At the tail-end of your vehicle’s exhaust system lies the catalytic converter, which
filters harmful gases out and converts them to less hazardous ones. When it fails,
you may notice your car feels sluggish when accelerating or there is black exhaust
smoke with an unpleasant rotten egg scent.
The catalyst contains valuable metals such as platinum, rhodium and palladium that
could tempt thieves to remove for their value.
Poor Fuel Economy
If you have noticed that your fuel efficiency has decreased or that dark exhaust
smoke appears upon acceleration, your catalytic converter may have started
malfunctioning and may no longer be doing its job to remove emissions from your
vehicle, potentially leading to failure at an emissions test or smog check.
Unwanted or damaged catalytic converters will cause your engine to stall as it
struggles with managing pressure build-up in its combustion chamber, as well as
issues accelerating or making sudden movements while you drive. Additionally, you
might notice your vehicle has issues accelerating or suddenly makes sudden jerky
movements while driving.
Your car might produce a rattling noise when starting up the engine, as this
indicates the honeycomb interior of the catalytic converter has broken or come
apart, leading to pieces to rattle around when starting its engine. If this occurs,
replacing it right away is advised as this will prevent your fuel efficiency from
worsening and also help pass any upcoming smog or emission inspections with flying
colors.
Excessive Heat
If your catalytic converter begins to glow red, that is an sure sign it has begun
failing. This typically happens when oil or antifreeze seeps into the exhaust system
and coats its honeycomb catalyst with thick carbon deposits, blocking air passages
to efficiently expel pollutants, creating back pressure in the exhaust system and
leading to back pressure problems.
Catalytic converters feature honeycomb structures containing precious metals like
palladium and rhodium that act as filters, filtering out harmful pollutants from your
vehicle engine. Unfortunately, their ceramic material is vulnerable to physical
damage from debris, broken exhaust hangers or potholes causing impact forces that
fracture it into smaller and smaller pieces over time, eventually stopping its flow
altogether.
When this occurs, the engine cannot mix air and fuel properly resulting in reduced
acceleration power and decreased gas mileage. As such, it is vital to regularly
inspect underneath your car for signs of a bad catalytic converter.
Rattling Noises
Whenever your vehicle seems to consume fuel more rapidly than usual, but other
vital parts and sensors like oxygen sensors or air filters appear normal, the culprit
could be your catalytic converter. A failing catalytic converter reduces gas mileage
and power by forcing your engine to work harder in order to burn up what fuel it still
has left in it.
Modern vehicles are equipped with oxygen and air/fuel sensors that will monitor your
catalytic converter to make sure it operates within tolerance levels, and alert you if
any problems arise by activating your check engine light, and in certain instances
providing engine trouble codes.
Rattling noises may be caused by damaged pieces in the honeycomb mesh interior
of your car’s catalytic converter, caused by excessive heat or physical damage such
as collision with road debris. A rattling sound should serve as an early indicator that
it’s time to visit a Phoenix mechanic for repairs or replacement of your catalytic
converter.
Odor of Rotten Eggs
Your car’s catalytic converter chemically scrubs its engine exhaust of harmful
pollutants before venting them back into the atmosphere. As hydrogen sulfide gas
with its foul smell passes through, normally converted by platinum in the convertor
into non-odourous sulfur dioxide by platinum particles in its convertor; if damaged or
worn down however, this may no longer occur.
An odd smell coming from your vehicle could be an early indicator that its catalytic
converter is beginning to fail, as when this happens it no longer transforms
chemicals and gasoline released by your engine into less harmful gases. If the smell
persists you could have an oxygen sensor malfunction clogging the converter which
requires professional assistance to rectify before any further damage is done or cost
is incurred by using fuel at higher rates at the pumps. A trained mechanic should be
able to quickly determine and resolve this problem before any further damage
occurs – leaving it could costing money at the pump!