What Does a Car Catalyst Do?

A catalyst (or catalytic converter) is a component of an exhaust system that reduces the amount of harmful substances in exhaust gases, such as CO, CH, NO and NO2. All of these are poisonous and components of smog. So the catalyst is an element, containing noble metals that in reaction with harmful substances “burn” them to environmentally friendly standards.

Inside the catalyst body there is either a ceramic or metal honeycomb structure on which is applied a thin layer of platinum-iridium alloy.

With the introduction of environmental standards, all cars began to be equipped with one or more catalysts.

What to do if there are problems in work of catalyst

In most cases, the dealers refuse to change catalytic converter under warranty and assure that this is due to the poor quality of gasoline that was used. As a result they offer to change this detail.

The price of the original catalyst ranges from 500 up to 2000 usd. The price of the catalyst is so high because it is basically the entire exhaust pipe, that is rather complex part, including the complex flange connections, exhaust manifold, most often corrugation and the catalyst barrel itself. It is clear that such a part is very complex and expensive to manufacture. In addition, the catalysts contain precious metals, that are themselves expensive. 

Most often in specialized services specialists offer their clients alternative catalyst replacement solutions, such as:

1. Installation of a universal catalyst. It is directly the catalyst barrel itself. It is welded into a standard part, instead of a failed catalyst. Basically, here is replaced the part of the exhaust system that is out of order, and not the entire exhaust pipe. This option is more correct and significantly more budget depending on the size and requirements of the catalyst unit.
2. Replacing the catalyst with a flame arrester. This work generally removes the catalyst from the system. Instead of a catalyst is installed a flame arrester (pre-resonator), which does not clean the exhaust gases, but only smooths the exhaust stream, removing extraneous sounds that will occur if you simply remove the catalyst.

The replacement of catalyst

From the point of view of chemistry, the catalyst is a non-wearing component. However, in practice, the catalyst in the exhaust system fails first.

In case of universal catalyst installation, there is only one drawback. A universal catalyst, like the original one, is very dependent on external factors. Therefore, it is impossible to give a full guarantee on it. Usually, they work for 60-80 thousand km, but may fail even earlier if there is a failure in the ignition system or in the engine operating system.

In any case for high-quality diagnostic, it’s recommended to use services of the reliable car service. In such case, personalized approach is guaranteed. You can sell the used catalytic converter on the website autocatalystmarket.com.