Hi, I'm working on my sister-in-law's 2005 Rav4 (175,000 miles). It is currently experiencing bucking and loss of power above 2500 rpm. The only code showing is a P0420 code, which refers to the catalytic converter (or rather, the readings coming off the cat from the downstream O2 sensor). This will be the 4th cat converter on this car. The first one lasted approx 120,000 miles, but the past 2 aftermarket cats have only lasted 50k combined. I don't understand how this car has gone through 2 converters in the past year.
A local mechanic wants $650 to replace the cat, apparently with an OEM toyota part which he says will fix the reoccurring problem with the aftermarket cats. I'm not sure how his estimate is so low, the cheapest OEM cat I could find was $600. Locally they are more than $1000 from Toyota dealerships.
Any suggestions to fix this reoccurring problem? Or any work around so the aftermarket cat last longer than 6-12 months?
Thank you
A local mechanic wants $650 to replace the cat, apparently with an OEM toyota part which he says will fix the reoccurring problem with the aftermarket cats. I'm not sure how his estimate is so low, the cheapest OEM cat I could find was $600. Locally they are more than $1000 from Toyota dealerships.
Any suggestions to fix this reoccurring problem? Or any work around so the aftermarket cat last longer than 6-12 months?
Thank you