Hey guys, I'm sure I sound like a broken record with all the stolen cat posts in this Gen 1 forum. I have 2002 Gen 1 Prius with a stolen front cat and HCAC. I cannot afford the $2800 repair bill the mechanic quoted me (attached below). I found out the front exhaust assembly (part 17040-21261) is really hard to get after calling an official Toyota parts dealer, so I would have to wait a couple months for the part to arrive. I'm moving across the country in a couple months so unfortunately I'm not sure I'd have the time if I wanted to try replacing it myself. Even if I went to a muffler shop to have a new front cat welded in (I live in AZ so this is legal), the engine codes for the HCAC missing would still show up. I feel like I'm SOL at this point. Should I just get rid of the car? Would anyone be available in AZ for me to rent their cat? I'm moving to Arkansas which I don't think has emissions testing, so I would be willing to drive it without the cat honestly, but I was also told by my mechanic driving without the cat would damage my engine and lead to engine failure. I'm not sure what to think. Sorry if this post is really redundant but I appreciate any advice you guys might have. Aiden
What is HCAC ? Given your story, I would think that having ALL the parts replaced with "aftermarket" equivalents would be your best bet.
The mechanics trying to scare you IMO. Only thing that driving without cat will damage is your eardrums, and every driver around yous patience. What I did was order a 120 dollar cat from ebay, and ended up also using a little dealer that 90s off the 02 bung, and has its own little cat converter between the sensor and the converter. Shipping from eBay exhaust was 8 days, NY to Seattle I believe.
OP has a problem. He can replace the cat fairly easily from aftermarket, but the HCAC assembly is a hard-to-find. I don't know of ANY aftermarket vendor for the HCAC assembly. I would suggest, at minimum, fit a new aftermarket cat like the Eastern Catalytic 40544, then straight pipe the HCAC region. He will have to live with the fault codes for a missing HCAC system. I don't believe the HCAC fault codes will damage the engine. It may be possible to find the HCAC parts in a junkyard. But that's a somewhat exotic part, and I'm inferring from the OP that he's not keen of lots of under-car time. Good luck finding a full solution...
