[gundam_007]

my 92 9000T has a funny smell when i turn off the car after driving it ..kinda smells like a cross between rotten eggs and exhaust????.. anyone have any idea what it could be ...and what i need to do to correct it

 

[microcat36]

If it is outside the car it is the cat converter on the exhaust but you can't do anything about it, bar change it for a normal box but i am not sure if you are allowed to do this in the usa.

 

[gundam_007]

so i have to wait till it falls off then get a new cat converter?...or just go ahead and get a new one any way

 

[microcat36]

if it is the cat, a new one will not make any diff as the by poduct of the cat is water and sulphur hense the smell of rotten eggs

 

[StephenA]

Or try to find a lower sulphur fuel as its the sulphur compounds in the petrol that make the smell

Also you will notice it more when the cat is not fully up to temperature as it doesn't do a proper job of catalysing the various compounds in the exhaust gas

Steve

 

[mpen]

Take the cat off ..much more fun

 

[bill.armstrong]

It's a common misconception that cats reduce emissions! They only work after the engine has been running at high revs for 20+ min that is why your engine has to be run for ages and has to hold high revs for the cat test for the Ministry Of Transport annual test.

What has reduced emissions is the Oxegen sensor in teh exhaust pipe and emissions control in the ECU not the cat.

Cats will reduce emissions when running on the motorway but when stuck in traffic in town or cold they increase the CO2 and general pollutants released into the atmosphere by up to 10%

A well sorted engine like the Honda Civic never needed a Cat at all and I would hazard a guess that the modern SAAB engine would not need one either.

I do not normally believe in Conspiracy theorists but as each and every CAT you buy a royalty of XX% goes to one person who patented the process.

This same individual is extremely lavish with funding political parties (those that sponsor legislation to make cats compulsory) etc. I know a lot more is out there and provable but I will not rant on about it here!

Politicos don’t we love them all??

Has the car been running fast or slow before stopping?

I would expect either high Sulfur fuel or poisoned CAT.

Running on LPG also can cause some “pong” though I do not think the LPG is responsible for poisoning the CAT.

Leaded Petrol will do it every time! I know that if a tank at the garage / gas station has had leaded in it for many years the lead can be deposited on the inside of the tanks, so if they fill with Unleaded and sell it as such you can still get a poisoned Cat!

I had to inspect storage tanks used since 2nd world War, for aviation fuel, and the Lead additives had built up fantastic crystal structures 4 feet high! (I had to wear a full environmental suit and be lowered 75 feet into the underground silo through an 18” opening. I earned my wages that day!)

 

[gundam_007]

well unfourtunatly here in the godd old U.S.of A they state you must have a CAT on vehicles .. believe you me i would rather straight pipe it

 

[John Vaughan]

Hi, you can kill two birds with one stone so to speak. Install a JT 3" downpipe for about 288 or install a JT 3" downpipe with performance cat for about 569. Depends on if you have yearly testing where you live in Illinois. JT will give you between 10-15hp so it is worth doing either way.

:fawlty
Regards,
John

 

[gundam_007]

no testing here at all in Illinois

 

[ms08]

  It's a common misconception that cats reduce emissions! They only work after the engine has been running at high revs for 20+ min  [/b]

That's very interesting - What sort of RPM are we talking, as if cruising at 70mph on the motorway you are only pulling about 2,500 rpm or is prolonged useage at this spped enough to generate the heat? I am proposing to use a JT 3" pipe with no cat so will be interesting to see when it comes to MOT time and whether or not I will need to put the old pipe back on.

Mike

 

[StephenA]

I have been told on several occasions to take a car for a good burn up the motorway with the revs out of the green (80mph in 4th) to get the cat really not and burn off any crud in it.

You als used to be able to get a cat rejuvinator - basically light hydrocarbon fragments, alcohol, rodium and plantinum, which would "replate" damaged bits of the cat

Steve

 

[gundam_007]

how does that work to repair the broken fragments???...well fri i'll try it again going to dealer/service center about an hour and a half.drive last time i smoked a BMW 318i...

...cant wait to see what i can smoke this trip

 

[StephenA]

If the cat is physically broken then it wont fix it. The cat work by having material impregnated with elements such as rhodium, platinum which are the catalyst elements which lower the energy needed to break down the unwated CH fragments into water and C02.

Lead and other contaminants bind to the catalyst elements making them in-effective. However if you then put more catalyst elements through the cat they will bind to the existing catalyst elements (including the contaminated ones) and bring the cat efficiency back up. If the cat is totally contaminated then it probably wont work.

I'd not worry about the eggy smell - the main thing is your CO and HC levels which you will only find with proper testing.

Steve

 

[gundam_007]

how, where and what kind of test do i ask for?