That is very tempting. My only concern is that I get caught with it, and I end up needing to buy the stock one after all. I've got two different smog shops I use, one is pretty lenient, but even he looks under the car. I don't know of he's looking for that tag with the code, or just looking for a bulge in the pipe that looks like a cat...

 

UPDATE: Ok, I started thinking about how the CAT works. It's a honeycomb shaped screen inside a round tube. The screen is covered with a precious metal. If the metal is worn off, it's toast and needs to be replaced. BUT, what if it's just covered/plugged with carbon, dirt, etc???

I removed the CAT from my wife's VW and poured a bottle of Sea Foam inside. I rolled it around for a while until I was confident it had reached every surface inside.

I then poured a bottle of Awesome Cleaner inside. This is from the Dollar Store and actually only costs $1. I did the same and rolled it around and back and forth until I was confident it had reached every surface inside.

I placed the exhaust (Full Pipe and CAT) into a clean garbage can and filled it with water.

I then proceeded to pump it up and down like those girls at the Weenie Shops in the mall making Lemon Aid for about 10 mins. This rushed water back and forth through the honeycomb.

I then took my pressure washer and poked it down into the converter (Against the normal flow so as to be washing backwards, just in case it was plugged on the incoming side) and sprayed it out for a while until the bubbles stopped coming out and then finished with a good rinse from a hose.

I installed the CAT back into the car and started it. It smoked like crazy, just as if I had just done a Sea Foam treatment on it. I drove it for about 20 mins until it stopped smoking.

I reset the computer and had my wife drive it for the next few days to see if the P0420 (CAT not working) code came back. It never did.

I just returned home from the smog shop where I got a clean bill of health!!! I'm SO excited, as I dodged a $1000 replacement CAT!

 

Call me a tree killer, but I run catless. My state has no inspections. When and if they ever do I will buy universal and weld it up.

 

My Volvo is catless, but I hate the smell. The disco has factory cats.

 

Believe me, if I could have done either of those, I would have in a heartbeat!

 

Everyone looks at you funny when you pull up? I swear, it wasn't ME!

 

I'm from Down Under, so can someone tell me why the hell some punk is stealing CATs???

 

Money. Catalytic converters from a European car can have a scrap value of $150 or more each. I think I got $75 for a cheap Honda cat that had gone bad.

 

Anyone know where to buy a cordless sawzall???

Just kidding, geez there are some scum around... Lucky they either haven't cottoned on down here, or are too lazy. Thank goodness I drive a CATless TD5

 

The sawzall is exactly what they do. Because of this, my smog shop has warnings on the wall about this problem. They say Toyota 4x4 are hit the most, due to demand, and ease of access without jacking up. I'm guessing ease of access makes the rover a target too. My smog guy actually welded a plate under the cat to prevent theft on his Toyota. Seems a bit extreme, but maybe he'll be the lucky survivor.

Also, in my area, scrap yards cannot accept cats except from authorized dealers... Also on the bulletin.