Many automotive homeowners consider that if the ceramic cleansing block hasn’t crumbled or melted, it’s working usually. This is a typical false impression. After mileage of 100 thousand kilometers, the interior construction of the factor can keep bodily integrity however fully lose the power to neutralize dangerous substances.
At the identical time, sensors present secure values, and the engine begins to function with deviations from manufacturing unit gas map parameters.
What Happens to the Active Layer During Long-Term Operation
Inside the honeycombs, a coating of platinum, palladium, and rhodium is utilized — these metals guarantee chemical reactions for changing poisonous gases. Over time, excessive temperatures and chemical aggression result in sintering of treasured steel particles. They collect into massive agglomerates, and the energetic floor space sharply decreases. Visually, the honeycombs look excellent, however catalysis virtually doesn’t happen.
If the factor now not performs its perform, don’t rush to throw it away. There is money for catalytic converter on specialised platforms like Autocatalyst, the place they purchase used components for extracting treasured metals. There you may as well examine present costs within the catalog and perceive how a lot you may realistically get to your particular mannequin.
How the Control Unit Reacts to the Neutralizer’s Silence
The ECU consistently compares readings from the entrance and rear lambda sensors. When the energetic layer degrades, the second sensor begins to register the identical fluctuations as the primary — the cleansing system stops smoothing oxygen pulsations within the gasoline circulation. The laptop interprets this as inadequate combination enrichment and corrects gas supply towards enhance.
Here are attribute indicators of hidden degradation with out bodily destruction:
- Gradual consumption enhance by 10-15% over a number of months.
- Loss of throttle response within the mid-load vary.
- Increased warm-up time to working temperature.
- Periodic hesitation throughout sharp acceleration.
- Unstable idle pace within the first minutes after beginning.
- Smell of unburned gas from the tailpipe.
The worst half is {that a} diagnostic scanner gained’t present any errors. The system formally works, sensors ship alerts, simply the character of those alerts has modified.
Consequences of Driving with a Non-Working Element
Constant over-enriched combination results in coking of the combustion chamber. Hard deposits type on valves, disrupting their tightness. Oil loses its properties sooner on account of unburned gas coming into the crankcase.
Checking the energetic layer situation is feasible solely with an endoscope or by analyzing CO and CH content material in emissions. If values exceed the norm with working sensors, most probably the neutralizer has already degraded, even when it appears intact.
