Q: Can a Catalytic converter break up little pieces and ruin your engine

It is not possible for broken off pieces from a catalytic converter to get into your car’s engine and damage it. However, if your vehicle’s catalytic converter is damaged, including breakage or melting of the internal honeycomb substrate that contains the catalytic materials, that sort of damage (to the converter) sometimes creates a blockage to the normal flow of exhaust from the engine and that could cause your car engine to run poorly, or even prevent it from running. But, again, the engine itself is not damaged. If your vehicle is not running and you desire to know why, and also get an estimate of what it would take to get it running properly, please request a no start diagnostic and the responding certified mechanic will get the problem diagnosed and let you know of the repair strategy. At the same time, please let us know if you have further concerns or questions as we are always here to help you.