Vortex? Do you mean: ???

 

umm... i dont know what the hell that thing is, but my vortex is a muffler.

 

Ahh... WHEW!

 

i mean, WOW! that's the most coolest supercharger i've ever seen. and the price i can afford off my mom's allowance!

 

OK guys,

Been keeping up with everyone's input since I have had the same problem as Fink and many others...

Had a PO420 - front cat was bad and needed to be replaced. Dealer wanted over a grand to fix, so went the other route and had both cats removed, front cat replaced with pipe, and 2nd cat replaced with a catco high-flow cat. In order to get rid of the PO420 code, bought Gadget's o2 simulator which works like a champ. So far, much louder tone on the exhaust, shifting is smoother with the supercharger seeming to be constantly whining, better gas mileage, and acceleration seems better than ever with only the one high-flow cat. Thanks to everyone for their input, knowledge, and products... . Had a very weird code pop up with a p1130 and p1135. Had that cleared by the good folks at Autozone and will see how long until another code is thrown. Hopefully, it was just because I had the cat work done yesterday and it will take a few days to cycle. Time will tell and I'll post with any changes.

Moral of the story - folks with a 3rd gen runner with friggin cali-specs have to either deal with the stealership or use the previous replacement technique to work around it. I now have a one-cat setup on my runner and she is doing great thus far. Gadget's sim is great, and thanks to Fink for getting the ball rolling many months ago on this problem.

 

X2, except I have one Carsound cat. No more P0420 for me since the simulator install (about one month ago). Before I would throw a P0420 every other day.

 

Glad everybody has gotten this worked out.

Mine's been solid since I installed my sim...no codes at all.

I did notice a performance and mileage gain once I switched from dual to single so that's a huge plus too.

Hopefully more people will read this and go this route instead of ponying up the grand at the dealership which is ridiculous for a $60 part elsewhere.

Fink

 

Agreed...However, now throwing a p1130 and p1135, which I am guessing might be the air/fuel sensor up by where the original cat used to be. Did either of you have any problems arise like that? I am also noticing that either since the install of the o2 sim or the cat replacement (they were done a few days apart and I only notice the noise now) - that my SC is making a whine which is very noticeable any time I press the gas - whereas before, in order for the supercharger to really kick in, I had to stomp on the gas fairly well. Now, if I barely apply pressure to the gas, I hear a whine that almost sounds like I'm in 4wd. Very weird, and I am debating on whether to go ahead and purchase a new air/fuel sensor from Gadget to see whether that cancels those codes out and lowers that high pitched whine from the SC. What are your thoughts?

 

Nope, I didn't.


Mine does that too, but I thought it was normal. I have never heard one before though since I started off with one cat. Maybe less back pressure frees the movement of the blower blades?

 

Thanks Dale. The whine just seems more pronounced since the installation of the o2 simulator and cat conversion. Anyhow - It looks like that p1130 and p1135 are leaning towards a replacement of the A/F sensor. Not sure what else it could be and hopefully it isn't the MAF or throttle position Sensor - but I believe those would throw a different code anyhow. Once I receive from Gadget and replace the old A/F sensor, I'll post my findings.

 

Sweeeeeeeeeeeet...I received my air/fuel sensor from URD a few hours ago. I replaced the old air/fuel sensor (which indicated that it may have welded too close by the muffler shop) which took all of 10 minutes. I unplugged the negative for about 3 minutes, ran around town for a bit and got some gas. Thus far; no codes, that pronounced whine has dissappeared from the supercharger (it was whining even at idle and startup after the cat conversion and death of the old A/F sensor), and I expect an increase or return to original gas mileage. Biggest benefit, she is purring like she did when I originally bought her, and now the supercharger only kicks in when supposed to, and the correct fuel mixture is taking place now.

Thanks to everyone that posted and hopefully this will help with anyone else who does the single cat conversion on their 3rd gen Runner. Knock on wood, but I will post should any codes rear their ugly head again. Hate to imagine a world without YT.

$$ DETAILS = Stealership wanted $1,000 for front catalytic converter replacement. Also, wanted $340 plus tax to replace the front Air/Fuel Sensor. TOTAL would have been = $1,340.00

INSTEAD = Had both original cats removed and replaced with pipe and a high flow cat for $200.00 (would have been $60.00 if I had a buddy w/ a welder). Bought correct A/F sensor from Gadget at URD for $178.00 + shipping and o2 Simulator for $60.00.
TOTAL = $438.00
SAVINGS = roughly $900.00 to spend on other mods
LESSON for Newbies = Listen to your brothers on YotaTech - ALWAYS.

 

Great! Glad it worked out. Any ideas as to why the supercharger was making more noise? That's strange.

 

Dale,

I don't have the slightest idea why my supercharger was making that high pitch whine (it sounded like an older truck that was stuck in 4wd). All I know is that it was making that noise at startup and idle, even when my foot wasn't on the accelerator. As soon as I swapped out the A/F sensor, it sounded like the engine went into closed loop and started breathing better, quiter, and more mellow. Anyhow; I'm just thankful that the problem finally got resolved!

 

I wonder if you were having a slight lean misfire and it was resonating through the impellers on the supercharger and causing the gears to whine more than usual. I know it's a little far fetched but I can't think of any other reason why it would change the sound of the S/C so dramatically.

 

any feedback on the single cat option for the long haul? ive got a 2002 limited throwing the p0420 code. took it to the stealership who checked the o2 sensors for me and said both cats needed to b replaced. ive been reading everything i can on this and hear lots of opinions. has anyone used the catco direct fit ones?

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/se...yota%204Runner

im not against just having a single cat put in by a muffler shop but every shop around me get squeamish when i start telling them about it... i would like to at least get back to stock if not get a little more performance out of it while im at it.

has anyone with the O2 sim taken their vehicle for a plug in emissions test? passed?

PS ordered my SS1.2 kit today and i cant sleep!

 

bump!

 

Thankfully we don't have inspections here so I have no idea how it would do, I would say it would fail since it is now operating at 50% efficiency but who knows?

I would email Gadget and ask him, he may know.

Fink