Catylitic converter replacement

[Baldwin]

My right flange broke on the Cat. The dealer is saying it's a prob with the VehiCROSS and Isuzu is having probs getting new Cats in. I've been waiting 2 weeks for parts. It's got 114500 miles on it. Is the cat supposed to go out that early? Have any of you had it break? What's my best option? Do i keep waiting or take it to another shop and get a generic one installed or take it to a muffler shop to get it welded? Can't goto work unless I keep renting a car and it's getting expensive.

[etlsport]

not sure exactly where yours broke, but when my cats go i fully intend to get aftermaket cats as you can get two aftermakets for less than the cost of one stock

[tom4bren]

I haven't had to change the cat on the VX yet but when I had an Amigo done, I went aftermarket.

[Chopper]

Aftermarket!

[Baldwin]

I called a couple shops and they said there aren't aftermartket cats for the vx. They also said that anything newer than '96 has to have oem cuz of some chip. They did say they might be able to weld it back. Not sure if that's a good option or not. I'm lookin' at $1200 for a new Cat.

[IndianaVX]

baldwin,
i too am looking for both cats, and not having alot of luck.
i did call merlin, at st. charles, and they have a 5 day wait, at (i may have to edit this, going by memory) 780.00 each. i have heard that its illegal to buy them off of a wreck, but i may try to go that route. in my timing belt thread in the trouble shooting, the tech at isuzu had talked about putting a "test tube" in place of the cats, but im not sure how that would effect the 02 sensors, or the rest of the engine. i would think that i would have a constant "check engine light"
if you keep me posted, i will do the same for you
thanking you in advance,
david

[Cyrk]

Aftermarket, Magnaflow cats... What I am running on mine.

[VX1]

I'm on my seventh week waiting for a cat. One came in after two weeks, and I'm still waiting on the other. I brought it to the dealership because the power was surging. They first replaced the fuel pump, regulator and filter ($1300), then they said it will need new cats. (I test drove it after the fuel system was replaced and it was still surging, BTW, so I've got to fight them on that charge.) Searching this forum, I found a post of someone waiting five months for a cat, and they were still waiting!

I'm fairly sure there is an FTC regulation that requires manufacturers to have parts available after a car goes out of production (8, maybe 10 years, and possibly more for emission related parts); wouldn't that regulation define a reasonable time to be able to get that part? Waiting five months for a part of a vehicle that is only five years out of production... seems to me that breaks the boundaries of the accepted definition of the word "available".

My cats are being covered under warranty, I believe the Federal Clean Air Act requires emission related parts to have extended coverage.

-Scott
'00 Ironman

[rowhard]

Well, I just did a search and came across converter geek. They have a converter for the 99 VX for $279.00. Would think if it works on a 99, it should work on a 00/01

http://www.convertergeek.com/epcstartreverse.epc?cookieID=24G1CAFSZ24G1CBZRO&drillid=7&engineid=V6@@%2D+V6L+%2D+CC%3A+%2D++%2D+Electric+% 2D&clientid=convertergeek

Just searched some more, and there are a lot of outlets for converters.

[IndianaVX]

rowhard,
yes, ive done and am doing the searches too, and im finding it hard because after selecting year, model, etc, i am getting to performance tips, performance muffler, or not seeing the righ year, etc......i just want stock cats....i know what im looking for, i just dont know what im looking for....lol
not trying to get you to do my legwork, i guess im just easily confused, maybe overwhelmed in my state of mind.....

[Baldwin]

how do i find the extended warranty from the fed clean air act? Isuzu dealer said my exhaust is out of warranty. They are trying to send one in from a dealer in New Mex. Is the magnaflow cat something a dealer would install or was it installed at a shop? "Honest Engine" told me they won't install aftermarkets newer than '96. Would the VX cat be the same as the trooper?

[IndianaVX]

baldwin,
what i found out today is this..........
cat converters are covered under isuzu warranty for 8 years/80,000 miles for ORIGONAL OWNER..... 6 years/60,000 for all other owners.....dont know if that helps, but chalk it up to the forum knowlege base......i am concidering replacing them myself if,and when i get mine.......

[IndianaVX]

would any of these work??? do we have 3", 2", 2.25???

again, dont really know what im looking for, but i know i like this kind of price......

http://www.1aauto.com/1A/CatalyticConverterUniv/Isuzu/VehiCROSS

ok, i learned something, these need to be welded on, or have flanges welded on....correct???:confused:

[Baldwin]

Are those prices for real?!?!? They quoted me $1200. I have 114,520 miles on it so I think it's out of warranty

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

Aftermarket, Magnaflow cats... What I am running on mine.

This will be my course of action when I need to replace my cats! :cool:

[tom4bren]

"They also said that anything newer than '96 has to have oem cuz of some chip."

Remember, cats are dumb - just exhaust in & exhaust out. As long as it fits in the envelope of the original and doesn't cause more back pressure than the original, then all of the emission control will not be affected.

As for Federal regulation making it illegal to use anything other than OEM - even my Golden Retriever didn't buy that.

[MZ-N10]

This will be my course of action when I need to replace my cats! :cool:

ditto....

[Baldwin]

Thanks guys. I got my VX back after almost 4 weeks. The flange broke. Is the cat the entire assembly including the pipes and O2 senseors or just the section in the middle? It looked like one long 3 ft assembly. The tech showed me the entire section that was replaced. Looked a lot different from the pics of the aftermarket converters which showed just a box.

[rowhard]

Well, all the converters I have seen look nothing more then like a crunched up glass pack/cherry bomb if you have ever seen one of them. The O2 sensor just screws into the down pipe from the exhaust manifold before the converter.
but I have been wrong before.

[tom4bren]

I know this thread is old but I just came across this source. Hope it's not too late. These guys list cats for the VX:

http://www.1aauto.com/1A/CatalyticConverterUniv/Isuzu/VehiCROSS

BOL