Discussion
That 'imported' line sounds a bit feeble to me. I expect you will need to pass the standard MOT test which, for that year of car, explicitly requires a cat to be fitted. But if you buy the car without a cat you're no worse off than those people who take them off to 'improve' the exhaust note.
I had to buy a new main cat recently and it cost IRO £500. But you will also need to replace the manifolds, add lambda sensors and reprogram the ECU to work in closed loop mode. You really don't want to do this. I suggest you either accept the car is not strictly road legal, or walk away and look at the hundreds of other Chimaeras that are for sale at the moment.
Cheers,
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)
quote:
I wonder if someone can help? I am l considering buying a Chimaera that was imported from Jersey (non EU regs)about one year ago. It was supplied new to Jersey in 1996 so has no cat fitted although one would have been required for the UK at that time. It has an MOT which must have included an emissions test (but who knows?). The seller claims that the car does not need a cat (and is not required to demonstrate the higher emission standards at MOT) because it is imported. I have flogged through various government 'SVA, single Vehicle approval' web sites but can't get a view on this. Are there any experts out there who might have an informed view?
Out of curiosity (as someone who's failed emissions tests in pre-cat cars) what do people do as far as MOTs go when they've been de-catted? Do they just not get one, do they find some way to get low emissions without a cat, or do they find sympathetic testers?
I can't imagine it's the sort of thing you could quickly re-fix before the test.
I think Zertec (correct me here Clive) do some sort of kit that allows 'easy maintenance access' to the cat system so that on MOT day they're in and afterwards...well...maybe they are and maybe....
Personally I wouldn't run my Chim around without a cat...but that's just me, I suppose.
Without such a kit it must be a nightmare though....?
quote:
Out of curiosity (as someone who's failed emissions tests in pre-cat cars) what do people do as far as MOTs go when they've been de-catted? Do they just not get one, do they find some way to get low emissions without a cat, or do they find sympathetic testers? I can't imagine it's the sort of thing you could quickly re-fix before the test.
Snow
My car was delivered by the route you describe in April 1997. All I need to get it through an MOT (done twice now)is provide a letter from TVR, stating that the car was manufactured without CATs and was never intended to have them subsequently fitted, and pass the pre 1993 emissions test. HOWEVER, literally weeks after I got the car the DVLA brought in the SVA to replace the old "Personal Import" scheme. So, in a nut shell, if a car was imported before May 97 you could get away with murder and only needed to change things like headlamp lenses etc. If the car was manufactured without CATs there was no reason to fit them. After that date things got much stricter and CATs are one of the things that are required, even if this means retro-fitting them. If you want a car without CATs I would sit on your hands for a while. I can't be the only petrolhead to have found this convenient loophole in the import law. There will be others coming up for sale.The one you are considering WILL require them to be fitted, at HUGE expense, to be legal.
To answer a question that was asked a while ago about de-CAT cars. NO, they are not too loud on a long cruise and Yes, they do sound wonderful on full throttle. The vast improvement in throttle response and extra BHP is also worth having.
Kevin
P.S. Make me a silly offer and you can have my car!
Yes we do produce an exhaust system with an easily removable catalyst section. This flanged section and can be replaced with an empty flanged section (supplied) for the remaining 364 (non-MOT) days of the year. The Lambda sensors are disconnected and a TVR non-cat chip inserted into the ECU. This method is far easier than swapping manifolds.
We have also recently completed a similar system for a Cerbera 4.5 which is quite amazing.
Clive Reed
Zertec Limited
info@zertec.co.uk
www.zertec.co.uk
quote:Likewise, on removal of the manifold, one of the CATs was a pile of small pieces blowing around inside the manifold, so to be on the safe side the one on the other side was taken out too. That leaves the main CAT in the Y section, and passed the MOT fine, slightly better power and slightly better noise...
philshort/snow Not everyone puts the cat's back in for the test, I have just had my chim tested, not problems, emissions very low. so I thought that I would remove the cat's now. on removal of the manifolds it seems that they have already gone !! I had know idea. but it past.
Neil quote:Likewise, on removal of the manifold, one of the CATs was a pile of small pieces blowing around inside the manifold, so to be on the safe side the one on the other side was taken out too. That leaves the main CAT in the Y section, and passed the MOT fine, slightly better power and slightly better noise...
[quote]philshort/snow Not everyone puts the cat's back in for the test, I have just had my chim tested, not problems, emissions very low. so I thought that I would remove the cat's now. on removal of the manifolds it seems that they have already gone !! I had know idea. but it past.
Neil
What you describe is not a decat - you've just lost the two pre-cats in the manifolds. This is perfectly legal and the main cat will get you through the MOT. Precats are worth about 5 bhp and a few decibels extra noise. Only potential problem in your case is if the precats broke up and fell out, the remains might have blocked up the main cat. If theye were removed deliberately you should be OK.
Cheers,
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S) Similar story on my Griff 500...smaller precats had disintegrated so they were removed (car started running rough - opened the bonnet and noticed the precats were glowing bright red!). Now I am just left with the main one. No MOT probs.
Wonder how many are out there without the owners realising?
Graham
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