Cleaning out Catalytic Converter?

[h3rman]

Right, my MOT is in a months time, and my CAT has been sitting in the garage since about 10 mins after my last MOT test.

I'm looking to re-fit the CAT in a couple of weeks so I can run it for a while before the MOT, but before I fit it, just wondering if there was a way I could clean it out?

Was not thinking of anything drastic, just blowing compressed air through it backwards so it goes in the back facing side and out the engine facing side. Would that help in the slightest?

Last year the car flew threw all parts of the emissions test with ease apart from fast idle CO emissions. The limit is 0.3% and my car did 0.28% last year, so a bit close. Just want to make sure it will pass, and pass with room to spare, not just squeeze through.

Got a compressor I can use to blow air through. Will it help, make things worse, or just not make a difference?

Cheers!

 

[Dune]

Ive just had the same problem with my wifes 5 series. It had sat for a while after her having afoot operation. I needed to take the car and blast it up and down the motorway to get the cat really hot. Getting the cat hot burns off all the oxidization that will have built up on the surface and allows the precious metals to do their job.

There is an addative you can buy that helps with this, something like redex but aimed specifically at the cat. Sorry I dont know what its called.

 

[the snooper]

unless like stated above you can use an petrol aditive thenjust fit to the car and run as normal using anything else can ruin the cat

 

[Archie]

Some manufacturers actually require cat cleaning. You hook them up like an intravenous drip and let the fluid run through. Off the top of my head I think it's Citroen and Peugot who do this but I could be wrong. I don't think the fluid's exactly cheap though.

 

[h3rman]

Fair play, I will be getting the car booked in for the 20th of next month and re-fitting the cat at the start of August. Got a 20 mile drive to work every day, so 40 mile round trip on the back lanes. Sure I can get the cat nice & hot during the drive to/from work.

Also, my car is a Mitsubishi, and 99.9% sure they don't have a cat cleaning procedure.

 

[pedrobedro]

Just fit it and run as normal, you can buy cat cleaner fuel additives but if the cat has not been used it should be alright.

 

[rikrobson]

just a blast up the motorway will do the trick.
There was a woman on one of the Scottish islands who bought a Renault diesel and had problems with the cat. Renault turned round and said that the car was designed for motorway driving and not pootling around at 30 mph everywhere.

I think in the end the changed the car for her after saying the cat failure was not under warranty.

 

[Robotstar5]

There was a woman on one of the Scottish islands who bought a Renault diesel and had problems with the cat. Renault turned round and said that the car was designed for motorway driving and not pootling around at 30 mph everywhere.

My sister was told the same thing recently about her Renault after the 3rd time she took it back to have a warning lamp reset.

 

[mike os]

So why do they sell them in citys

 

[Davie]

Try CataClean. Available from a major motor factors that I work for, PM me if you wanna know who.

The problems with Citroen/Peugeot/Reneault diesels isn't actually the cat, its the DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter). They are designed to go into a self clean cycle, and the fluid that cleans them is called ELOYS (spelling?) fluid. It gets added to the tank automatically when you fill up, and according to a man from Bosch, is based on sheeps p**s! The DPF has to get over a certain temp before it starts cleaning, and 30mph just doesnt do it.