Hello,

I have a brief question. I moved to California 2 years ago and brought my 2008 Toyota Corolla with me.

At about 215,000 miles, my OEM catalytic converter failed. I replaced it with an aftermarket part in December 2021. It's been working just fine.

I recently got a smog test done in California to renew my registration. The car now has about 230,000 miles on it. The catalytic converter passed the functional performance standards, but the part was aftermarket. Thus, the inspector labeled the test result as TAMPERED, and I am required to fix the issue to renew my registration. I'm not sure why my car passed the first time with no issues in 2023, but this inspector may have been more scrupulous than the previous one.

I had a few concerns with the process. It appeared that the inspector only did a visual inspection of the aftermarket part, and he did not look any further into it. However, I did see that the California Air Resources Board publishes a list of acceptable aftermarket parts. They wouldn't share any more info about my catalytic converter after the inspection, and the December 2021 job was subletted to a body shop. The dealer doesn't have a record of the manufacturer and number. I'm trying to figure out how I can safely get under my car to get the info off of the part myself (I'm rather car illiterate).

I also took my car to a local dealer, and they quoted me about $3,400 including parts and labor to replace the part. I also started shopping around and found some local muffler shops who will do it for as low as $700-$1,000.

I'm OK with paying up to $1,000 to make the problem go away, but I'm quite shocked by the $3,400 quote to replace a part in a 2008 generic beater car. Even if it's an OEM catalytic converter, I don't get how it adds up to this much money...

It seems like $700 is still a reasonable quote. Are there any problems or concerns with visiting a local muffler shop to get this done? I don't plan on staying in California for more than a few more years, and I'm fairly confident that my car will last. I've taken pretty good care of it otherwise.

It seems like local shops, dealers, and inspectors are pretty rigorously regulated here, so I'm skeptical that $700 is an unreasonable or shady lowball.

Am I missing something here, or should I just go with a <$1,000 replacement and ask no further questions? Does this state really simply fail the part based on a visual inspection and offer no further justification?

I also called the Bureau of Automotive Repair to schedule an appointment with a referee. I'll hopefully talk with them later this week about the options to address this.

Thanks, and I offer my appreciate ahead of time for your comments and advice...they'll help me recover from my mini-stroke after hearing the $3,400 quote, haha.