Mike’s Automotive certainly helps that you are not the victim of catalytic converter theft, but this theft is becoming more and more common every day. If you park your automobile in a public space long enough for someone to saw out your catalytic converter, you may notice the following problems as a result. The first thing you should do if you believe the catalytic converter is gone is call the police. Next, give your auto insurance carrier a call to see if they will cover the damage.
Boisterous Engine
Unfortunately, you will know right away that something isn’t right because your engine will suddenly be extremely loud and roaring. This boisterous engine is a sign that the catalytic converter is missing because it is not there to absorb the noise of the exhaust being forced out of the engine.
Acceleration Lag
If you decide to drive your automobile despite the loud noise, you will notice that the engine gets louder when you accelerate yet your acceleration lags. In fact, your automobile will jerk when it tries to accelerate. This, too, is the force of the exhaust exiting the engine into the space where the catalytic converter once was. This force causes your automobile to lurch forward.
Slow-Speed Lag
You will also notice lagging when you are driving slowly. The missing catalytic converter creates a problem for the engine when it tries to produce low-end torque. This is the power your engine has when you are driving at slow speeds. As your vehicle picks up speed, it will stop lagging because the engine can produce high-end torque without the catalytic converter.
Check Engine Light
As you can imagine, there are all sorts of communications between your automobile’s system sensors and the main computer chip. As the vehicle struggles to run and continues to roar, the sensors send malfunction codes to the main computer chip because there’s a flurry of things that are going wrong. The computer chip will turn on the check engine light because it cannot fix the problems.
Strong Exhaust Odors
Finally, rather than attempting to drive your automobile, call for a tow truck. It is dangerous to drive a vehicle that does not have a catalytic converter because the engine’s exhaust can waft into the passenger cabin. When this happens, you will inhale carbon monoxide while you are driving.
Call Mike’s Automotive in Del City, OK, today if you suspect that someone has stolen your catalytic converter. We will inspect the exhaust system and replace the converter and repair the damage.
