A catalytic converter is an important component of modern cars, as it purifies your vehicle’s exhaust gases and thus meets modern pollution standards. Nevertheless, it is possible that it may turned out to be clogged or breakdown, in which circumstance a change or cleaning is essential. Today we are going to look at how to clean a catalytic converter on BMW X5? To do this, first of all, we will describe the scenarios in which it might be interesting to clean the catalytic converter of your BMW X5, then, how to conduct this cleaning to recover the efficiency of the catalytic converter of your car.

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Why would you want to clean up the catalytic converter of your BMW X5?

In this first section we will teach you why it might be significant to clean the catalyst of your BMW X5 . Obviously for some of you it might seem obvious but the majority of you do not know how it functions and the consequences dirty catalytic converter .

Role and functioning of the catalytic converter of a BMW X5

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The catalytic converter of your BMW X5 has the function to get rid of harmful exhaust gases related to the procedure of your engine. Obviously, it is one of the main components that fight against the pollution discharged by your BMW X5. It will convert these harmful gases into water or non-polluting gases. In order to convert these gases, the catalyst of your BMW X5 a mesh of precious metals which, when the gases pass at high temperature, will break them down by chemical reaction . A catalytic converter can only work from 400°, it is consequently essential to avoid clogging the catalytic converter of your BMW X5. If you are thinking of making sufficiently long travels to heat it up repeatedly (count more than 10 kilometres for the catalyst to reach the right temperature), this will allow you to optimize the life of this component and keep best engine overall performance.

Consequences of a dirty or defective catalytic converter on BMW X5

We will now discover what can be the consequences of a dirty or failing catalytic converter on BMW X5 . This will allow you to establish the symptoms that should warn you to a breakdown of your catalytic converter, here is the list of symptoms of a defective catalytic converter:

  • The catalytic converter of your BMW X5 is clogged: As we explained earlier, if you make too short trips like 50% of people, it will not have the time to start functioning and the catalytic converter will clog up with exhaust gases.
  • Switching on the engine light: : Following a clogged catalytic converter, engine light of your BMW X5 may come on, do not hesitate to consult our content page to find out how to switch it off.
  • A defective lambda sensor : The catalyst functions in close connection with the lambda sensors downstream and upstream of it, they will analyze the air flowing inside it, if it is clogged the sensors will generally as well have problems.
  • A metallic noise coming from the exhaust: In the event that the catalyst is dead you should notice this noise which suggests that that the ceramic is damaged.

Why you should clean the catalytic converter of your BMW X5

Before we accomplish with the step you are likely most enthusiastic about, how to clean the catalytic converter of a BMW X5? We will teach you why it might be relevant for you to accomplish this cleaning. Obviously, a catalytic converter is a very expensive component (about 500 euros with the installation, the price can differ depending to the engines). In addition to being no longer good for passing the technical control , you might be at risk of over-consumption of fuel . At last, the last interest is that cleaning a catalytic converter is not that expensive and doing it repeatedly will save you quite a lot of money.

How do you clean the catalytic converter from its BMW X5?

Finally here is the step that you are most likely most enthusiastic about in this article content, how to clean the catalytic converter of your BMW X5? Know that this procedure is very very easy, and that there are two methods to do it:

  • Scrubbing the catalytic converter from your BMW X5 on a regular basis: This strategy is specifically beneficial for persons who mainly do short trips . To do this, nothing could be simpler, from time to time, make a long trip (about 30 minutes to optimize the efficiency of the process), thinking of making your engine go up in revs so that the temperature in the catalyst increases and it can be cleaned.
  • To use a catalyst cleaner: You can locate some in a car center for about 20 euros. All you have to do is add it to your fuel directly in your tank with about half a full tank. Afterwards you will have to drive on a long distance for at least 1 hour at mid-range by trying to go repeatedly at high rpm . If you can before and afterwards do an exhaust gas analysis to examine that you have recovered healthier exhaust fumes after the procedure. You can accomplish this procedure every 15 000km.

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To discover more tips on the BMW X5, take a look at the BMW X5 category.