[Hangman]

Hey guys,

my daughter has a 2005 beetle 2.0L L4 DOHC. She bought it with very low mileage and I think right now it has about 90,000 miles.

She brought it to a local mechanic and he said that the catalytic converter is not working. She doesn’t have the money to repair this right now. I watched some videos online and it doesn’t look like it’s that difficult to replace it. I would be doing it in my garage with a vehicle up on jackstands.

I was looking at The catalytic converter‘s on rock auto. Is there any particular brand that works better in these Volkswagens? Are there any other tips or suggestions?

thanks for any helpful advice.

 

[Thejarhead]

First of all is there any type of check engine light on? If so what is the code (s)?

The easiest way to check a cat is with an infrared thermometer. Available at most auto parts stores, usually less than $25. Check the temperature of the exhaust pipe going into the cat after the car is warmed up and running and the temperature of the exhaust pipe coming out of the cat, it should be about 20 degrees hotter. If it is your cat is probably fine.

 

[billymade]

Here is a good video to review; for cat testing:

For replacement cats; we have good feedback from Bosal a oem for VW, cure codes and pass emissions testing.

BRExhaust | OE Replacement Exhaust Systems

BRExhaust is a leader in the design, development, and manufacturing of OE replacement exhaust systems providing you with your exhaust replacement needs.

www.brexhaust.com

Check rockauto, amazon or autozone; for pricing and availability.


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[Hangman]

First of all is there any type of check engine light on? If so what is the code (s)?

The easiest way to check a cat is with an infrared thermometer. Available at most auto parts stores, usually less than $25. Check the temperature of the exhaust pipe going into the cat after the car is warmed up and running and the temperature of the exhaust pipe coming out of the cat, it should be about 20 degrees hotter. If it is your cat is probably fine.

She brought it to a local mechanic and he is the one who said it was a catalytic converter. She does not have the particular error codes

is there a decent diagnostic tester for her vehicle? To pull up the area codes?

** I just checked out rock auto again and after reading the fine print there may be a problem. She lives in New York State. Apparently an EPA approved catalytic converter is not sufficient in New York State! They require something that is CARB compliant . That more than doubles the cost of the Cadillac converter. My question is will that cause a problem during the inspection? If I choose to go with the lesser expensive model will it fail inspection?

This is why people are leaving this **** hole of a state. My fiancé and I are in the process of moving to Florida!

thanks

 

[Hangman]

Here is a good video to review; for cat testing:

For replacement cats; we have good feedback from Bosal a oem for VW, cure codes and pass emissions testing.

BRExhaust | OE Replacement Exhaust Systems

BRExhaust is a leader in the design, development, and manufacturing of OE replacement exhaust systems providing you with your exhaust replacement needs.

www.brexhaust.com

Check rockauto, amazon or autozone; for pricing and availability.


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I have ordered from rock auto before for a couple of my vehicles. Apparently BRE has several model catalytic converters for my daughters 2005 Beetle. Would the “standard load” work? I’m not sure what the differences are?

 

[billymade]

The “load” is related to the different type of spec; for the cat, for example the “carb” version, meets the standard for cars sold in California.

For code reading, you could probably, have a auto parts store scan it for free or rent a scan tool from them.

If you wanted to invest in a VW specific scan tool; there are many out there, VCDS by Ross Tech and OBDEleven, are the most popular and then the many Chinese knockoff “VAG” types sold on amazon.

VCDS HEX-V2 Enthusiast
- USB Interface -

VCDS with HEX-V2 Enthusiast | Ross-Tech

ondeleven amazon - Google Search

 

[billymade]

For tech support; you could call Bosal for correct part info: (have your vin #)

Contact Us | BRExhaust

Need more information or help? Contact BRExhaust via phone, email or online forms to help get the support you may need.

www.brexhaust.com

NEED FURTHER ASSISTANCE? GIVE US A CALL
Customer Service: Weekdays 6AM - 5PM PST
Vehicle Support: Extension 1
Customer Service: Extension 2
CALL 1-800-990-0905


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[Hangman]

I updated one of my comments above. We grew up in New York State. My fiancé and I are in the process of relocating to Florida. My daughter is still on NY State. I started reading the fine print and the **** hole state of NY requires a CARB compliant catalytic converter. EPA approved is not good enough. My question is will the cheaper model BRE catalytic converter fail the inspection? The inspection process is primarily plugging a scan tool into the diagnostic port.

 

[billymade]

Thats a good question, emissions standards, seem to vary by state; i believe the replacement cat required by law, is based upon the original spec cat it came with from the factory.

Here are some good links; that discuss epa info about replacement cats, different state requirements and related info:

epa catalytic converter laws - Google Search

I would assume, if you contact Bosal; they can confirm which cat is correct based upon your vin # or contact your vw dealer, then there is probably a vw part # on the cat itself?

 

[Thejarhead]

I live just across the line from NY in PA. I am well aware of what goes on over there, they are controlled by the serial rapists, euthanasia enthusiasts and perverts in NYC and Albany.

You might try one of those less expensive cats, as long as they look like the more expensive ones and they aren’t hooking a tailpipe device to her car it should pass fine, it would probably pass even if they do. After all if you buy a car from PA or a host of other states and then move to NY I’ve never heard of them making a car owner change the cat.

 

[Hangman]

Your analysis of NY state is correct. NYC is a cultural Sewer!

 

[esse10]

Maybe all you need is a little carbon buildup cleaning. I also had a P0420 code and everyone here in this forum kept telling me i need to replace the CAT, i had already priced them and was getting ready to buy one when i read online that some folks were cleaning their CAT by injecting Seafoam through the car's intake and clearing that code. I decided to give it a try and ooohh man was i glad i tried injecting seafoam, it cleared the code and has never come back and also gave me a little more power. I rather pay $8 dollars and fix the problem than pay $300 for a new CAT when all it needed was a little carbon buildup cleaning. I do it annually now as a routine maintenance especially right before it goes in for the yearly emissions test.

 

[Hangman]

Do you have any more detailed explanation of how that gets done? Are you just adding this to the fuel tank? Or cleaning it a different way?

 

[esse10]

Do you have any more detailed explanation of how that gets done? Are you just adding this to the fuel tank? Or cleaning it a different way?

You might need to youtube it in google because every engine type might be different. On my 1.8t you only use about 5-6 ounces and use a clear poly tubing with a tapered end so that it sucks a little at a time. mine is done through the small hose on top of the throttle body. On the 2.0 engine you need to find a vacuum line going to it's intake or like i said google youtube on doing the 2.0

 

[Hangman]

My daughter decided to sell the car. The water pump and the timing belt also needed to be done. She just didn’t wanna put money into the car anymore. So thanks again everyone for all the help.