damn emissions!!

Alright, I failed the hydrocarbons test (pass is 0.80 mine is 1.08) But I passed the Carbon Monoxide test easy (pass is 15.0 mine is 6.3). So my question is what are some things to check that might be causing me to fail. Oh by the way my cat is gutted, but i didn't fail by much so... Maybe o2 sensor? And I'm broke as hell, so please give me good news with a cheap fix. Thanx

Your gutted cat could be the problem. Here's a quote from HowStuffWorks.com about catalytic converters:

The inside of the catalytic converter is a honeycomb set of passageways or small ceramic beads coated with catalysts. A chemical reaction takes place to make the pollutants less harmful. There are many passages for the exhaust gases to flow, to allow for the maximum amount of surface area for the hot gases to pass.

The catalysts include:

Oxidation catalysts: Palladium (Pd) and platinum (Pt) metals in very small amounts (to keep the catalytic converter price down) convert the hydrocarbons of unburned gasoline and carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide and water.
Reduction catalysts: Palladium and rhodium (Rh) metals also in very small amounts convert the nitrogen oxide to nitrogen and oxygen. Nitrogen oxide is a big contributor to smog.

So maybe you should put another cat on and re-test then switch it back.

I would if I had the money, last month i just got a new exhaust system put on 2" cat back and OBX high flow muffler, sounds awesome by the way, a little off the subject but OBX has got a lot of crappy feedback about products but i love the way this muffle sounds. Nice deep tone and above 4k it screams! But anyway I would have got a new cat then but i'm poor. lol. Thanx for the info though, didn't really know all that. I'm gonna change my o2 sensor and plugs for right now. Should i advance my timing at all? I get 2 retests for emissions and I only want to go back once cuz they beat the shit out of my car last time.

umm go to junk yard find a cat and take it lol thats your only option really if you cant buy a new one maybe you have a friend that recently switched to a high flow or something without a cat your hopeless thats what i would suggest and considering a cat should cost around the same as a new o2 sensor

LOL! No thanks on stealing one from a junkyard, that's why i'm so poor right now cuz of my last visit to the junkyard. $1300 emergency room visit. I was trying to steal a turbo out of an eclipse and I slipped back on a sharp piece of some car behind me, 17 stitches in my back and a tetnis shot. The worst part was in the hospital they thought i was a mechanic cuz i was covered from head to toe in oil and grease, and I said I was at the junkyard. So one of the nurse's had me jump her car in the parking lot. She said she'd see what she could do about my bill, yeah didn't happen.LOL! So any others ideas?

A thief?

as far as i know, junkyards remove catalytic converters from cars before putting them up for grabs because it is against the law to use a catalytic converter off of a different car on your car. Its punishable with an enormus fine and possibly even jail time for the shop or junkyard that sold it.

WTF?? Where do you live mate? I live in CA and i never heard such a thing, and emissions here is a bitch. In fact i let some of my friends use my cat to smog their cars and i have it chillin in my garage right now. When i gotta smog that car i will jus drop it back on.

The muffler shop *caugh*MIDAS*caugh*that did my exhaust told me that the cat i had was empty and that I wouldn't pass emissions with it. They welded it on anyway. Didn't even ask if it was for my civic, i brought it with me cuz my entire exhaust got ripped off in a construction zone. I don't think that law is enforced that heavily. Is there anyways to get around this cat converter issue? I read on here that there is some type of shit you add to your gas to help pass if so where do I find it?