1st Gen OEM Catalytic Converters are Being Discontinued

FYI, I tried to price a replacement oem Cat with my local dealership parts counter, and to my surprise and theirs the Cats are discontinued. Mine is a ‘99 3.4l 5 speed.

I’ve read most of the aftermarket cats don’t play well with the computer, but it looks like that’s all we have now.

 

The junk inside my cat started falling apart and I ordered a direct-fit Walker from Rockauto. From my understanding they work well enough.

Side note anyone know how much these old cats are worth scrap value? Be nice to get a bar trip or 3 out of the old junk one.

 

Aftermarket cats work fine. Make sure you buy the correct one for the state your in, some states require the cat to be CARB certified. Walker is a good supplier of aftermarket cats.
https://www.walkerexhaust.com/products/light-vehicle/catalytic-converters.html

I've used this company to buy a scrap cat from me. The paid me almost as much as the new cat cost. https://rrcats.com/catalytic-converter-scrap-prices/

 

Sounds like Toyota is starting to cut off parts for the 1st gen Tacomas. Similar thread, but on Torque Converters here:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/toyota-killed-the-1st-gen.820512/

 

01-04 converters still had a fair supply of parts last i checked (few months ago) 00 and older 49 state has been discontinued for a while. trucks be gettin old

 

RockAuto shows 10+ CARB listings
for less than the dealer

 

the only issue i have with aftermarket is the life expectancy is far less than the oem. ~5 years is the most i've gotten from an aftermarket personally.

 

This is what I’ve heard too, a few years at best.

 

a lot
But
Bc of cat converter theft rings (TX)
Be prepared to give DNA/blood samples/proof of ownership/speak to police to just take to scrap metal vendors
Shit, since covid, I have done/paid over 750 ‘stolen cat’ claims averaging $4k a pop
Tundra/Prius’ are most saught after bc the have 4 cats per vehicle
Toyota dealer got hit here
25 brand new Tundra’s got hit
Also saw a church got hit
18 buses on the way to the dealership on the highway, each sounded like a race car

 

You don't need OEM for emissions. In fact I'd go with State of California certified CATS. These are regular aftermarket cats specific to your vehicle but that have been verified to meet their emissions standard. They have this down in the Golden State. I've had two so far put on my truck in the last 10+ years with no issues. The dreaded Cat emissions CEL code goes away and stays gone!

These cats tend to be built to a higher standard than others in the market because they have to be street legal for the State of California in order for the vehicle to pass smog and even be able to be properly registered. I'm on my second round.. the first one I installed lasted about a decade in my truck...

In searching make sure you find what's called your "engine group" for your truck there's usually a sticker under your hood that will tell you yours.

Here is the database maintained by the State of California: https://ssl.arb.ca.gov/AftermarketParts/catalysts

 

Seems like the least essential part on the vehicle. I wouldn't go OEM if my 25 year old catcon ever goes bad.

 

Your emissions are pretty damn essential, considering in most states its the most regulated part of the vehicle.. also there is O2 sensors down there and they communicate with the cars computers. A knob on your radio.. that you can skimp on..

 

When I recycled a Toyota Camry cat I changed out, I had to supply vehicle info, vehicle owner, my info and copy of new cat I purchased to replace it.

 

I put a walker cat in today. The flanged end didn’t seem to mate up well to the header or muffler pipe but it doesn’t sound like it’s leaking. Otherwise it was essentially a direct fit.

 

Be careful with the codes especially if you're in Ca.
I have a fed code truck . Getting a smog legal cat was interesting . Cross your fingers and hope the smog guy doesn't check it lol. Keep stock cat and swap it back out . Mine is completely empty lol

 

Here in SC you're in the minority if you actually have a working cat. All my buddies were wondering why I went through the trouble of even replacing the thing.

Getting my scrapping license later to go scrap the OE cat, figure it'll pay my bar tab tomorrow.

 

Jeez I should hire a thief to steal my cat and file a claim. Shit's repairable for $200

 

Tell one of the fine folks hanging out at the strip mall where Harbor Freight is in Apache Junction where you park at night, they'll hook you up I'm sure.

 

Cats in OEM rigs are most important for maintaining backpressure (yes, I know).. vital for complete combustion events according to stock cam timing.

WuT?

OEM cam design expects there to be a marginal pressure gradient across the engine.
When the exhaust is gutted, the fuel charge is expelled prematurely. Incomplete burn
(Pops, crakle, bang on decel)


Now you have an unburned exhaust (Oxygen!), that raises EGT, melts exhaust valves (and guides)
AFR reads lean, because you have unburned oxygen.
ECU dumps MORE fuel to correct mixture, dumping fuel into exhaust.. raising EGT, killing gas mileage.

Exhaust FLOW increases when cats are removed, introducing raw fuel into the exhaust, which is shortly vaporized into stink.
Exhaust scavenging (in this case) - can be bad

You also must consider the effect of cylinder filling and exhaust contamination.

Cylinder fill is likely HIGHER without cats, meaning you can now run MORE ignition timing without cats, as your cylinder has less exhaust leftover, and MORE fresh air.
Exhaust has been fully expelled. Along with some of the intake charge.

You might be able to adjust the Mechanical cam timing a few degrees retarded to make MORE power up top, now that you dont have to worry about the exhaust packing up and backfilling the cylinder.


TLDR;
If you remove cats, be sure to restrict flow the same
Or address your mixture and spark timing.
Possibly mech timing too

 

The 50 state Magnaflows on my 04 have gotten me through 4 biennial smog tests in CA so far, since I got them installed ~7 years ago.

However, the last couple of times whenever I have to disconnect the battery my catalytic monitors take forever (1000s of miles) to reset, so I suspect they are on their way out. Or maybe an o2 sensor issue. Either way I've dumped a can of Cataclean in the tank before getting smogged the last two times and it makes the monitors finally go green so I can get the test done.

I got those Magnaflows (both) installed for $600 out the door in 2017, I shudder to think what they probably cost now. But still way cheaper than OEM, though it sounds like OEM isn't much of an option anymore.