The Magnaflwo 94306 didn't fit easily in my exhaust, was a bit too big. I ordered a Magnaflow 33106, which is part of their new "oem-grade" series. Works good, the bad exhaust smell went away, and I have no CEL yet - and easyobdII says that the converter tests are completed woohoo

Will report if I get a CEL later, but for now

1) Magnaflow 33106 (radu)
2) California (2cat) OBD-II, running just this cat gives no CEL
3) exhaust is clean

 

I still have no CEL with this cat, and I just passed state inspection (they check stuff through OBD2).

 

You get any pics of it?

Did it have the o2 sensor port?

 

No o2 ports. don't have an actual pic, it looks like a cat lol Here's the page for it:
http://www.car-sound.com/02product/display...universal=33106

Unfortunately i don't think there's an equivalent cat for 2.25" or 3"

 

wow, thats awesome..

no CEL
no shit smell
turbocharged
and passing OBD-II inspections

good deal man!

 

Well I tried a different map for a bit and it was way too rich, and after that I started getting a couple of CELs, including the low catalyst cel (P0422). I might have damaged the cat a little bit and decreased its efficiency or something.. just thought I should let people know. Lucky I was smart enough to try this stuff after the inspection lol Will update whether this is a temporary problem or I if it will keep showing up

 

All of the aftermarket cats should work with no CEL as long as they're the proper size. Just check the GVWR for the cat you're looking at. You want it to be around 4500Lbs. or less. Any higher and the cat will be too large to heat up enough to convert your exhaust. You also need it installed as close to the motor as you can get it without compromising flow. Right after your collector is the best spot for it. If found that most people who have CEL's with a cat are either running one for a vehicle twice the size of their or the cat is right where your resonator should be (too far downstream).

It's also important to get a cat that has the same diameter as your piping. Most of the increased performance from a HFC comes from the increased piping diameter rather than from the internal differences.

 

I still have no CEL (it was only a temporary problem), so I would recommend this cat to anyone looking for a 2.5" one (magnaflow 33106).

i8acobra, you mentioned this GVWR thing in the other converter thread, there are a couple of models which have been tried by people on this forum which have the right GVWR and still give out a CEL..

Honestly I don't buy the weight storry, at constant highway driving (where really the ECU does the catalyst tests) the amount of exhaust shouldn't differ that much between vehicles (consumption mostly determined by air resistance and engine efficiency not vehicle weight).

 

It's not the amount of the exhaust, it's the mass of the material in the cat. The GVWR doesn't effect the exhaust itself, it effects the size of the biscuit inside the cat. A cat for a larger car is going to have a larger biscuit. More mass requires more heat energy to raise it to a specific temperature. If the cat never reaches proper operating temp, the reading after the cat will look like the cat is bad.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (radu_rd2 @ May 15 2009, 07:28 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I am looking for a good 2.5" cat converter for our cars but there are so many models and stuff, and nobody seems to know for sure what is best.

Magnaflow has a huge line of converters. Some are supposed to be ODB-II, California compliant, but are more expensive (around $200). I would buy one if I knew for sure it works well. They also have a line of "OEM-grade" converters, which are supposed to be better than the regular universals. Still, there are a ton of models to choose from.
Denis (atelierhp) recommended the "mirror polish series", like 94306. Any actual experience with these?

I thought we could make this a review thread; please post
1) what cat converter you had
2) whether or not you had a CEL
3) whether or not you noticed the exhaust smelling bad/different than stock

Please post even if you weren't satisfied with the cat you had, so we know not to buy it smile.gif




I know from this thread http://www.rdtiburon.com/index.php?showtopic=27769&st=0 that DTN has

1) Magnaflow 94105
2) had a CEL, might have been due to a nitrous problem though
3) very clean exhaust


Note that the last digit in the Magnaflow models is the pipe size (5 = 2.25, 6 = 2.5, 9 = 3), so you can get the same converter in any pipe size</div>

I assume your worried about passing a california smog check. If its a CARB tiburon like my 2001 then you have 2 cats on the car. 1 right after the exhaust manifold and another underneath the car after the 2nd O2 sensor. You can take that second cat off and replace it with straight pipe. Then when it's time to smog your car, toss the old cat back on if it fails the smog test or if you want to pass without problems. Also remove the resonator that is before the muffler and replace that with straight pipe. You won't have to put that back on for a smog test.