Do cat cleaners work?

[Bonnewagon]

No. The cleaner is in the gas, but I haven't had a chance to really get on it and blow it out properly. The adapter is still in the mail, maybe this weekend it'll arrive. And now, my Daughter's boyfriend's '02 Tahoe has the same CEL code and his inspection is due this month. Turns out, he hasn't changed his air filter in two years either. Coincidence?

 

[Bonnewagon]

Update- the Tahoe is running better after a dose of the cat cleaner and air filter change. Air filter alone did not help, P0420 code was set 3 times since the filter was changed. After the dose, CEL came on once, was turned off, and so far is staying off, keeping fingers crossed. The Sunfire is another story. The O2 sensor 45º adapter arrived in the mail today and I installed it. Then before I could test it, the starter crapped out. It spins without cranking the engine, looks like the overunning clutch is gone. I got a local guy that is a super good old school rebuilder but I gotta wait until Monday to get one of his starters. When it rains it pours......

 

[Bonnewagon]

OK. The Tahoe passed emissions no problem. So the dirty air cleaner must have caused the cat to load up and trigger the multiple CEL's. The air filter change solved the cause but did not cure the cat CEL. I have to say that the dose of Mr. Gasket Catoclean did in fact clean up the dirty cat so well that the car passed and no more CEL (so far!). But again, this is an original equipment GM cat that just got real dirty from the old clogged air filter. As for the Sunfire, I got my rebuilt starter in, drove around with the O2 adapter/extender in place, and so far no CEL. But now that I see I screwed myself with the aftermarket cat, I can't expect the cat cleaner to perform miracles with that. Hopefully this is solved, we shall see.

 

[pontiacgp]

That is great news on the Tahoe, hopefully you''ll have some good news about the Sunfire soon.... 🙂 I don't have to pass emissions with my GP but I'll try Catoclean in the spring to clean up the cats

 

[t01blaze]

there is no dodging the OBD2 on your own car.

Yes there is. Have the computer reflashed. Done. I'm not going into anymore details than that right here.

 

[pencero]

Don't drive the sunfire. Not even once. Pull up for the inspection ASAP before that light turns back on and get the sticker then drive off. I bet the light turns on again before you arrive at your house. This happens to most sunfires; prematurely smashed even though they ran perfectly fine. I watched it happen to a POS sunfire that was a Katrina car. Lots of $$$ wasted in 02 sensors wiring and Seafoam before he finally gave up and took hundreds of dollars lost on the car. If you can get the computer on loan you can do what he just said. Get everything as right as it's going to be then clear the code - within a few blocks of the test. Turn off the car immediately and disconnect the battery quickly then let the car sit for about an hour. Try to find a place to eat or shop where you can see if theres a huge line at the smog station. If there's a huge line your odds of getting by w/o the light going off go way down. Wait til no one is in line to get smogged. Reconnect the battery and turn the car on then pull up immediately. Step out fake talking on the phone and say you're in a hurry to get to work so some Steve-o doesn't point out that your car isn't even warm yet and try to make you fail. Your body language and demeanor should say 'im 100% confident this car is going to pass and I'm in a hurry' and not 'I am pretending to be in a hurry before you figure out I am trying to fool you' If you do this correctly the amount of time the computer takes to turn the code back on should exceed the length of the test. The engine will never reach the thermostat temp in time. Stand near the door at all times in case the light turns back on. If it does, make an excuse your in a hurry to leave and just try to keep their eyes off the dash. The car should still pass mathematically but if they see that light on you still fail. Don't let them see you clearing the code if you do all this; probably nothing would happen, and you certainly can't go to jail over this, but they could try to extort you or just 'fail' you automatically if they see you doing it. If you still fail and they move in to extort you - pay the money. It'll come out to less $ than you will have spent trying to legitimately pass the sunfire after that.

 

[Bonnewagon]

Damn man what kind of nazi-land state are you in?!? :shock: Over here in NY my guy eyeballs my rubber, checks my lights and brakes, and plugs my car in to Albany. If there is a code, or the code was removed and not enough "good" cycles have occurred, I fail. OBD2 knows when you cleared the code, or unhooked the battery, and you cannot pass until the required amount of cycles has happened without setting the CEL. If no codes, I pass, just that simple. No one looks under the hood, or under the car, and I could have anything from a squirrel in a cage to a flux capacitor under the hood- no codes- no problem. So my CEL has been off since I used the O2 extension and the Tahoe also has no CEL since the cat cleaner was used. I'm not concerned.

 

[pencero]

That was California but I don't live there now. Luckily my Indiana county doesn't enforce any of this stuff so I'm good but the counties on either side of me do enforce some of this stuff off/on. Still good to know how to slide through in case I move or something. That was totally an ODB1 I did that w/ so I guess it wouldn't work on any newer cars then.

 

[Bonnewagon]

Oh, Cali- forget it. Unfortunately NY tends to follow Cali on a lot of stuff, like emissions testing. In fact if my car had a Cali cat or emissions system, it would be illegal to put non-Cali compliant emission repair parts on the car. I guess the VIN would cause me to pass a Cali grade test yet I've never heard of that happening. Actually a huge cottage industry has sprouted up here in NYC. It consists of your car failing the test, being told to come back "at closing time", and they run a different car through, and you get the sticker. I guess Albany never checks why the shop truck gets inspected several times a day!!!