been informed that I need a catalytic converter?

2003 NISSAN 240SX
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KELLY9633
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I have a Nissan Murano 2003 SE Fully loaded and purchased brand new. I did a lot of driving in the first 3 years and racked up (to date) 81,000 miles. Most driving was freeway distance not around town. I have changed the oil and had all services as required. I have just taken it in for a major 75 K service and been informed that I need a catalytic converter and, although I have the "Bumper to Bumper - top of the line" 100K warranty - this is not covered and the part alone is well over $800. Should the catalytic converter need replacing at this time? If not, what could cause the necessity of this replacement, i.e., I am wondering if another, warranty covered problem could have created this. I will be happy to donate if you can save me from getting burned by this dealership!

Thanks, Kelly
Jun 7, 2007 at 9:08 PM
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DATSUNRAISED
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Hopefully you haven't had them replace it yet. When a shop/dealer tells you that your cat(or any other major part of your emissions system has gone out) it is usually a good idea to take through an emissions station if you have emissions in your area. If it passes then you'll be just fine. But if not, try hitting a muffler shop for a much better qoute on replacement. As far as other parts causing the cat to fail, all it could be is a faulty upstream O2 sensor causing the car to run rich, which in turn causes too much carbon to run through the cat, shortening its service life. But that should have thrown a check engine light if it had failed.
Jun 8, 2007 at 1:15 AM
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KELLY9633
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Thank you so much... the reason I took the vehicle in to the dealership for the service was because the "check engine" light went off! I have had a problem with leaving the gas cap "loose" (according to the another dealership - we recently moved) that has made the light go on and off for the last several months - until just recently when it stayed on... I thought maybe the sensor for the gas cap was faulty this time - you have shed new light on the situation (no pun intended). Yes, did further research on catalytic converters and would not have them do the work... if it is not covered under warranty - I will take it to my guy - even the "Genuine" Nissan part was $300.00 cheaper if I ordered it myself!
Jun 8, 2007 at 10:17 AM
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DATSUNRAISED
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I'm glad that helped out. You can also get aftermarket cats for even cheaper; some which help exhaust flow for more performance.
Jun 9, 2007 at 3:24 AM