De-catting the old dog.
Discussion
Hi all,
With the huge amount of speed humps around the West Mids, they inevitably took their toll on the exhaust scrapage! It gave up the ghost yesterday, and sheared off in front of the downpipe to cat bracket, leaving me to limp hope with the cat bouncing on the road. I'm not sure what to do now. I'm toying with the idea of a stage 1 kit, and spoke to Minispares, who said I could remove the cat to fit a stage 1 kit. The car is a '93, 1275 mayfair, with carb. It seems very much a grey area so i'm unsure what to do now?
With the huge amount of speed humps around the West Mids, they inevitably took their toll on the exhaust scrapage! It gave up the ghost yesterday, and sheared off in front of the downpipe to cat bracket, leaving me to limp hope with the cat bouncing on the road. I'm not sure what to do now. I'm toying with the idea of a stage 1 kit, and spoke to Minispares, who said I could remove the cat to fit a stage 1 kit. The car is a '93, 1275 mayfair, with carb. It seems very much a grey area so i'm unsure what to do now?
I think 'K' Plate 92 cars are the watershed for removing Cats (legally). If you have a later car you legally can't do it and could get busted. There is always the option of taking the cat off and retaining it for MOT time. Fitting a cat removal pipe into your stage one sytem. Not that I'd condone such a course of actions you'd understand 
I'm baffled by this to be honest, apparently there is an appendum in the back of an MOT testers handbook showing exempt cars, and carb equipped Mini's are mentioned in here. I've emailed VOSPA, but nothing back yet. Just getting the standard pipe fitted til after the christmas pinch, then may look into a stg 1 kit in the new year. <<<rubs hands with glee!>>>
Some allowances were made for Rover Metros and carb Minis, not that they didn't have to be tested, but that they were testable with relaxed limits, Metro in particular.
Your model car will run soooo much better if you fit a decat pipe, just keep the cat for mot time, I have run mine without the cat pretty much all it's life, and have had Janspeed make decat pipes years ago, one even has a little silencer which really is necessary now.
The cat rules are for 1.8.1992 on, all cars have to be cat tested. Earlier cars if cats are fitted do not, although many testers used to believe they did because they 'had' them - rubbish.
If you have a 2000 Mini, with an engine fitted from 1967 and can prove it, the emissions test has to be based on the age of the engine, not the car.
This info was relevant to my own car some years ago when it used to get argued, I was then, able to get the Mot handbook and find things out. Now (well up until it got stored in a barn) it doesn't get much of an argument, the car itself becomes a distraction and is currently fitted with twin 1&1/2" SU's but still badged 1.3i running the original ecu.
No spare wires or anything!
Just fit a simple RC40 with a decat pipe etc, and don't draw too much attention to yourself, it is this that gets cars checked at the roadside.
Just my 2p
Your model car will run soooo much better if you fit a decat pipe, just keep the cat for mot time, I have run mine without the cat pretty much all it's life, and have had Janspeed make decat pipes years ago, one even has a little silencer which really is necessary now.
The cat rules are for 1.8.1992 on, all cars have to be cat tested. Earlier cars if cats are fitted do not, although many testers used to believe they did because they 'had' them - rubbish.
If you have a 2000 Mini, with an engine fitted from 1967 and can prove it, the emissions test has to be based on the age of the engine, not the car.
This info was relevant to my own car some years ago when it used to get argued, I was then, able to get the Mot handbook and find things out. Now (well up until it got stored in a barn) it doesn't get much of an argument, the car itself becomes a distraction and is currently fitted with twin 1&1/2" SU's but still badged 1.3i running the original ecu.
No spare wires or anything!
Just fit a simple RC40 with a decat pipe etc, and don't draw too much attention to yourself, it is this that gets cars checked at the roadside.
Just my 2p
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