad went to take my mom to work and the truck had a miss and it wouldn't accelerate well. My dad drove it a little ways (about 14 miles round trip) and they let it sit a few days and my dad drove it to work. I met him and we went on an hour drive to run errands one night. It didn't accelerate well and had a bad miss, worse than before. On the way home *Ping* it started running better. We heard a hissing he popped the hood and I looked, The EGR blew the chunk off. No CEL or anything.
Our technician has determined that this was due to one of the catalytic converters going bad. We had the 3rd one replaced already. We need to replace the one that are on the exhaust manifolds now. They're saying it will be $1,200 from the dealer.
I think that's pretty insane. Does anyone know where to get them cheaper.
I'm sorry if any of what I said may seem confusing to you. Please ask me any questions that you may have. I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Questions keep me thinking.
Okay, so my mom's 2004 Mazda Tribute (3.0 24v Automatic 2wd) has a problem. The Idle Air Control Valve went bad in the past few months. This caused the engine to run at higher RPM (1,500-3,000 at times, then finally staying at 4,000 at some times.) and temperatures of the exhaust went up, I'm told. They had it replaced, and thought it was fine.
I'm told the catalytic converter overheated and turned cherry red due to the bad IACV and the strain put on the engine. The Cat ended up going bad and getting clogged. This caused the EGR valve to burst. Pic below and more detailed info also.
So, my problem is, the catalytic converter is bad. There are three of them on this vehicle. one coming off each exhaust manifold and one right after the y where they meet. They called the dealer, it's a $1,200 part. What do you guys suggest? Does anyone know of a way around this $1,200 "Dealer only" part? I think that's sorta on the crazy side. Any help is appreciated!
p4c
Never seen anything like that before. I'm glad it blew the EGR instead of raising the compression..
People on a local forum were no help at all. They kept trying to say my family's ASE Certified Master Technician doesn't know what he's doing and he's trying to get over on us.
My family trusts him, with their vehicles.
I should probably say we live in the middle of nowhere, so we drive a lottt.
The whole thing started when my mom got gas. The CEL came on, then turned off. Turned on again within another hour of driving stayed on for about another 20 minutes and when she got home and turned the truck off it went away. I told my parents to take it to the parts store and have them scan it and see if it was throwing a code. Nothing, no code.
Later on it started to rev high at times. Then it would turn off. CEL came on and stayed on. Threw a code P0401-EGR flow insufficient. It stopped revving high so my parents just kept driving it. About a month later it started to idle at 1,500 to 2,000 RPM. My parents couldn't get it into the shop for about 2 weeks and you need extra arms and legs to take it to the dealer. So, they just drove it. Finally it was idling at 4,000 RPM
and they got it into the shop. The shop determined that a spring was broken in the Idle air control valve and the IACV needed to be replaced along with a few vacuum line o-rings. They said when they started it and let it run the catalytic converter would turn cherry red. After the shop replaced the IACV everything seemed fine. The vehicle ran like it did when we first bought it. Everything's fine right? A week after we got it back, at the most it rained really badly. I went to pick my mom up from work and on the way home I hit a big puddle of water. It ran fine got home parked it and it sat for a day because it rained so badly, no one drove it. So, 2 days later my dad went to take my mom to work and the truck had a miss and it wouldn't accelerate well. My dad drove it a little ways (about 14 miles round trip) and they let it sit a few days and my dad drove it to work. I met him and we went on an hour drive to run errands one night. It didn't accelerate well and had a bad miss, worse than before. On the way home *Ping* it started running better. We heard a hissing he popped the hood and I looked, The EGR blew the chunk off. No CEL or anything.
Our technician has determined that this was due to one of the catalytic converters going bad. We had the 3rd one replaced already. We need to replace the one that are on the exhaust manifolds now. They're saying it will be $1,200 from the dealer.
I think that's pretty insane. Does anyone know where to get them cheaper.
I'm sorry if any of what I said may seem confusing to you. Please ask me any questions that you may have. I'm trying to figure out what's going on. Questions keep me thinking.
#2
12-18-2009 | 02:13 PM
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 22
get 3 universal mangaflows for $66 a piece have a mechanic weld them in for 75 in labor walla legal and cheap!
http://magnaflowcatalyticconverter.allexhaust.com
good luck
http://magnaflowcatalyticconverter.allexhaust.com
good luck
#3
05-21-2010 | 01:50 PM
Junior Member
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 6
I have a 01 tribute v6 3.0 and it has gotton really bad on fuel i get about 270 to 300 km per tank of fuel now my engine light is on with the code p0430 but i couple of years ago i had the catalytic converter cut off because it was pluged up and everything was fine untill a couple of weeks ago my light came on and it is really really bad on fuel does anyone know what i could do to get my milage back to where it should be
please help me
please help me
#6
10-25-2011 | 09:54 AM
Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 2
Check NAPA online for the part. I took my car to AMMCO in town and was told my catalytic converter was going bad. I was getting bad gas mileage and the car just had no get up. was horrible getting up to speed and going uphill. finally on my way back from georgia last night, it went completly out and now my car wont go over 20mph. AMMCO and my local amzda dealer *who I refuse to go to at all since i had bad service on my honda and they are owned by the same people* all said $800 for a new front converter on my 2005 mazda tribute i, 2.3L I4 engine. Looked on napa today and they had 2 that would fit, and universal which would need to be modified and welded, and a direct fit. universal was 149$, direct fit was 249$.
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