basket-case 0 Posted September 21, 2005 further on from the last rattly pussy saga have now been told by my local mechanic who up until now has been a top bloke that if the rada has never had a replacement cat (ie this will be the first ) it will also have to have a new front pipe which does not come in after market flavour only from vw, is he talking out of his arse ?? please help i' m a bird who has no clue on the matter and need some macho guidance. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henny 0 Posted September 21, 2005 he's talking through his arse... De-cat pipes are available for about £50 from quite a few manufacturers and they're as easy to fit as fitting another cat... After market down-pipes are also available, but why you'd need one when the cat is held on to the downpipe by 3x M8 nuts and bolts with a nice gasket in between is beyond me... :roll: Which version of the Corrado do you have, and what makes you think that it needs a new cat? normally it's just the heat shield that makes it rattle which can be sorted with a large jubilee clip... ;) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
h100vw 0 Posted September 21, 2005 which can be sorted with a large jubilee clip... Wink Or removal completely :mrgreen: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
basket-case 0 Posted September 21, 2005 Its an L plate 2.0 16v, I reached under and twated the cat with a broom handle and the heat shieldey bit seemed ok, so I'm guessing mr mechanic is right that the cats fubar'ed, I just cant get my head around the idea that I have to buy a new down pipe if I'm replacing the Cat for the first time. So far he's quoted me £100 + vat to supply the cat alone + this new down pipe (which he says must be a genuine vw bit) + a huge bag of labour aswell. God I hate mechanics :( Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henny 0 Posted September 21, 2005 it's under an hours job to swap the cat over... the worst bit is getting the old lambda probe out. You'll get away without having a cat for the MOT, so just bung in a £50 decat pipe and rest assured that you'll never have to change it again... ;) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
logicaltuning 0 Posted September 21, 2005 You'll get away without having a cat for the MOT, unfortunatly not, the car is after a 1992 K and so - if fitted with a cat from the factory has to have a cat present at the mot. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dr Forinor 0 Posted September 21, 2005 You'll get away without having a cat for the MOT, unfortunatly not, the car is after a 1992 K and so - if fitted with a cat from the factory has to have a cat present at the mot. That's what I was thinking... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henny 0 Posted September 21, 2005 you WILL get away with it though, the emissions on the car will be low enough for it to pass the test if the engine is healthy without the need for a cat... My somewhat non-standard G60 will still pass the emissions test for a car with cat even though it's kicking out more than 70BHP over standard and hasn't got a cat! :lol: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
s.g 0 Posted September 21, 2005 but it is a legal requirement to have the cat fitted as logicaltuning states even if the emissions low Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
W3RKD 0 Posted September 21, 2005 but it is a legal requirement to have the cat fitted as logicaltuning states even if the emissions low incorrect.... cars from 92 onwards must pass the stricter emissions test be it with or without cat... henny is correct.... as bloody normal. :wink: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
s.g 0 Posted September 21, 2005 i stand corrected :oops: i have just checked it out on google. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted September 21, 2005 i stand corrected i have just checked it out on google. I think it's VOSA who issue MOT's mate, not Google :lol: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stevemac 0 Posted September 21, 2005 I think it's VOSA who issue MOT's mate, not Google :lol:Never one to miss a joke, ehh Steve .. :lol: :lol: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted September 21, 2005 It was meant to be pointing out that not everything read on the Internet is correct... but you know what I mean! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
basket-case 0 Posted September 22, 2005 bl00dy hell ! you lot are quite exitable aren't you :lol: so, am I being stitched up!? :roll: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted September 22, 2005 Hmmm - I'd be tempted to go to an exhaust / MOT place and get them to take it off, rip out the internals and stick it back on and get the gas analyser out to check the emissions... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henny 0 Posted September 22, 2005 g-man :lol: Supercharged, yup, I'd go with that one too, deffo the cheaper way of doing it as you'll only need a gasket (about £3) and a little bit of labour and it'll look original too if you ever get an arse of a mechanic who tries to tell you that you must have a cat... It's quite a common misconception that you MUST have a cat to pass an MOT after August '92... You don't, it just means that you are subject to the stricter UK emission tests (as g-man points out) which most cars with Lambda probes will pass anyway without the cat... 8) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
colinstubbs 0 Posted September 23, 2005 certainly sounds like it! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CorradoVR6-Turbo 0 Posted September 24, 2005 God I hate mechanics :( HEY ! there is nothing wrong with mechanics-like me :wink: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
basket-case 0 Posted September 24, 2005 sorry james,really shouldn't tar everyone with the same brush, unless you like that sort of thing !!! :lol: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
-Neil- 0 Posted September 27, 2005 I have a K reg 2ltr 16v. With what i have read does this mean i can get a de-cat pipe and my emissions will be ok 100%? Oh and does it improve performance or running? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henny 0 Posted September 27, 2005 -Neil-, to be honest, the Cat on a Corrado isn't that restrictive so you won't free up much (if any) power by decatting the car alone on a none forced induction car (ie no turbo or supercharger) . However, if you're planning on gas flowing/porting the rest of the engine and doing a load of other modifications, then it's one to add to the end of the list... ;) As I said above, the odds are that just about all Corrados will pass the emissions test without a cat as long as it's running spot on. If it's not running right, the de-cat will highlight it on the emissions test so you do run a risk of it failing... It's not something you can say 100% that a car will pass/fail every time not knowing the car personally... however, if the cat's already dead, then you haven't got a lot to loose trying a decat pipe over a replacement cat... ;) Hell, if it then turns out you need the cat to get your car through, you can sell the bypass pipe on afterwards... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stevemac 0 Posted September 27, 2005 I have a fully functional, spare (used) G60 CAT - according to popular opinion, it's the same as the 2.0-16v one. I removed it from my car when I fitted a CAT bypass pipe. £20 basket-case has first refusal, since she created this thread. I don't really want to post it anywhere as that's likely to damage it. Collection from Birmingham would be the order of the day. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites