Replacement catalytic converter for the S8

[Adrian E]

Hi folks

I'll pop this in as a place marker for this job, as it might prove useful in the future....

I've noticed a rattle from one of the cats since the summer - knowing that others have experienced the same with no major issues for literally years before the cat finally expired, I wasn't in any great rush to change it.

Fast forward a few months and after my round trip to Birmingham recently I noticed that the rattle was getting far worse, to the point it could be heard in the cabin with the windows shut when sat at idle!

I did some research at the time I first noticed this, and didn't find a reputable source (or even a disreputable one!) for a replacement unit. New OEM cats are still available exchange but you're looking at £950 each with a bit of discount, plus you need to pay a surcharge on returning the old one on top.

In the meantime I stumbled across a company in Germany that was linked from motor-talk.de forum that offers a refurbishment service:

http://www.uni-kat.de/

The replacements are proper 400 cell cats and involve opening the cans and replacing all the internals, before welding it all back up. Backed by a 2 year warranty.

I've dropped the car off with David http://www.dsautowerks.co.uk/ at lunchtime today and he'll hopefully drop the cats off with me tonight or tomorrow for packaging and shipping to Germany. The rest of the process is largely going to depend on how long it takes to get them to and from Germany.

When I've got the cats here I'll try and get some pics of the internals, if they're visible.

Be warned that the contact e-mail for Uni-kat works best if you Google translate a simple e-mail to them - I've been including the English too, in case it helps!

Cost to replace the internals will be €365 each, so even with 2 of them plus the associated costs of shipping and fitting, I'm expecting the total cost to work out under 1 new cat from Audi.

Adrian