O2/Cat problem... need some advice please!!
 

Hey,

I'm new to Hondas, so there might some common issue here that I'm not aware of... either way, what's your take on this?

I bought an '01 Si recently (2 weeks). The PO told me that the car was throwing a CEL because of a bad O2 sensor. He had one replaced (apparently the wrong one), so the light stayed. He then had the other one changed right before I got the car.... so I'm basically sitting with 2 new O2 sensors.

The car is still throwing the CEL intermittently, so I took it to my mechanic for a look and a basic checkup on the car. He tells me that the light is coming on because of a variance in readings between the two sensors, which would indicate a bad cat.

Is this a common issue? I'm a little bothered by it... a new OEM cat is in the 1200 range, and an aftermarket one won't last all that long. I only got the car for 5400, so I'm not happy about having to spend another chunk just to fix it. I was told that it won't be necessary... the car did pass the e-test, so it can't be all bad. I can live with the cat. But if something else goes that would cause a CEL, I won't know...

Related... isn't there a 30-day policy on used cars in Ontario? Where I could go to the PO and get a refund due to an undisclosed problem? The car was not sold as-is. I don't want to resort to this, but I do want to know how much of an issue I actually have on my hands here...

Advice?

Can you post up your emission test readings?

Every vehicle fails cat's.However, cat's are usually 'murdered' meaning the previous owner probably neglected tuning up his vehicle. Unburnt fuel, lean conditions, etc is what ruins catalytic convertors.

Personally, I'd get an aftermarket cat and check if it needs a tune-up and check fuel trims (do this before putting the cat in)