Quick question..Does a converter wear out over time or can it stop working in a very short period of time?


1991 Camry 4-Cyl 158,000

 

A well maintained camry's catalytic converter should last atleast 150-200k miles .(and yes im sure someone's cousin's ,sister's ,friend's cat lasted a million miles) .And likewise some cats only lasted 50k miles, but in general if upkeep (spark plugs/wires ,O2 sensors etc) was kept up it should last to 200k miles . Now if you overheated it or blew something that caused oil to leak into it , then yes it can be instantly killed.

 

i have a 02 camry with 116K on it...the converter just went bad....do u think its ok if i drive the car and i dont change the converter....will it effect my car performance or will it create more problems in the future....

 

I have a 2003 toyota camry and my check engine light came on. I had a tech check it out and I was told that my catalytic converter went bad. It cost too much for a toyota catalytic converter. If I was to use an after market cat would i get the same performance? Would it go bad again? If I do go with an after market part what brand should I consider?

 

What country are you in and how many miles on your car? If in the US what state?

In the US the EPA mandates an extended warranty on the CAT.

8 yr and think 80K miles.

 

If the convertor is bad (clogged) it can cause bad performance problems. It can damage O2 sensors and over heat the motor because the exhaust gases back up into the motor. Not to mention the worst case where the convertor overheats, glows red hot and either starts on fire or touches something under the vehicle and ignites it. I would go with an aftermarket convertor to save some money but I wouldn't drive it a whole bunch because it could end up costing you alot more it if damages the motor.