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99 explorer v6 Cat glowing red hot only after putting in drive in a couple min

True indeed.

Un-metered air getting past the Mass Airflow Sensor will make you dump fuel.
 



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True indeed.

Un-metered air getting past the Mass Airflow Sensor will make you dump fuel.
So I did a fuel pressure test all good there I pulled plugs wires checked and replaced I did notice when I took the air filter lose earlier while it was running it didn't take much at all hardly any resistance to stick my hand in there and stop the air flow it almost immediately died. Don't know if that helps. I'm still at it will give more info when I get to it. Thank you so again
 






Glowing cat is textbook vacuum. These plastic intakes are known for cracks, leaking gaskets and melt holes. A hole will be way too small to supply air with the intake plugged with a hand. Give it a real good inspection, around the seams especially. A smoke generator comes in handy in such an occasion.
 






Glowing cat is textbook vacuum. These plastic intakes are known for cracks, leaking gaskets and melt holes. A hole will be way too small to supply air with the intake plugged with a hand. Give it a real good inspection, around the seams especially. A smoke generator comes in handy in such an occasion.[/Q
Glowing cat is textbook vacuum. These plastic intakes are known for cracks, leaking gaskets and melt holes. A hole will be way too small to supply air with the intake plugged with a hand. Give it a real good inspection, around the seams especially. A smoke generator comes in handy in such an occasion.
Thank you. I actually just finished everything that I'm capable of doing. I was told about a smoke generator and that will be the next direction I'm headed. It's so confusing. I have looked and looked at every possible scenario to make this happen after putting everything back together it does run better when put in drive but the lack of power and cat still getting hot enough to glow is still there. Any recommendation of where to get an affordable one. Thank you buddy I'm taking all the help I can get. To fix this problem. And I feel as I'm getting closer.
 






I'm wondering if in the midst of all the repair work I dropped one end on the connector to the O2 sensor after the cats in old oil and tranny fluid I cleaned it the best I could before finally getting electrical contact cleaner, yes it was plugged in before. And I thought I had to take the exhaust apart to get my tranny out so flange coming off the block was taken loose it has been tightened but it was rough. And I also noticed today that there was a crack more than likely from my knee is in the plastic cover on top of my engine. It's not broke just cracked. Could any of these things made my cat go bad. I know I'm not the best at fixing but I'm learning and try to not repeat my mistakes. Thank you for your time
@Block Maker
Want you to know yer dealing here with a man who most definitely knows and understands this stuff. I have appreciated his help often, as you are now. imp
 






Glowing cat is textbook vacuum. These plastic intakes are known for cracks, leaking gaskets and melt holes. A hole will be way too small to supply air with the intake plugged with a hand. Give it a real good inspection, around the seams especially. A smoke generator comes in handy in such an occasion.
That's a nice theory but no, it's not so much "textbook" (there are many other possible lean misfires and intake manifold gaskets themselves are more common so absolutely not textbook) just one possibility but more importantly, quite a coincidence for it to happen not before, but right after a tranny swap and ??? who know what else.

I am not stating it can't be an intake crack. It would just be quite a coincidence and not the most likely cause either way.
 






Funny thing, last time I needed smoke, I used my neighbors beehive smoker, it worked great for my situation. Not sure where you would get a cheap automotive one.
 






Does anyone else remember reading about this problem (from several years ago)? IIRC it turned out that the right and left O2 wiring and gotten reversed (left wire to right O2 sensor and right wire to left O2 sensor). I thought about this when I read that the transmission had been swapped. Pretty easy to plug them back in wrong. Caused the same problem, a red glowing catalytic converter.
 






I cannot say I remember that one but if this solves the problem....

You would think the harness connectors would be arranged where that can't happen.

To make life easier for the OP would you happen to know how to tell the difference between R & L on the main harness?
 






I cannot say I remember that one but if this solves the problem....

You would think the harness connectors would be arranged where that can't happen.

To make life easier for the OP would you happen to know how to tell the difference between R & L on the main harness?

Sorry, I don't know how you tell the difference between the two plugs. They might be different colors, but I don't know which would be which. Maybe a wiring diagram would say. I'll look at one and see.

Edit:
The wiring diagram shows 3 O2 sensors on the OHV engine (#3, #2, and #1). It doesn't say which is which. Maybe #1 refers to bank-1 (passenger side of engine) and #2 to bank-2 (driver's side of engine) and maybe #3 is the post-cat sensor, but it doesn't say. Apparently the
e SOHC engine has 4 O2 sensors.

It says sensor plug #1 wire colors = ORG, GRY/LT BLU, LT BLU/ORG, RED/WHT
 






Noticed that the OP has a 99.

I'll go dig out my Ford Workshop electrical manual and see if the electrical section list a different color wire for L & R pre-cat.
 






Noticed that the OP has a 99.

I'll go dig out my Ford Workshop electrical manual and see if the electrical section list a different color wire for L & R pre-cat.

Yes, a 99 V6. See the edit to my previous post. The wires colors are different for #1 & #2 pre-cat. It just doesn't say if plug #1 corresponds to pre-cat bank-1.
 






Photos attached.

SOHC shows 4 sensors.

4.0L shows 3 sensors.

Bank 1 Grey with Light Blue

Bank 2 Red with Black

Bank 3 Red with Light Green

IMG_0010.JPG


IMG_0011.JPG
 






If the OP ever said which V6 he has (OHV or SOHC) I missed it. In looking at wiring diagrams I went with OHV engine (thinking the pre-cat O2 wiring is probably the same for both engines).

Looking at the problem logically, the OP unplugged the O2 sensors when he dropped the exhaust to swap the his transmission. He didn't have this glowing cat issue before swapping the trans, so I'm thinking there's a pretty good chance he switched the pre-cat O2 wire connectors when he reinstalled the exhaust. That's where I'd look first.
 






Thanks.

Didn't even think about that aspect.
 






I stop the car the muffler is glowing red hot
muffler or Catalytic Converter?
if it's the Catalytic Converter

is it the front or rear Catalytic Converter that is hot?

you say 2 spark plug wires were backwards? why were they off to do a tranny?
did you do any other work at the same time?
 






muffler or Catalytic Converter?
if it's the Catalytic Converter

is it the front or rear Catalytic Converter that is hot?

As the title of this thread is "Cat glowing red hot" I assume the OP meant cat when he said muffler.
 












This is getting intriguing.
@Tech By Trade
It is! So, I'll contribute what I know about HO2S wiring, having fought with a problem for 6 months.

I have SOHC 4.0L 2 cats, 4 HO2S. Ford refers to them in wiring diagrams as: 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, and 2-2. First digit is Bank, 1 = Right Bank. Second digit refers to location (upstream or downstream, either end of cat). 1 = Upstream, 2 = Downstream.

My code reader goes further: it states "P0054" HO2S Heater Resistance Bank 1 Pos 2. imp
 



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We are still waiting for a reply from the OP as to his findings.

Kinda like a case of Who Dun It..
 






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