BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

A lil' bit of ranting and venting required here... I had a nasty exhaust leak coming from the weld on the front of the catalytic converter. I figured I'd just get it welded up for now and see how long it lasts. I finally took it in today to get it welded and of course the guy goes you need a new cat 500 bucks. I said no pal just weld it up for now I'll invest in a new cat once your awesome weld rots out which it will. So, he hesitantly welded it up instead of making me spend 500 bucks which I wouldn't do anyway since I can order a random cat for 360 shipped. He told me 30 bucks under the table to weld it I said sweet I'll walk over to a bank and grab some cash. I came back to discover that he cut off the catalytic heat shield instead of removing the few bolts that hold it. GRRR... He said it was seized on and I told him I had it off the other day to look at it. I'm gonna leave this short but I'm rather pissed off about that since it's the only heat shield on the car that matters.
On the bright side the car no longer soundsd like a diesel.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

why did he have to even take it off? and if you mean the big shield that goes above the cat, its useless. the ones that matter are the two small ones that cover directly over the converter to keep it hot.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

Oh no, they cut off the one that goes around the converter... They did this because they had to weld behind it a little bit.. It split pretty good. I'm looking into ordering a Random Tech cat now that has the shield built in.

MindBomber

dude, wtf.

did he just cut the bolts or the whole shield?

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

He literally cut the whole shield in half.

MindBomber

Why would he do that! Even if the bolts are seized you can just cut them in half and the shield will come off!

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

I haven't a clue, but now the cat is exposed lol... oh well... A nice stainless steel cat will be on order within a month I think. I just hope the Random bolts on directly to the stock exhaust... and it should last a lot longer. 360 dollars shipped to Canada is pretty badass considering they want 500 bucks for a crappy random make at the exhaust shop. I can install it myself with a hacksaw and a couple hours lol

lazlong

Sorry bro. F-ing mechanics. lol. Maybe it's time to use that $360 to buy a little welder and start praticing.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

You know whats funny is I was thinking the same thing Not today though, with two kids and a house I'm way too busy to start learning something new lol

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

just get new heatshields. ive heard all sorts of bad things about random tech cats.

xRiCeBoYx

iTrader: (22)

I haven't had any problems with mine. The only reason I had to replace it is because my car was misfiring really bad, and it killed my cat.

MindBomber

The only bad things I've heard about random cats are the uber cheap ebay brand ones.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

I dont mean a random cat Austin. Random Technologies is a company that makes aftermarket stainless high flow catalytic converters... which is what I'm looking to get. Now, I haven't heard much bad about them and they have a hell of a good reputation. Also, its a good 100 dollars cheaper than a random cat from an exhaust company... I'm going to look into it and probably order one since the guy didn't weld the leak properly. I think my car has just about had it, it sounds like hell I need to get my throttle body cleaned I'm goign to do that tommorow and give the car a good detail since its supposed to be sunny and hella warm. I think I'm starting to hear some pretty nasty bearing noises coming from the bottom end.

http://www.dezod.com/pd_random_technology_hiflow.cfm

MindBomber

^Someone named their company Random Technologies, that's very confusing :S.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

Yup, they make some pretty nice cats I guess. If I do have to replace it thats the route I'm going... I'd hate to replace the cat and then find out the engine is on it's way out. I don't plan to do another D17 again.

xRiCeBoYx

iTrader: (22)

they're 50 state legal, except on OBD2 vehicles in Cali

MindBomber

Do you think it's that bad?

Hows your oil look, is there a lot of brass?

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

Well... I'm going to be cleaning the cars tommorow and diagnosing. My wife was backing it into the driveway and there is a lot of noise coming from the bottom end and it doesnt sound healthy. The car has 110k miles on it basically all revving 4k on the highway. I wouldnt be surprised if its on its way out. Not a huge deal if it does go, just means its out of comission for a month or so... which is not a big deal since I have two cars. Hopefully it's not as bad as I think it is but bearing noise is hard to miss. The engine also has a ton of movement during idle which isn't exactly normal too so I'm going to clean the throttle body and see if that helps. Oil looks good, just very dark which is normal. I did however let it get a little low recently, it caught me off guard because it's never burned oil before and its only been about 4k KMS since the last oil change... I was down about a quart, just a bit off the bottom of the dipstick. Ive put about 800kms on it since I topped it up and it seems to have burned a bit more again.

The civic **** storm has begun.... thanks Kenny!!!

xRiCeBoYx

iTrader: (22)

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

^ LOL... I edited that post like 6 times damnit

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

non, it's called self-opening pandora box
you don't open it, come the time, it will open itself up.
I am getting close... hope it survives until i get to TN...

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

If your car starts to break down or do funny ****. It will forever be Kenny' fault. He's like the grim reaper to Civics.

The best thing is appareantly he isn't here to defend himself lol

MindBomber

Maybe that k20 swap is going to happen sooner than you thought.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

Well.. we will see... I'm going to run it until it doesnt run at all any more lol.. When your in the car it runs great its when your outside its like WTF is wrong with that thing ! I never noticed before because the exhaust leak covered up all the noise.

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

well, i would get a spare engine to work in it as soon as possible, after it dies it's just crazy...

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

I agree but a K20 isnt in the budget until next february... I plan to buy one outright at that point... I'm going to buy the mounts and other stuff in the meantime

MindBomber

The mounts are to damn over priced.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

I know but what other options are there? Give me some ideas and I'll do it. They have gone hella up in price in the last couple years too.

MindBomber

I don't know, but k-swaps were done before hasport started manufacturing overpriced mounts. I know the guy out of nova scotia with the DC5 conversion welded on stock DC5 mounts, which is a bit sketchy, but I might try using dc5 mounts bolted to the frame with backing plates. I've never actually looked at a dc5/ep3 mount up against my unibody, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

At least the earlier gen civics with k-swaps have the option running without a sub frame.

BlueEM2

iTrader: (1)

Hmm this is true... I'm not a big fan of making parts myself. I'm going to have a hard enough time swapping the engine in without having to make my own mounts ... I mean, I can do it but it will take time. I read over the DIY yesterday a couple times and shook my head .. This **** is gonna take me a month to do I'm not even gonna get a KPRO at the start.