05-16-2016, 01:25 PM | #1 |
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Drives: 2012 Camaro 2SS w/ RS & M6 Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Addison, TX
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Cat replacement nightmare. Need advice on next steps
My wife has a 2011 V6. The cats went bad right around 80,000 miles, so we bought a set of high-flow cats that were manufactured specifically for the LLT from Solo Performance. The CEL kept coming back on saying one of the cats was bad (P0420 code), so we took it to a local performance shop to have them tune the ECU to make the car pass inspection. The shop tried every combination of emissions tune they had and every single one prevented the OBD state from being "Ready", which means the vehicle will not pass inspection. They are telling me my only option is to buy a set of OEM cats and replace the high-flows. This is going to more than double the cost of the high flow cats.
Has anyone ever successfully put aftermarket cats on their LLT? If so, was there any trick to get it to work? Am I really going to have to pay for OEM cats for $1300 just to get the ECU to allow me to pass inspection? We are 2 months past our inspection date now and have been trying to get the car to pass for 3 months. Im desperate...
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05-16-2016, 04:11 PM | #2 |
Drives: 2011 1LT/RS A6 RJT SuperCharged Join Date: Mar 2011
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05-16-2016, 04:37 PM | #3 | |
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Drives: 2012 Camaro 2SS w/ RS & M6 Join Date: Nov 2011
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Quote:
Has anyone ever seen a tune that failed to allow the ECU to pass the internal catalyst test? An OBD scan shows the Catalyst and Evap test as incomplete, but all other tests have passed. No matter how far we drive, the test will not mark as complete in the computer
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05-16-2016, 05:08 PM | #4 |
Drives: 2011 RS Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Florence New Jersey
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Did you replace the stock cats with the SOLOs because of that code? Maybe it's the Oxygen sensors. I've had SOLOs for years on my LLT, although I didn't replace them because of codes. I have a HYPERTECH tuner that can clear any codes. I don't know if that would help your situation.
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05-16-2016, 06:46 PM | #5 | |
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Quote:
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05-17-2016, 03:48 AM | #6 |
Drives: 2010 V6 | M6 Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: new york
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Not sure if this would be helpful but sharing it anyway.
I got CEL when I switched to high flow cats, but I also have full length headers so the rear O2 sensors would provide inaccurate information to trigger the CEL etc. I was able to take care of it with Trifecta Tune. I never got a CEL again for having the headers and high flow cats. Since then I have passed New York State inspection twice without any problems. Therefore, I think you just need the proper tune to take care of the CEL. Good luck! Edit: If you were local I could have sold you my original cats for a decent price. ~30K miles on them. So if you can't get the right tune for whatever reason then your other option is to check Craiglist/Ebay to see if you can find used OEM cats in good shape.
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05-17-2016, 08:00 AM | #7 | |
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Quote:
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05-17-2016, 10:48 AM | #8 |
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Rock auto has the CC's for 263.xx ea side .
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05-17-2016, 11:03 AM | #9 |
[COTW 4/13/15]
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05-17-2016, 05:17 PM | #10 |
Consistently inconsistent
Drives: 2015 2LT Summit White Join Date: May 2015
Location: United States
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readiness after a whole reset can take a while. Some states allow up to two "not ready" states in the ECU as long as no codes are present. Tuning out the CEL doesn't fool inspections, it just makes you feel better about your car not running properly.
Some drive cycles have very specific and bizarre criteria- google "gm readiness drive cycle" and you'll see several examples. Seems as if someone would just look at your live data they could determine if you have a lazy or bad downstream o2 sensor. That's the ONLY way the ecu would get the idea you have a cat efficiency problem.
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