cat converter...

[jspec civic]

how do i know when my cat converter is fcuked?

thanks

[55EXX]

The cats life will be dictated roughly by the amount of exhaust gases that passed through them that will with time cover the reactive parts in them. If your car is running too rich and/or burns oil and blows plenty of smoke you can go through a cat in a year or two but doubt that in your case being a honda. But yeah cats should last as long as the car physically well untill they rust away. to truly test it you would have to get an emissions test.

[cristian]

if u can hear a rattling noise from the area where ur cat is...

some cars get that rattle when they hit certain rpm...my one would rattle when i hit around 1900rpm...basically by this stage ur cat's internals have gone to shit :D
$150 for a high flow...quick fix man...

[jspec civic]

cheers..sound like my cat is dead..its rattling when on idol..

[cristian]

cheers..sound like my cat is dead..its rattling when on idol..

yea...mine would also rattle at around 800revs

[55EXX]

what does a buzz above 4500rpm mean?

[rom5]

same thing dude...rattle, buzz, sound of loose bearings = stuffed cat

[omgzilla]

Get under your car and (if hot put a rag or 2 over your hands - cat gets VERY HOT) hit the cat with the butt of your hand a few times with a bit of force. If there sounds like there's something loose inside - replace.

When i mean hit it with 'the butt of your hand', think 'judo-chop' it, but with a 'balled' fist. ;)

Also, if your car struggles to rev this is a good sign of a blocked (dead) cat.

[destrukshn]

could also be collasped muffler.
could be something loose, could be a broken exhaust mount from the chassis.
why does everything go back to the cat?
could be a nut and bolt loose even.
find where the rattling is coming from.
plus, a cat doesn't have to rattle for it to be ****ed.

on a 92 civic with a standard cat, yeah it most probably wouldn't do it's job as effieciently as it should, yeah it might be stuffed.
but to the OP why do you ask?