Re: VW cats, looks like a good deal.

[Night Shadow <soltwede@ucsub.colorado.edu>]

On Wed, 17 Nov 1999, Ian Overholt wrote:

> The 16v Oxy sensor is mounted on the cat.  I'm not sure, but I think the 
> heater might actually be there to heat up the cat.  You know, all the newest 
> emissions equipment is only trying to get the exhaust temps up quicker.  
> Once the cat is hot, the car doesn't really make any more pollution.  In the 
> first 12 seconds of operation, the car makes all the pollution it is going 
> to make.  WOT operation of course makes this statement untrue.
> 
> Ian Overholt

Sorry to say, but that is a false statement.  The catalytic converter is
one of the worst ideas in automotive history, at least in it's current
form.  The catalytic converter doesn't reach operating temperatures and
proper efficiency until an average of 10 miles of driving!  During this
time, the catalytic converter pumps out tons of Nitrous Oxide (N2O).
Nitrous Oxide is one of the nastys in the greenhouse gas realm.  (Trust me
on this, just got done with a 14 page paper on the subject, using all the
latest findings and research, even the EPA has admitted this fact).
Another interesting item: Catalytic Converters have about 3 grams of heavy
metals in them (platinum, rohdium, palladium), to get these 3 grams of
metal for ONE coverter, a processing plant dumps 24 LBS! of Sulfur Dioxide
into the atmosphere.  Lovely eh?  And some research being done in
Austrailia shows some promise, but have found another nasty thing about
cats, they emit Isocyanic Acids into the air as well, which are attributed
with long term lung damage! LOVELY!

Eric
(hollow cat for emissions test, which it passes perfectly, no cat the rest
of the time)


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