Hi All,

I own a 1999 Honda Accord. I bought it used from someone 9 months ago (and I believe she was the second or third owner of the car). I live in North Carolina, which requires an annual inspection to test for safety and emissions. A few days ago I brought it in for this inspection, and the mechanic told me that it failed with two codes, P0420 and P1457. The first code indicates a problem with the catalytic converter. He says that sometimes when this happens you can add a fuel or oil to the car called "Guarantee to Pass" (that costs around $17). Sometimes this works and allows your car to pass inspections (he says around 65% of the time). He suggested that I try this before replacing the catalytic converter because that can cost $300-$400. I agreed. Later in the day he called me to tell me that my car no longer started. I never had problems starting the car prior to that moment. They tried and tried and couldn't get the car to start. I went home to wait for their phone call, and about an hour later they called to say that it magically started again and now has no problems starting.

Today the Check Engine light came back on, which I guess means that the "Guarantee to Pass" fuel additive didn't work.

My question is: should I be worried about my car? Is something wrong with it? They were getting ready to look at the fuel pump when it started working again. Could the fluid they added to my car have made it not start for some reason? Also, the previous owner told me that the catalytic converter was changed in early 2007 (which is about two years ago now). Is it likely that my catalytic converter is again damaged? If so, is that indicative of something else wrong with my car? Or is it likely that I just need to replace the upstream and downstream O2 sensors instead?

In NC I can get a waiver if I spend >$200 trying to fix the inspection problem, and it still doesn't get fixed, but I am planning on selling the car in a month, so I don't want to leave it with a huge problem.

Any advice/help/enlightening comments on this matter would be appreciated. Let me know if I can provide any other necessary information. I have maintenance records from myself and the previous owner I bought it from.

Thanks,
C

Alright, well it sounds like if the cat was replaced, they used an after market and the non-Honda replacements tend to not work. OR you have a leak within 2 ft of either direction of the exhaust piping on either end of the cat. Rusted pipes get holes over time and then the cat can no longer do its job as effectively due to the emissions leaking out.

A real Honda cat starts at about $800-900 for JUST the part. You really want to scrutinize the exhaust piping for leaks just to be sure, however it is common at about 130+k to need a new one for these cars.

If you can't pass it you are going to have a very hard time selling it obviously, but if passing means a 1,000 investment in a cat, don't do it.

My 99 Accord I4 is throwing a cat code right now, and I just had my emissions test done, thankfully. I'm going to see how well it holds up for me over the next year and if I don't have a major breakdown that requires lots of $$$ invested, then I'm going to fix the issue, but if something does go amiss (beyond reasonable cost), I will have to part with her and cut my losses. I'm hoping for the best, though. :)

for the p1457 code you can read up on it here. Along with the cat code, doesn't sound like much fun.

http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=31773&highlight=p1457

So you think it's most likely not the O2 sensors and is definitely the catalytic converter?

So you think it's most likely not the O2 sensors and is definitely the catalytic converter?

I'm not 100% sure, but I think o2 sensor(s) are a different code.

Not that this is necessarily relevant to this scenario, but how do I find out what is covered by the Extended Emissions Warranty?