My local mechanic, who has a very good reputation, and the Subaru dealer that we occasionally go to for service are in total disagreement about why my Subaru Outback wagon (2000) is acting sluggishly.
The local guy says that at least one of the catalytic converters is clogged. He believes this is true because none of his other diagnostic tests yielded other causes, AND, because the car ran fine when he pulled the O2 sensor (which he of course put back on). He said he could replace it for about $800- $900, but that because the converter is covered under the 8 yr/80,000 mile rule, I should get it replace by a dealer. He even called the dealer to talk to them and offered to send documentation, but the dealer didn't want to hear anything about it -- said they'd have to diagnose it.
So I took it to the Subaru dealer, who said that none of the computer codes that would indicate a catalytic converter problem are coming up. He also said that "someone" (read: local mechanic) did not close the airbox correctly, which would be the cause of the sluggishness. The dealer also said that they involved a supervisor and compared my car to another one, and could find nothing else wrong (well, the one wheel bearing could be replaced, they said, but that's another matter).
By the way, exactly one year ago the "check engine" light was coming on. Took car to the dealer, who replaced the O2 sensor.
So my questions are as follows:
1) Could the sluggishness be explained totally by the airbox not being totally closed? 2) Does my local mechanic know what he's talking about or not? 3) Is the dealer trying to get out of replacing the catalytic converter for free? 4) Do I return to either for future service?For now, I'm on my way to pick up the car at the Dealer's, drive it to see if it is still sluggish, then I'm taking it to my local guy to look at the wheel bearing. Yes, I distrust dealers (past experience), plus the dealer is not conveniently located. Wish me luck as we set out on our 1600-mile road trip next week!