Does this cat look healthy?

[david]

Hi,

Ford Escort 1997 sedan.
Wanted to input from more experienced ppl. this is first time for me looking at a catalytic converter.

another angle but prolly not as clear.

Basically, want to confirm that my catalytic converter is not causing exhaust blockage causing low power/no power during acceleration problems.

Thanks for your read/time/any replies.

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• IMAG0523.jpg
• IMAG0522.jpg

Topic

[Bill]

It’s real hard to tell from your pics only that the inlet part of the converter is not melted or plugged. You should be able to see light on the outlet side while peering into the inlet side at several slight angles. It should not rattle inside when you shake it.

If you can see through it, it’s likely not plugged. If you can’t see through it or has areas that you can’t see light through then it should be suspect.

[david]

[quote=”wysetech” post=100976]It’s real hard to tell from your pics only that the inlet part of the converter is not melted or plugged. You should be able to see light on the outlet side while peering into the inlet side at several slight angles. It should not rattle inside when you shake it.

If you can see through it, it’s likely not plugged. If you can’t see through it or has areas that you can’t see light through then it should be suspect.[/quote]

Hello wysetech,
Well . ..
1. cannot remove the cat and length of exhaust piping to the resonator without removing a cross member and i was not sure if the cross member was under tension on the ground/in the air/need light tension/ what-not, so i did not remove the cat completely. i just unbolted manifold junction and resonator junction to have enough room to get my cell phone camera in there to take some pics
2. even if i could remove it, seriously doubt i can get light through to the cat from the exhaust side, there is bend in the piping.
here is pic from back end.

i guess it is possible that some illumination would get through for me to do the light test. maybe flashlight and get some reflection or something.

3. the ware looks really uniform to me except for that small area on the right side toward the edge and that one line at the bottom. And hoping that was enough to verify it should be ok.

my car barely does its low power/no power symptom since i had unbolted cat from the exhaust manifold and driven it a few times.
then i did this to see if i have a blocked cat and now, looks like it may be further down the exhaust if there is blockage.

i have now re-bolted back the cat and just did removal of the downstream O2 sensor. i feel that the symptom has come back more – but still much more driveable than with the O2 sensor in.
Im very sure this is exhaust-related.

My symptoms being:
– intermittent
– only under load
– step on gas, sometimes accelerates fine, sometimes not
– rarely if ever would drop dead at idle, would only possibly drop dead during strong deceleration (so i think it’s not idle, cuz i can idle all day and would not really show up)
– if/once i get to WOT (high rpm’s), would stay there and symptoms would not suddenly show up during WOT

basically, the banana in the tail pipe syndrome -ish.
however, has begun to show up more frequently, meaning that in the beginning of all of this, would not really have problems during idle. now, sometimes, rougher? but car does not die out.
But the diagnosis/subsequent actions already taken should be for another thread.
This is just merely trying to verify that the cat is or is not “broken”.
Seen other pics of bad catalytic converters and this one doesn’t appear in the pics to be bad but wanted some opinions.

hmmm, i just thought of something kinda new while writing this.

Thank you for your time/reply.

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• IMAG0533.jpg

[Bill]

Ninety Nine percent of the time when the cat is plugged it stays plugged so to be intermittent is very unlikely. That said I have seen the opposite when chunks of substrate move around and plug the inlet or outlet but they usually rattle like hell.

[david]

[quote=”wysetech” post=100987]Ninety Nine percent of the time when the cat is plugged it stays plugged so to be intermittent is very unlikely. That said I have seen the opposite when chunks of substrate move around and plug the inlet or outlet but they usually rattle like hell.[/quote]

i never was able to completely remove the catalytic and the attached piping. i did turn it around as much as i could and tried for quite some time to see if i can somehow sneak it past the crossmember. during this time, did not hear any errant rattle coming from the cat.

thanks for your input.

[Austin]

do it the easy way and put a psi gauge infront of it. You can buy them on amazon for about 30 bucks. or you can make your own, instructions easy to find as well, drill a hole infront of the cat and put a needle inside connected to a psi gauge, or you can buy the kit and you unscrew your oxygen sensor, screw in the gauge, start your car and wham the gas to like 3k rpm for a second and then drop, if you see a jump in psi then you know its a restricted cat, or something restricted down the line.

[EricTheCarGuy]

If you suspect an exhaust restriction this is the easiest way to check for it.

Also, don’t assume it’s the cat if you do find you have an exhaust leak. Additional information on solving performance problems here.

http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-performance-issues

Good luck and keep us posted.

[david]

Hi ETCG,

this will be like the 5th time i’ve watched this video, maybe more – no lie.
i do not have gauge at the moment. have been contemplating getting one for some time.

Believe Wysetech is right in above and telling me to do a light test on the cat.
prolly sneak a small flashlight up the back end.

This was just an inquiry for a visual of the catalytic converter.
If someone is really experienced at looking, was hoping they could tell me what they see.
i.e. them holes are too small, got too much buildup on the right side, wrong color, ….

up til now, no direct answer on how the cat looks. i guess, maybe looks are really deceiving when it comes to cats (both mechanical cats and fleshy cats). hah.

symptom: intermittent no power/low power acceleration, only while car is under load.

test 1
drove car around with the cat unbolted from the exhaust manifold.
no occurrences of my symptom.

test 2
bolted all back together and removed just the back O2 sensor and drove around.
i get my symptom very seldomly and with much less severity and very briefly (like a hiccup)
if it happens at all.

Anyhow, this thread was a visual check on the cat and without one direct answer yet, i’ll probably have to unbolt and remove and sneak in a flashlight.

Thank you all for your time/replies.

[EricTheCarGuy]

Misfires and lack of power under load is usually ignition related. More info here.

http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-performance-issues

A vacuum gauge will set you back about $20. It’s a good tool to have in the box as it can tell you a great deal about how an engine is performing.

http://www.jbtoolsales.com/electronic-specialties-701-pro-vacuum-gauge/#oid=1002_1

[Lorrin Barth]

I’d say if the engine isn’t using a lot of oil and the O2 sensor behind the cat is happy the cat is healthy. You could also do the temperature test that Eric demonstrates in one of his videos.

[Joeseph Mama]

i just want to say that i used to ask my ex the same question as posed in the title of this thread every time she would disrobe. :dry:

[david]

hi there.
did not want to leave a thread un-finished, though a bit old.
finally gotten around to this project.
cont’d from previous
reconnected the cat to the exhaust manifold.
disconnected the exhaust between the mid-pipe/resonator with the cat.
then did the vacuum gauge check – yes, purchased vacuum gauge from harbor freight to add to my tools.
thanks etcg … and i used this link and found it super helpful and would like to share here (maybe already shared)

How to Use and Interpret a Vacuum Gauge

the Escort even has a service port a a T junction for manifold vacuum near the fire wall.
turns out, the cat alone does not exhibit blockage.

replaced the mid-pipe/resonator, and just ordered the muffler today.
my old muffler may still be good, just too much of a pain if i install it and then find out it is causing blockage.
i did not test the mid-pipe/resonator because there is already a gaping hole right behind the flex joint.
so, the mid-pipe is at least due to be changed, basically, this only leaves the muffler questionable.

the muffler does not rattle when shaken, and there is 1 piece of very small debris in there which can be heard.
the debris seems to move all around and does not seem near big enough to cause blockage – maybe some small piece that fell off during my removal of the muffler. (went the recip saw near the muffler connection, would suggest others to use a multi-tool instead)
due to the PITA nature of removal and re-install of muffler, just went ahead and bit the bullet and bought a new one.

Conclusion: the cat may not look healthy, but was not causing exhaust blockage.
And no emissions to worry about in Tennessee right now. Blockage should be caused aft of the cat.

Misfires and lack of power under load is usually ignition related. More info here.

http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-performance-issues

A vacuum gauge will set you back about $20. It’s a good tool to have in the box as it can tell you a great deal about how an engine is performing.

http://www.jbtoolsales.com/electronic-specialti…um-gauge/#oid=1002_1

[Author]

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