2001 Jetta Exhaust Rattle...

Hey guys...

Recently, my 2001 Jetta with 155k miles starting exhibiting a horrible exhaust rattle at random RPMs. I took it to a small town repair shop, which quoted me $800 for a new catalytic converter and installation.

My heart sank, and I now drive a 2001 Jetta with a horrible rattle. Here's my question...Is he right? Is there no way to get rid of this rattle except for a new catalytic converter? If you go to eBay, or a parts shop, you can find 'universal' cats for under $200...whats the deal?

Hey, im pretty familiar with the rattle you speak of, and man it sounds ugly...I know your pain...

But, whoever you went to is trying to stick it to you, There is no reason replacing the cat should cost anywhere near that....
If you go aftermaket like Magnaflow or something along those lines your looking at 300 bucks tops...And the stock cats are only about 450-500 to buy depending which V-Dub and where u are in the world.

The problem comes when the mechanic tries to remove the O2 sensor...Sometimes you get lucky and it comes out clean...Sometimes...not so much. And the O2 sensors can be pricey.

So make sure you ask him if that 800 includes a new O2 sensor (and make sure its a stock sensor, Ive found that if you use the latter you could get "constant check engine light syndrome")

In anycase, your car is not that old, they should be able to take the O2 out cleanly, and after that...350 is as much as i would pay to have a new cat installed. And thats still kind of expensive.

Hope that helps.

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Un-pimp your ride

glad to hear somebody else knows what I'm talking about!! Finally...

I guess I don't know the difference between aftermarket and stock cats....I'm a little nervous, my VDub is one of those with a touchy 'everything exhaust related' check engine light...

Am I doing any harm to my car by driving it with this rattling cat?

No you wont cause any damage to anything else but the catalytic, which is already broken inside anyway...so who cares...
It will just sound like shit and you probably wont pass emissions testing (if you have that where you're from)
It makes sense to be nervous, most of them are touchy with the Check Engine light...

But shop around, You should be able to find a decent deal somewhere

And just by the way, theres nothing wrong with the aftermarket Cats, as long as you get a little higher end one, dont go all cheapo on it...In most cases the Aftermarkets are better than the stocks...

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Un-pimp your ride

Is this something I can do myself, or is there welding involved?

You have to cut out the old usually with a sawzall or similar cutting tool...and then yes, you have to weld back in the knew one...

I do not reccomend you attempt this yourself.

You have a much better shot of keeping your 02 sensor in-tact by taking it to a professional...
Arent there any good V-Dub specialists where you live?

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Un-pimp your ride

i'm not sure, I'm in a college town, so I have no established mechanic or anything.

MY JETTA HAD A BAD RATTLE IN IT, SOUNDED LIKE THE TRANSMISSION. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND ALL IT WAS :
A GRAVEL WAS STUCK BETWEEN THE MUFFLER AND THE SHIELD AROUND IT. THANK GOODNESS. HOPE THIS IS ALL YOU HAVE. SEE YOU.

There is a banging when I go over large bumps. It seems to be the exhaust system hitting a cross structure almost directly below the interior console. Any ideas?

I was thinking maybe the hanger needed replacing or maybe there is some kind of pad missing on the cross structure?