A high-flow catalytic converter functions similarly to a normal catalytic converter but is tasked with catalyzing the exhaust flow at a quicker pace. Just like a normal catalytic converter, a high-flow unit uses a honeycomb design to filter the exhaust gasses, so in order to the job at a quicker rate, a high-flow catalytic usually has a larger cross-section of the honeycomb material in it or uses larger passages so that more gasses can flow through it.
What does it cost to fix a catalytic converter?
Unfortunately, when your catalytic converter goes bad the cost of getting it fixed can be quite steep. On average, the cost of repairing a catalytic converter can range between $900 and about $2,500. You can save yourself some money on a catalytic converter if you buy an aftermarket converter rather than an OEM part.
What is the service life of a catalytic converter?
The catalytic converter, which converts harmful emissions into harmless gas, often lasts 10 years or longer and should be replaced only when needed. It can become clogged, physically damaged, or contaminated by oil or engine coolant.
What are the benefits of catalytic converters?
- Decreased horsepower – the engine uses more energy for the converter and for burning the elements;
- Reduced gas mileage – again, the catalyst slows down the circulation process of the emissions leading to a higher consumption of fuel;
- Engine overheating – from the additional need to burn more.
What gases come out of a catalytic converter?
The catalytic converter uses precious metals and high heat to oxidize and reduce harmful emissions, converting them into safer compounds like H2O, CO2, nitrogen (N2).
Does high flow catalytic converter make car louder?
Well-Known Member. High flow cats will be a tad bit louder for sure. Depending on what you find loud, it may not be a significant amount however.
How do I know if my catalytic converter is high flow?
0:000:38DIFFERENCE between “high flow catalytic converter” vs stockYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipI'll show you the difference between a high flow catalytic converter. And a normal one if you lookMoreI'll show you the difference between a high flow catalytic converter. And a normal one if you look at the honeycomb. Inside the high flow you can see how big the holes.
Do you need a tune for high flow catalytic converters?
No high flow cats do not require a tune. As you are well aware, they will be optimized with a tune.
Can you pass emissions with a high flow catalytic converter?
Nope it won't pass. If you live in California, I feel bad for you cause you can't have as much fun. So limited.
How much horsepower can a high flow catalytic converter add?
A stock exhaust might be restrictive to the full power of a high-flow catalytic converter. In fact, a high-flow catalytic converter is ideal for a car that's turbocharged or supercharged. Before adding a high-flow cat, your car should be able to produce 20% more horsepower than its stock setting.
Whats better high flow cats or no cats?
There are no noticeable performance gains in using off-road pipes (no cats) over high flow cats. If you go with no cats it will sound a bit raspier (my opinion), and your car will smell (fact). The smell is unburnt fuel, oil, etc.
Do high flow cats improve MPG?
HFC should theoretically improve your mileage as they increase the engines efficiency, that's to say as long as you can keep your right foot out of the pedal.
Will a high flow cat cause a check engine light?
Typically when installing a higher flowing catalytic converter you will gain some extra exhaust volume, usually around about 15-20% louder without any other changes to the exhaust. The other issue to deal with is going to be a check engine light and a P0420 engine code - Catalyst efficiency below threshold.
How long do high flow catalytic converters last?
The truth is, on modern vehicles, the catalytic converter should last the life of the car or truck, given an "average" life of about 100,000 miles (160,934 kilometers). Good thing, too, because this auto part uses rare, precious and therefore expensive metals such as gold, palladium or rhodium.
Is a high-flow cat worth it?
A high-flow cat is ideal if your vehicle is heavily modified or turbocharged since the extra airflow can help in adding more power. A high-flow catalytic converter is better than a normal cat. It increases horsepower, minimizes toxic gasses from your car, and roars a car's engine with a great tune.
Does high-flow cat change sound?
Changing to long-tube headers along with the required x-pipe and high-flow cats will make for a louder exhaust tone at wide-open throttle but not change the exhaust tone much during normal driving. However, just replacing the stock cats with aftermarket high-flow cats might not change the sound at all.
Will hi flow cats pass smog?
HF cats will not pass the visual inspection since they do not have a CARB number. The Solo units install in the stock location, so the inspector would really have to be on their game... but to the letter of the law, no they will not pass.
What does a high flow cat look like?
0:093:49Best High Flow Catalytic Converter - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThis piece can be easily installed on most vehicles since it is a universal oem style this catalyticMoreThis piece can be easily installed on most vehicles since it is a universal oem style this catalytic converter features a honeycomb structure inside its ceramic monolith core weighs just four pounds.
Does high flow cat change sound?
Changing to long-tube headers along with the required x-pipe and high-flow cats will make for a louder exhaust tone at wide-open throttle but not change the exhaust tone much during normal driving. However, just replacing the stock cats with aftermarket high-flow cats might not change the sound at all.
Will a high flow cat cause a check engine light?
Typically when installing a higher flowing catalytic converter you will gain some extra exhaust volume, usually around about 15-20% louder without any other changes to the exhaust. The other issue to deal with is going to be a check engine light and a P0420 engine code - Catalyst efficiency below threshold.
Are MagnaFlow cats high flow?
Most MagnaFlow catalytic converters are higher than OE in flow capacity. The 400 CPI cell density of most MagnaFlow catalytic converters will out flow an OE for the same application while providing the necessary functionality.
What is a high flow catalytic converter?
A high flow catalytic converter is usually the next step in increasing exhaust system performance after installing an aftermarket system, particularly a “cat-back” system. The term cat-back is where the catalytic converter (or cat, for short) is the next link in the chain as the exhaust system is traced back towards the motor. The catalytic converter can also be one of the main “choke points” or obstructions in the exhaust system, so replacing it can yield a definite increase in horsepower and overall performance.
How does a catalytic converter work?
The way that the catalytic converter functions is simple. It forces the exhaust gasses to come in contact with a chemical catalyst, in this case the metals platinum or palladium. The catalyst causes the gasses to quickly degrade into less harmful substances, like carbon dioxide and water.
Why do performance modifications to exhaust systems always focus on increasing flow capability?
Performance modifications to the exhaust system always focus on increasing flow capability to allow the engine to breathe more easily so that it can make more power.
What is high flow unit?
High flow units typically use honeycomb designs . The flow rate can be increased either by increasing the overall cross section of the honeycomb (which allows the converter to contain more passages where the chemical reaction can take place) or widening the passages (which allows exhaust gasses to flow more freely).
What Is A High Flow Catalytic Converter?
It’s a win-win, right? This is where high flow catalytic converters come in to save the day.
How Much More Power Does A High Flow Catalytic Converter Add?
There are a vast array of variables to consider, such as what engine do you have, what sort of fuel does it burn, and whether you have other mods on it.
What Does The Catalytic Converter On Your Car Do?
Namely, that would be to scrub off the most harmful gases from the exhaust fumes, and subsequently turn them into relatively less death-inducing tailpipe emissions.
How Does The “Cat” In Your Car Work?
But how does this reaction work? In chemistry, the concept of a “catalyst” is a substance that causes or accelerates a reaction without itself being affected. Most catalytic converters today – including a high flow catalytic converter – are two-stage. As such, they have 2 different catalysts going on as part of the emissions reduction process. This is a ‘reduction’ catalyst and an ‘oxidation’ catalyst.
How Does This Affect Your Car’s Performance?
Indeed, the catalytic converter, while incredibly good at scrubbing away harmful emissions – restricts the flow of your exhaust fumes.
What is a catalytic converter?
A catalytic converter is designed to reduce harmful exhaust gasses... that's all! Basically all aftermarket cats have a ceramic substrate (the guts) that during manufacturing is coated with a solution of platinum, palladium and rhodium.
Is an aftermarket cat better than an O.E. cat?
In theory, an aftermarket cat is higher flow than it's O.E. counterpart, because the O.E. converter has a substrate made up of 700 cells per square inch, so the exhaust flow with an aftermarket converter is a little freer, but not dramatically!
Is a catalytic converter a muffler?
A catalytic converter has no moving parts nor is chambered like a mu ffler, or have elaborate packing like a muffler. It's interior is not designed to move exhaust gasses along more quickly such as having a spiral core. A catalytic converter is designed to reduce harmful exhaust gasses...that's all!
What is the purpose of a catalytic converter?
One of these changes came about in 1975 with an interesting device called a catalytic converter. The job of the catalytic converter is to convert harmful pollutants into less harmful emissions before they ever leave the car's exhaust system.
How does the oxygen sensor work in a catalytic converter?
This sensor tells the engine computer how much oxygen is in the exhaust. The engine computer can increase or decrease the amount of oxygen in the exhaust by adjusting the air-to-fuel ratio. This control scheme allows the engine computer to make sure that the engine is running at close to the stoichiometric point, and also to make sure that there is enough oxygen in the exhaust to allow the oxidization catalyst to burn the unburned hydrocarbons and CO.
How do catalysts reduce pollution?
How Catalytic Converters Reduce Pollution. In chemistry, a catalyst is a substance that causes or accelerates a chemical reaction without itself being affected. Catalysts participate in the reactions, but are neither reactants nor products of the reaction they catalyze.
Why are catalytic converters harmful?
Because the combustion process is never perfect, some smaller amounts of more harmful emissions are also produced in car engines. Catalytic converters are designed to reduce all three: Carbon mon oxide (CO) is a poisonous gas that is colorless and odorless.
What is a catalyst in chemistry?
In chemistry, a catalyst is a substance that causes or accelerates a chemical reaction without itself being affected. Catalysts participate in the reactions, but are neither reactants nor products of the reaction they catalyze. In the human body, enzymes are naturally occurring catalysts responsible for many essential biochemical reactions [source: Chemicool ].
What is the stoichiometric ratio of gasoline?
Theoretically, at this ratio, all of the fuel will be burned using all of the oxygen in the air. For gasoline, the stoichiometric ratio is about 14.7:1, meaning that for each pound of gasoline, 14.7 pounds of air will be burned. The fuel mixture actually varies from the ideal ratio quite a bit during driving.
How to reduce emissions in cars?
In order to reduce emissions, modern car engines carefully control the amount of fuel they burn. They try to keep the air-to-fuel ratio very close to the stoichiometric point, which is the ideal ratio of air to fuel. Theoretically, at this ratio, all of the fuel will be burned using all of the oxygen in the air.
Why is my catalytic converter not flowing?
Part of the problem is that the catalytic converter isn't always designed with your specific vehicle performance in mind, and part of the problem is that some catalytic converters aren't flowing well because they're old, they're cheaply constructed, etc. If, for example, you've got a discount after-market catalytic converter installed, ...
What Do High Flow Cats Do?
A regular catalytic converter works by having the exhaust gasses flow through a ceramic honeycomb structure that is coated in various rare metals. These materials are mainly Platinum, Palladium and Rhodium. As the gasses come into contact with these metals, they undergo a chemical reaction that essentially "re-burns" the exhaust to eliminate nitrous oxides, sulfur oxides, and carbon monoxide as much as possible. This, in turn, makes the exhaust gases quite a bit cleaner.
Are High Flow Cats Worth Buying?
If you have a bone-stock vehicle with a relatively new OE catalytic converter, you only want to buy high flow catalytic converters if you're planning for major engine upgrades. They're just not that important on stock engines with newer, fully functioning catalytic converters.
Can you use a high flow catalytic converter on a modified car?
But if you have a modified car with significantly more engine power than stock (20% increase or better), you will almost certainly see improved engine power switching to high flow catalytic converters (especially top-end performance as measured on a dyno). If you've added a supercharger or turbocharger to your vehicle - or substantially increased the boost of an existing supercharger or turbo - you'll likely find high flow cats a good investment in terms of maximizing vehicle horsepower.
Can you have a stock catalytic converter with no modifications?
However, if you have a stock engine with no modifications, and relatively new OEM catalytic converters, you won't see much of performance increase going with high flow cats. The catalytic converters on a stock vehicle (especially a newer stock vehicle) just aren't that restrictive until there have been significant performance upgrades.
Can you get power from exhaust gasses?
Even if your vehicle is already heavily modified, you might be missing out on some power via the exhaust flow. Just as you won't get as much power from your engine if it’s struggling to get air into it, the same is true for the exhaust gasses . This is where a high flow catalytic converter comes into play. However, many wonder if high flow cats are worth the investment -- here's the breakdown.
Do high flow catalytic converters help with gas mileage?
Finally, bear in mind that high flow catalytic converters often boost fuel economy on performance vehicles. While it's hard to say how big of an improvement you'll get, they could very well pay for themselves in reduced gas bills.
6 Top Best High-Flow Catalytic Converters Comparisons
The Walker Exhaust Ultra EPA 16467 Direct Fit Catalytic Converter is one of the top high converters out there in the market right now; this one can be used in any car model after 1996 and has been designed for OBDII cars.
FAQs
Yes, they do, high-flow catalytic converters are state-approved, every state has rules and regulations in terms of vehicle power, a certain emission test is required to legally approve your car’s internal system to be in terms with the street rules, high flow converters provide you enough power without breaking any legal rules.
Conclusion
The above-mentioned list consists of some of the best high flow catalytic converters for your car no matter the model, each one provides an amazing feature, great specs, and excellent modification, is affordable to all classes, and can drip out every inch of power in your vehicle, all are legal enough to use.
