So I took my 02 TL type s to get smog checked a week or 2 ago. I left and came back and was wondering why it was taking so long... I went to check on my car and come to find out the guy couldnt even start the test. He tried about 4 or 5 times and told me something about too much water coming from the exhaust? idk if he didn't know what the hell he was talking about but he told me it might be my catalytic converter and i may have to replace it. i have a hard time believing this. My TL has just under 120000 miles and has been regularly maintained by previous owner. Does anybody have any ideas on what it might be? and if it is the cat whats my best option to get it fixed for cheap?

 

does it have a rotten egg type of smell????

 

From my experience, catalytic converter failure is kind of inconsistent. They can fail even if you maintain the car well. They might last a really long time even if you don't maintain it.

Water from the exhaust? I don't think so. Maybe some unburned fuel? Regular water would evaporate almost instantly at those temps, and I don't think coolant should be leaking that heavily from the exhaust without major major problems.

 

lets make sure its not a coolant leak into cyl heads first
ck radiator level WHEN COLD ONLY- should be right below the neck - so when cap installed its touching fluid

ck res bottle level is around the middle and hose inside cap is on tight

assuming those are ok
Was the car parked a long time- for days before the test, and driven a short distance there?
a lot of moisture will be in the exhaust right then
You see cars everyday in front of you- water dripping out the pipes--thats a cold engine

before next test- drive 30-45 minutes on freeway, everything will be plenty warm

Go to a muffler shop for a free inspection of cat- they test temps and flow pressure inside to determine failure or not

if needed: Get a good replacement from our vendor Excelerate,,from mild to wild at half the cost of muffler shop,, and a percentage of the $1100 for OE
its a bolt right in part,,you or any shop can do it

 

just a note for the new owners- running the TL on 87 octane can screw up the cat

 

It's doubtful that you need anything. You're right in that the guy didn't know what the hell he was talking about. I agree with 01tl about warming it up thoroughly, but I wouldn't bother having a muffler shop check your convertor even if it's free. They are able to diagnose a noticeable lack of power caused by a plugged convertor, but beyond that your car's pcm and sensors are the final authority on your convertor's performance. If you're not down on power, and your check engine light isn't on it's a safe bet your convertor is fine.

 

I agree
BUT
I never trust the bulb in warning light is working~

OP seems to be new to the car as owner, and wouldnt know how it should feel running right

it wont hurt anything to get a professional inspection of the cat to know its good or it needs replacement

What State smog are we dealing with?

 

I've had the car for almost a year now and it runs great which is the reason I was sceptical on the matter. Hopefully 01tl is right and just need to drive it a bit more. Ill try what you said and take it to a different test center. Hoping for th best!

 

muffler shop to be safe

 

Ill check it out tomorrow since im off

 

Im stuck guys idk what to do. I took my car to the muffler shop and they wont check of I need a new cat. The guy was a total dick. He told me he couldn't see if I needed a new one and proceeded to.just tell me how much for a new one. $275 installed which isn't bad but if I don't need to replace it that's a waste of money. Idk what else to do tho! :/

 

How does running regular unleaded mess up the converter? Leaded gas, I can understand...also running an oil with too much ZDDP could coat the matrix (which is why the govm't reduced the phosphorous with SM grade oil).


Our TL has 175K miles with no problems...running 87 octane (per USA gas pump) since new.


Just wonderin'.

 

go to a different shop!!!

by law they have to do test and determine type of failure and document for the govt.
testing is normally a no problem request,,might turn into a sale...

When I have had it done: infra-red temp gun ckd outside cat temps, drilled small hole and attached pressure guage, Removed guage and welded hole closed= that cat was good

Another time- a simple tapping to the cat resulted in rattle = its blown

ck phone book for other places,,if its a 1 shop town, drive to civilzation!!

 

87 in a car actually made to run on 94 but the system can compensate for 91 -
hence 91 MINIMUM is the requirement
is not a good idea, It may seem to run fine,,everyone who runs 87 in a TL says that...
Until something goes wrong from the ineficient combustion.

add 10% and soon 15%! Ethanol and it really burns poorly! just a step from pre-ignition most of the time
Maxing out the systems abilty to modify the timing to keep it from pinging
Unburned fuel is bad on the cat

run some good gas thru it for a few tanks- maybe some fuel cleaner too
the results may surprise you with an improved mpg that offsets the 20 cents a gallon differance

 

I never got back to this thread... Sorry! I eventually put some "Guaranteed to Pass" and took my TL swiftly up and down the freeway for about 30 mins. When i finally took her in she passed with flying colors! Thanks for all the help and information everyone!

 

Can you link Excelerate, I googled it but didn't find it.

My car has a code, it's either 420 or 480, I cant remember, but it said possibly cat or O2 sensor. I replaced the front O2 sensor a year ago. The gas mileage has went down over the past 6 months and the car doesn't have as much low end power.

I have to pass the emmisions test in Nov, so I need to take care of this quickly.

 

that stuff superheats the cat so it works ~really well~ ... for a short time

Did you ever figure out if there was an actual cat problem or O2 sensor?
gas mileage still down as last reported?
I would ck the O2 function--just because its been replaced doent mean it works right now!

passing a test and making the car run right are often opposite desires

 

a cat that smells like rotten eggs means your cats working well but really hard. Ive got a E-dump on my turbo nissan and the %5 of the time its closed running the exhaust threw the new cat it smells like rotten eggs on a hard pull.

A bad cat either wont do anything but fail emissions or clog up causing loss of power, overheating and a rough idle.