Do you want to find out how many catalytic converters are in a ford f150? If so, you’ve come to the perfect place. Becoming more familiar with your truck gives you more knowledge of the vehicle.
And if you ever run into any problem the car might experience, you know how to track down the issue.
Not only are we going to show you how many catalytic converters there are in your Ford F-150, but we will also show you common problems that you might run into with the catalytic converter.
Without any further delay, let’s jump right into it!
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Contents
What is a Catalytic Converter?
If you don’t know much about cars, chances are you find all these terms to be a little bit complicated, or simply not worth your time.
But there are a lot of benefits to getting to know your vehicle. One of the main benefits is not getting ripped off by a dealer.
Yeah, that sounds worth my time, but what is a catalytic converter? A catalytic converter is the part of your car that reduces harmful emissions.
As you might already know, engines produce a lot of heat, which leads to carbon monoxide. And as you might guess by that buzzword: it is harmful to the environment and your health.
And that is why catalytic converters are so useful. They heavily reduce all those harmful emissions that otherwise would harm the planet.
Did you know that catalytic converters have reduced pollutants in the United States by over 70% after we started using them? That is a lot of improvement!
So, yeah, catalytic converters are one of the most useful technologies we have had over the years.
Without one, your truck would not function as well as it does. So, we suggest taking enough time to make sure it is in great shape.
How Many Catalytic Converters Does the F-150 Have?
A vehicle can have up to four catalytic converters, but only if you break regulation laws.
Now, as for the F-150 truck, it has two catalytic converters. You can find both cat converters on the back and the other one on the front side of the vehicle.
Both catalytic converters make it possible for the truck to function. If they get damaged, there is a high chance that the vehicle will begin to malfunction.
Catalytic converters are made to be as efficient as possible. Some catalytic converters go as far as to improve the horsepower of the vehicle.
Therefore, we recommend checking on the catalytic every so often.
Sometimes the air pressure builds up in front of the catalytic converter, which means the cat is getting clogged up.
Common Ford F-150 Catalytic Issues
Are you having Ford f150 catalytic converter issues but can’t figure out what is going with the truck?
If that is the case, then we will help you track down the problem so that you can fix it yourself.
1. Clogged up Catalytic Converter
So, you got on your truck, and then after going down the road for a few minutes, you notice an enormous amount of power loss.
To mitigate the problem, you tried changing the spark plugs and the fuel filters. And while it did work for a while, it didn’t take long for the issue to strike back.
If you’re in a similar situation, there is a high chance the catalytic converter of your vehicle is clogged up.
Unfortunately, if the catalytic converter is too clogged up, you need to replace it. Cleaning the catalytic converter will do nothing for it at this point. So, all you can do is get a new one.
What you can to prevent this from happening again in the future is to clean the catalytic converter. To do this here is what you can do:
- Get lacquer thinner to clean the impurities inside the catalytic converter
- If the gas tank is half full, pour in a gallon of lacquer thinner inside the gas tank
- Now you want to run the car at 150 miles so that the lacquer thinner can begin to clean the impurities
- Alternatively, you can run the car at 2,500 RPMs for roughly thirty-five minutes. Either way, the lacquer thinner should clean the catalytic converter
Cleaning the catalytic converter is an inexpensive way to make sure the catalytic converter remains in great shape.
So, before you try to replace such an expensive part of the car—you should clean it first.
2. Rattling Sound
What is a common problem on the catalytic converter for a ford f150?
Another problem that F-150 owners have reported before is hearing a rattling sound coming from the engine.
Hearing a noise on the engine is a common problem that you might run into sooner or later.
This sound is not a consistent noise, but rather, it sounds like several rocks are bouncing inside the exhaust.
However, just because the catalytic converter makes some noise does not mean that it is bad.
Though, it does not take much time to find out if you actually have a faulty catalytic converter.
Usually, a converter that came apart is what causes all that annoying noise coming from the catalytic converter.
But why did my converter come apart? Most of the time, the culprit is an ignition misfire.
The catalytic converter temperate goes up beyond normal levels, which causes the catalytic converter to meltdown.
Another common thing that causes the converter to come apart is a faulty fuel injector.
When this happens, you will also lose power, and the car will run rough at idle.
So, what can I do when my catalytic converter falls apart? When the catalytic converter comes apart, you will have to replace it.
However, if the car runs fine with it, then you can live with it just fine.
But if the check engine keeps flashing every so often and the car runs poorly, then you need to replace it. Nonetheless, we recommend replacing it.
How Much does it Cost to Replace a Catalytic Converter?
If you’re having serious ford f150 catalytic converter problems, you will need to replace it.
As we’ve said before, if you’ve performed some tests, and have found that the car works fine with it, then you can keep on with your day.
But if the car is performing poorly, you need to replace the faulty catalytic converter. So how expensive is it to replace a catalytic converter?
For a Ford F-150, you will need to spend about $1,600 for a new replacement. However, we recommend pricing around to find the best deal.
Sometimes, you can find some good deals for the aftermarket ones. A lot of them are cheaper, and they will work perfectly fine. So it’s not a bad idea to give it a try.
Now for the labor, you will pay roughly $300. The price of labor also depends on where you live. But that’s an average for a catalytic converter.
Then again, we recommend pricing around to find the best deal in town!
However, if you did it yourself, you would save a lot of money. And you could put that money somewhere else.
The best thing about it is that replacing a faulty catalytic converter is not as hard as it seems.
You’d be surprised by how easy it is to replace a catalytic converter. And on top of that, you would learn a valuable skill, which always comes in handy.
DIY Guide: How to Replace a Catalytic Converter
So, you’ve spent all this time doing research trying to find a way to bring your catalytic converter back to life.
But you’ve come to realize that the only thing you can do is replace it.
Don’t worry! In this guide, we will walk you through the steps that you need to replace a catalytic converter.
By the end of this tutorial, you will know what you need to replace a damaged catalytic converter.
Now that we’re on the same page, here are the steps to replace a catalytic converter on your truck:
1. What You Will Need
As always, you need a few tools to install a catalytic converter.
If you’ve done anything related to cars before, you probably have these tools at home already. So, here is what you need to install a catalytic converter:
- A floor jack—you will lift up the truck, so you need a floor jack to do so
- Jack stands—always use jack stands when jacking a truck. You never know if the floor jacks fail and then you have a gigantic vehicle falling down on you
- A socket wrench—as always, you will take off some bolts. So, make sure to keep it on hand
- Penetrating oil—the bolts on the catalytic converter get corroded just like a battery. So, you will need to loosen them up before to take
Once you have gathered all these tools listed above, you’re ready to move onto the next section.
2. Jack Up The Truck
The first step is to jack up the truck. You will get under the car. So, make sure to jack it up. To do this, here is what you need to do:
- Find a good lifting point and jack up the truck
- Place the jack stands under the vehicle for more safety. Otherwise, if the floor jack were to fall down on you, you would still have the jack stands
If you need help jacking up the truck, here is a video you can watch:
3. Find The Catalytic Converter
Once you have jacked up the vehicle, you need to find the catalytic converter. To find the catalytic converter, follow these steps:
- Get under the vehicle and head to the engine
- From there, you should be able to find the catalytic converter
4. Spray the bolts
Once you have located the catalytic converter, you want to remove the bolts from the catalytic converter. To remove the bolts, here is what you need to do:
- Crawl under the vehicle and find the bolts
- Sometimes the bolts get corroded over time. If that is the case, then you want to spray oil on the bolts
- Spray penetrating oil on the bolts to get them nice and lubricated.
- Now all you need to do is wait for the spray to soak
Once you have done all those steps, you can proceed with the tutorial.
5. Take off The Bolts
Now that the bolts are nice and lubricated, you want to remove the bolts using the socket wrench. So, to remove the bolts like a professional, here is what you need to do:
- Find the bolts and start pulling hard to take the bolts off
- By doing this, you will get them loose, which makes it easier to remove
- Once you have removed the bolts, you want to remove the catalytic converter
6. Put in The New Catalytic Converter
Now here is the easy part: all you need to do is put in the new catalytic converter.
- Get the new catalytic converter and then wiggle it in place
- From there, you want to put the bolts back in. Otherwise, they will leak exhaust
- And now start up your car to make sure everything is working
And that’s all you need to replace and old catalytic converter. If you’re more of a visual learner, here is an excellent video you can watch to help you throughout this process:
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
Do you need more guidance on how catalytic converter work? If so, we have made a list of the most common questions about catalytic converters. Here are three of those questions:
1. How much is a catalytic converter for a Ford f-150?
Catalytic converters are ridiculously expensive. For example, you can find catalytic converter replacements for a Ford F-150 for about $1,600. Before you get a new one, we recommend running some tests to make sure the catalytic converter went bad.
2. How many catalytic converters does a truck have?
Generally, most trucks have a single catalytic converter. However, some trucks can have up to two catalytic converters.
3. Where is the catalytic converter on a ford f150?
To find the catalytic converter on your Ford F-150: you need to crawl under the vehicle and then head over to the muffler. Now there, you should see the catalytic converter.
Conclusion
Did you find out how many catalytic converters are in a ford f150?
We hope that you now have a better understanding of what a catalytic converter is and how you can replace an old one.
Some places will go try to charge you a whopping $1,000 for replacing a catalytic converter.
That is a lot of money for replacing an old catalytic converter. So, replacing the catalytic converter on your own doesn’t sound so bad.
After all, It’s never too late to learn how to replace a catalytic converter and get your first toolbox!
