Rep Power: 0

Ok so i have an 01 civic lx with a cracked manifold, id like to buy a after market one on ebay but cant really afford one, so i was looking at buying a used one from ebay but the used one generally dont come with the catalytic converter and im not sure if my catalytic converter is bad or not. Ive had a crack in manifold for a long time but the car recently got louder with more fumes entering the cabin. I took it to shop and they said they couldnt find any leaks that the manifold was getting worse. Thing is im scared to buy a used manifold without the converter, get it and them tell me my cat is bad too. How can i tell if my cat is ok and i can just buy the manifold by itself. When i look at the manifold it doesnt look any worse then it has for the last year, thats why im thinking maybe my cat has gotton bad which might explain why the car has gotton louder and im smelling more fumes now. idk.I cant really see the cat to examine it because of heat shield over it.
I basically only need this car for another 10 months and am looking for a cheap solution. Transmission on the car has been acting up for the last year so im only keeping it for a little while longer.

 
Rep Power: 210

if your CEL is not coming on and your engine is running fine, i would assume your cat is fine, if you dont need the car for that much longer i would just replace the header, why spend more money then nessessary?

 
Rep Power: 244

If you have an Lx then the converter is built into the exhaust manifold. If you replace the manifold you replace the converter and visa versa. I would agree that the converter is probably ok if you do not have a CEL but the Lx has the "manicat" going on.

 
Rep Power: 0

I looked at the headers on ebay but there not much cheaper then the manifold+ converter on there. And yes its an lx.

 
Rep Power: 244

If you buy just the headers then you will loose your cat. CEL,failed emissions, pollution...

Basically your only option is to buy a converter/manifold. If you buy headers you will also need to buy a cat, which can be welded into the existing exhaust. Might as well just buy the manifold with cat.

 
Rep Power: 519

Braze the cracks closed?

 
Rep Power: 257

brazing is just a baind-aid though it won't last very long then your back to square one. unless your just looking for a quick fix to pass emissions i would just replace everything.