I too have been struck down with the P0430 in my 2000 Maxima SE.
I'm in California and looking for the cheapest new replacement Bank 2 cat.
The cheap ones don't ship to California so...

What have other Cali residents done to control the costs?

Thanks!

 

Same situation.

I just bought 2 O2 sensor spacers aka spark plug non-foulers/defouler to trick the ecu into thinking its working. Common census is that once the car is warmed up, the cats should be working fine enough to pass smog.

Just crossing my fingers that the smog station wont look under the car lol.

link to the spacers I bought here:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/251421244188

 

Auto Zone mentioned they had one for $200 when I went in the other day about the MIL lamp in my 5th Generation.


Honda installed an after market floor CAT a few years back in my 5th Generation in 2010 under warranty. It was great for a few years but the lamp now years later goes on then goes out then comes back on.
The Nissan OEM CAT is great but Id consider a complete fuel system cleaning, Throttle body, and intake cleaning first. /Induction cleaning

 

For $15 that's the cheapest attempt and worth a shot. Thanks.

 

$200 for a CARB certified cat in Cali? That's a great price.

 

There's no emissions here in FL so I'd assume most people just drive on it anyway.
When I bought my 5th generation they also installed a Nissan OEM cat or tube assembly. I can't remember which. All under warranty. I've only dealt with the floor CAT code in the 5 years of owning it.


I would assume the fuel your burning may effect the life of the catalyst but you may want to consult with Walker or an aftermarket exhaust manufacturer about that.

 

There are 4 sensors. Replace the one labeled (Red) if you have P0430 and (White) if you have P0420. Someone correct me if Im wrong.

Those spacers are L shaped perform better than straight ones. Make sure you point them toward the engine, against the flow of the exhaust. The idea is that you want to give it as little readings as possible.

 

I just ordered the spacers and will give that a shot. I just remembered I had the sensors replaced and it didn't clear the P0430 code.

 

Really the CAT should last the lifetime of the vehicle. If the catalyst fails then in my eyes the car should be junked; however, If you can get another 5 - 10 years out of it well what the heck it's worth a try.

 

We've had the car 2 yrs and there's no way to know how the car was treated previously.

 

It looks like the way to go because everything remains as it was when the car was built.


You can experiment to see how long the exhaust system will last from the factory.


If they used regular 86 it may have dumped more unburnt fuel down there.

 

I wish I knew if it was run on 87 oct.
We have been using 91 oct

 

Other Maxima owners in the lounge recommend 93 full Premium.


I guess it s because of the EVAP system in the vehicle.


There's a vacuum system with a cut off switch that sucks the fumes out of the tank and mixes it in with the air intake.

 

How did you come to that conclusion?
Please, explain.

 

Like to know also as using "regular" fuel has no adverse effects on the converters.

If that would be the case, the junk yard would have been filled with Maximas that were only a few years old. With all the converter problems, the catalytic converter system on these cars is junk as far as I'm concerned.

 

I take it back. Dont buy the 90 degree. it wont fit.

 

have you checked the ones on ebay? They seem to be direct fit

 

That code could also be due to the O2 sensor. Worth looking into that before splurging on an expensive Cali-spec cat.

 

The O2 was checked. They aren't the problem.
Picking up a factory cat now.

 

Yes, unfortunately in California we don't have many choices.
I too was forced to replace both my precats with Nissan/OEM parts last fall. My hope is that I never have to worry about this issue again.