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Thread: What is more likely to get plugged? a Cat or a muffler?

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    What is more likely to get plugged? a Cat or a muffler?

    I created an exhaust leak by removing my 02 sensors and my engine can now breath . If I mash the throttle to the floor the engine hesitates and backfires through the intake. When I removed the 02 sensors to effectively create an exhaust leak the engine was happy again with vastly improved throttle response. So what is likely causing the restriction? The Cat or the muffler.

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    Re: What is more likely to get plugged? a Cat or a muffler?

    The cat!
    I had this experience on my Mini. I was tracking the car, so the cat was getting hyper-heated every week-end, the core finally got loose and turned sideways in the can. The Mini chocked and went on limp mode!
    LG.
    "perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." A. de St Exupery.

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    Re: What is more likely to get plugged? a Cat or a muffler?

    Quote Originally Posted by JPERL View Post
    I created an exhaust leak by removing my 02 sensors and my engine can now breath . If I mash the throttle to the floor the engine hesitates and backfires through the intake. When I removed the 02 sensors to effectively create an exhaust leak the engine was happy again with vastly improved throttle response. So what is likely causing the restriction? The Cat or the muffler.
    Typically it's the mesh/ honeycomb in the cat that gets plugged... the mufflr is just a series of baffles that has pretty big openings. I replaced my cat with a weld in for like 50 bucks, but it isn't .ca compliant...


    Doh! Carbonized beat me to it.

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    Re: What is more likely to get plugged? a Cat or a muffler?

    My buddy owns a muffler shop. When I suspected a clogged cat, he drilled a hole with a step-drillbit on the angled portion of the cat near the inlet, so we could take a peek. My cat was still good, so he just welded up the "inspection hole".

    You could do this yourself. If you don't have a welder, you could use a tap to thread the hole and then put a bolt in the hole to seal it up. Otherwise, if the cat is bad, you will be replacing it anyway.

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