BHR w/Cat installed - threw a CEL (otherwise stock R3) - Fixed, O2 cap leak
 

Had my midpipe installed yesterday, went for a little spin and it was fine. On the way into work this morning after the car was up to temp on the hwy the check engine light came on.

I went for the BHR with a cat since it is not known for throwing a CEL, any thoughts?

Update - Fixed, was an O2 bung cap leak

Give it a check to make sure it isn't your midpipe throwing you the CEL. It could be related to something else.

Get the code and let us know what it is.

will pick up a code reader later today to see what it is. only other change yesterday was fresh oil

this reader looks like it will do the trick - http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

you guys dont have a place like autozone up north that will read codes for free?

parts source would be the most comparable, not sure if they do or not. will look and see

My money's on O2, invest in a Cobb my friend.

^try again, he has an R3.

You know I can't read sig's. all those extra details makes my brain hurt.

Sorry OP SOL on this one, might want to look into the RP Super Cat, not sure if it works for S2 though. :dunno:

i dont think he is necessarily SOL. The BHR with cat should not be throwing codes especially if brand new. We wont know until he gets the code, for all we know it is completely unrelated.

Doubtful, things are rarely that coincidental.

Cause and effect.

its been used for 3,000 miles by another member (non track)... so not brand new, but in great condition.

Found a shop that can pull the code, will stop in there this afternoon

I am not assuming the part is the issue which is why I didn't e-mail you directly, I presume it is installation related. will have the code shortly

P0420. Need a new o2?

I'd check 2 - 4 that Charles stated above ... make sure you have no leaks.

Also .. since its used .. did you take a looksie to make sure that the cat is intact and that the previous owner didn't clobber it?

I dont know of too many O2 sensors going bad, especially this early in the life of a S2 .. so I would put that at the end of the "things to try" list.

Shop said they tested for leaks and there were none but something is obviously up since the CEL came back shortly after being cleared.

They didn't use the thick metal gasket/ring as it slide into the exhaust pipe; given the cel issue i am assuming not using that part has something to do with the issue

Midpipe will throw you a CEL P0420 (catalyst efficiency below threshold). I've had that code all summer long last year with my midpipe. I "invested" in an OBDII reader wifi (PLX Kiwi2) with an app (Dashcommand) on my iPhone. I was able to view and clear the code. Wonderful! No CEL for me this summer!

I don't know if it'll come back later but for now... I have a clean dashboard!

That particular CEL doesn't affect the performance of your S2.

You missed the part about him having a catted BHR pipe, not catless.

well .. that donut gasket is pretty important ... its almost impossible to get a good seal in the exhaust without that installed. If I remember correctly the OEM gasket fits just fine on the BHR pipe.

My mid pipe throughs the same code, put your stock back on see if it goes away. If it clears its the BHR pipe, if it doesn't replace the O2. I'd say you have a faulty BHR pipe, or you have an exhaust leak. Doubt your O2 sensor is bad.

since I bought the pipe used there were no instructions. Should that donut gasket seem like it will just slide into the exhaust pipe? i assume the r3 sII pipe is the same as SI and it should fit fine

i am trying to envision what you mean by "slide into the exhaust pipe" but I am failing to do so. Do you still have that donut gasket that was on the OEM catalyst? Just transfer it over to the BHR pipe. It is a tapered gasket, part of it is supposed to slide into the catback's flange.

I have a new front OE gasket seal. Been meaning to post it up FS since my custom race system eliminated all that OE crap. It was a spare that I had and never used.

The donut gasket is located far downstream of the cat/sensor. It won't be causing this issue. If anything it would either be the engine/manifold gasket or manifold/midpipe gasket since they're upstream of the cat.


.

i am going on a verbal description from the shop, they used the OEM instead of the one supplied with the pipe since they said the new one was a smaller diameter and would have slide into the pipe.

i have used this shop before (JPG Exhaust in Oakville) and been happy with them, but I am really losing confidence quickly that this install was done properly. they said they checked for leaks and that there are none but i am getting a cel so something is not right.

I've not had a CEL before, 38,000km on the car so I don't think there is another issue other than a poor installation. either that or the cat which I was told only had a few thousand miles (non track) has gone bad.

travelling for the next few days so i won't be able to go back for them to fix this, so will try to take as much info back as I can to make sure each step was done properly.

Team has a point, so lets put this donut gasket junk behind us for now since you are only going by the shops word and some things might be lost in translation.

To further Team's comment, it would be very easy to check the manifold/midpipe gasket (not sure if you know what this looks like ... think of a large thin washer). Anyway, if you have a leak there, it is not too hard to check for ... it is literally behind the passenger side wheel. When the car is cold ... turn it on, and then lay on the ground by the passenger side wheel ... you should be able to see where the midpipe and the exhaust manifold meet (the flange looks like a triangle). Place your hand around there ... you would most certainly feel some air if there is a leak.