does anyone know why the floor on the passengerside of my 4runner would get hot? I just noticed this today and it is unusally hot for some reason. THe heater is not on.

 

See if there is any oil flinging up on it. probly not but oil could heat it up.

 

i checked right underneath it, it seemed like everything was fine. Do you think it could be a cat problem?

 

I started my truck one morning with a cat sleeping on the headers. It was the worst sound I've ever heard.

 

Yeah i dindt think it would be oil, but the exhaust seems like something to check. Other than that i have no idea.

 

yea ill look at it in the morn when i can see something! I really appreciate the help

 

the floor will get warm on my tacoma, i think warm is ok, because the cat is right under it, but hot... hows your engine running? if it is not running corectly it could heat up the cat to a higher temp than normal

 

Everything seems to be running ok. Maybe its time to change the coolant? I dunno, i guess it couldnt hurt. I do have 175000 miles on my rig.

 

Maybe with the heater off, you're still getting circulation into your heater core and keeping it warm on that side... just an idea... Is it the metal FLOOR or the carpet that's hot?

 

its the carpet that is hot. I had the air on recycle with the windows down when i noticed it.

 

With that many miles, there is a good chance your cat is clogged.
Aaron

 

A slightly plugged/failing catalytic converter or muffler can cause the exhaust system to get red hot. I say slightly plugged because extremely stuffed cats/mufflers usually create excessive back pressure which usually causes the engine to run abnormally or even fail. (Although my old man's '79 Cherokee literally blew the entire 20" pinch weld WIDE open when his muffler plugged up. the out of both of us when it exploded...)

You may have just lost a heat shield too...

 

do you know how often the Cat needs to be changed?

 

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

 

Depends. Catalytic converters are sorta like mufflers. Some cats physically last forever. While others might be lemons and only last 50K. Environmental conditions play a factor was well. A cat a southern auto might last longer than one on a identical model up north because the roads are salted during the winter months.

Many cats still 'work' well over 100,000+ miles. Work, meaning not plugged up, but they may not burn off pollutes quite as well as a newer cat. So a cat with 100K may still 'work', yet still fail an emissions test because it may cannot clean the exhaust gases appropriately.

 

Thanks for the help guys!! I'll have to look into it more later today. Once again, thanks