A catalytic converter is a vital component of recent cars, as it purifies your vehicle’s exhaust gases and thus suits modern pollution specifications. Nevertheless, it is possible that it may turned out to be clogged or breakdown, in which circumstance a replace or cleaning is essential. In this article we are going to check out how to clean a catalytic converter on Opel Vectra? To get this done, to begin with, we will show you the circumstances in which it may be interesting to clean the catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra, then, how to conduct this cleaning to retrieve the overall performance of the catalytic converter of your car.

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Why would you want to clean up the catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra?

In this first part we will explain why it may be valuable to clean the catalyst of your Opel Vectra . Obviously for some of you it might seem logical 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 Opel Vectra

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The catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra has the function to get rid of harmful exhaust gases related to the process of your engine. Obviously, it is one of the main parts that fight against the pollution discharged by your Opel Vectra. It will transform these harmful gases into water or nonpolluting gases. In order to transform these gases, the catalyst of your Opel Vectra a mesh of precious metals which, when the gases pass at high temperature, will break them down by chemical reaction . A catalytic converter can just work from 400°, it is therefore important to avoid clogging the catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra. If you are considering making adequately long journeys to heat it up repeatedly (count more than 10 kilometres for the catalyst to reach the right temperature), this will allow you to optimise the life of this component and keep ideal engine performance.

Consequences of a dirty or faulty catalytic converter on Opel Vectra

We will now find out what can be the consequences of a dirty or failing catalytic converter on Opel Vectra . This will allow you to discover the signs of illness that should alert you to a breakdown of your catalytic converter, here is the list of symptoms of a faulty catalytic converter:

  • The catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra is blocked: As we said above, if you make too short trips like 50% of people, it will not have the time to start working and the catalytic converter will clog up with exhaust gases.
  • Switching on the engine light: : Following a clogged catalytic converter, engine light of your Opel Vectra may come on, do not think twice to consult our content page to identify how to switch it off.
  • A faulty 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 more often than not as well have problems.
  • A metallic noise originating from the exhaust: In the event the catalyst is dead you should hear this noise which results in that the ceramic is damaged.

Why you should clean the catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra

Before we finish with the step you are probably most curious about, how to clean the catalytic converter of a Opel Vectra? We will explain why it may be relevant for you to perform this cleaning. Obviously, a catalytic converter is a very expensive component (about 500 euros with the set up, the price can differ according to the engines). In addition to being no longer good for passing the technical control , you may be at risk of over-consumption of fuel . Finally, the last benefit 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 Opel Vectra?

Finally here is the stage that you are most certainly most enthusiastic about in this content, how to clean the catalytic converter of your Opel Vectra? Know that this procedure is very basic, and that there are two methods to accomplish:

  • Scrubbing the catalytic converter from your Opel Vectra on a regular basis: This strategy is especially valuable for persons who mainly do short trips . To do so, nothing could be less difficult, from time to time, make a long trip (about 30 minutes to enhance 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 motor vehicle 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 later on do an exhaust gas analysis to examine that you have recovered healthier exhaust fumes after the procedure. You can perform this procedure every 15 000km.

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To get more tips on the Opel Vectra, take a look at the Opel Vectra category.