I drive a 99 Honda Accord and 2 years ago I failed my inspection

Not unless it clogs up

>>16007042
if it's tripping the CEL it's def having a negative impact on your mpg's and efficiency

>>16007042
It depends. If the catalytic converter is just worn out, then it won't cause any problems. If it's clogged, though, then it can lead to lower efficiency.

I have removed the cat on 4/5 cars I've owned, they serve no purpose other than to clean exhaust gas and rob you of 1 to 10 horsepower.

The only thing bad that can happen, as mentioned above, is your cat can clog after enough time and your engine will run hotter and will start failing if the water system can't keep up.

>>16007100
bullshit
most modern cars benefit from a cat as it evens back pressure and helps with scavenging

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>>16007111
Not true.

Pass thermodynamics at an engineering school and come back to me. Or just go catless and see for yourself. On my first car (pic related), just taking the single cat out dropped my quarter mile time from 16.1s one week to 15.4s the next. ( I lived 10 miles from a $10 all-friday-night quarter mile strip)

>>16007059
How do you know if it's clogged?

>>16007070
But is it life threatening?

I don't feel like putting almost $800 into this car cause it already has 210,000 miles on it. Might as well sell it and get a new car.

>>16007231
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Is+my+catalytic+converter+clogged

>>16007235
Replacing a catalytic converter literally involves removing the nuts from 4 bolts under your car, swapping the pipe out, and putting the bolts and nuts back. Do it when the exhaust is cold; when hot the bolts like to deform or get soft and strip.

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes.
Swap time: 2-4 minutes. 10-20 if rusted as fuck.

>>16007259
Okay awesome I'll do it myself then thanks!

Would you just buy a catalytic converter at an autozone or do I need additional new parts and pieces?

>>16007369
Find one online, or get one from a crashed same-model car if you're super cheap. Or pay 2-3x as much at autozone.

You may want to replace the small gaskets that go between the exhaust pieces, but that's it.

>>16007231
A clogged cat is obvious, and they kinda just suddenly happen; sometimes they won't throw a cel code.

Basically you'll be putting around like everything is nice and dandy, and then suddenly it'll feel like you're enjoying running out of gas. Engine will sputter ,and if you're lucky, will have enough power to get you to the side of the road. When you cut it off, it'll be like a bunch of coal crumbs falling out.

At least this is what happened when a cat failed on my silverado.

>>16007259
>Replacing a catalytic converter literally involves removing the nuts from 4 bolts under your car, swapping the pipe out, and putting the bolts and nuts back
In theory, yes.

The reality on an almost 20 year old car will include seized and broken fasteners even in area that don't use deicer on the roads. You could literally end up having to pull the head for thread repair on exhaust manifold bolt holes if you're even moderately unlucky. If OP lives in an area where they do use deicer then he's gonna have a bad time.

>>16007419
There's a reason most shops cut and weld em on.

>>16007419
I doubt the cat on a 99 accord is connected to the exhaust manifold, it's likely a standalone piece.

I live in Alabama and removing the cat from my over-20 year-old miata was easy as fuck because no snow/salt/rust, I just soaked them with PB blaster for 5 min before doing it.

>>16007416
>>16007419
Okay I'll just save up the money and pay the cost for it. Car is still in great shape to put that money into it and save it for a little longer

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>>16007444
Yep, it's just a tiny section of the exhaust directly under the car with no impediments. Looks easy as fuck to me.