Questions about a removing the cat. converter, please help
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
Questions about a removing the cat. converter, please help Would I be able to take it off @ home.. or is there a lot more to it?
What kind of gains have people seen? any at all?
I just now found out about the cutout and was wondering if the cutout would sound almost like removing the converter? Knowing nothing about it, which would be the best way to go?If anyone has done either of these mods, is the car TOO loud,ever gotten pulled over b/c of it?
I heard this one car that had no cat conv. and a loudmouth exhaust, whenever he would gas it, it sounded like it smoked one too many cigarettes, and when the rpm's were dropping it made a
nasty gurgling like sound. Do they all sound like that when you take it off or what?
Just a word of caution from experience,if you ever want to hear what no converter sounds like, you can go ahead and delete 10 years of your ears life b/c it sounds kinda like.. DAAAAMN!! thx for any help
What kind of gains have people seen? any at all?
I just now found out about the cutout and was wondering if the cutout would sound almost like removing the converter? Knowing nothing about it, which would be the best way to go?If anyone has done either of these mods, is the car TOO loud,ever gotten pulled over b/c of it?
I heard this one car that had no cat conv. and a loudmouth exhaust, whenever he would gas it, it sounded like it smoked one too many cigarettes, and when the rpm's were dropping it made a
nasty gurgling like sound. Do they all sound like that when you take it off or what? Just a word of caution from experience,if you ever want to hear what no converter sounds like, you can go ahead and delete 10 years of your ears life b/c it sounds kinda like.. DAAAAMN!! thx for any help
TECH Junkie
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,340
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
Re: Questions about a removing the cat. converter, please help I would go to a performance shop and get them to do it maybe even get that new bassani offroad y that will bolt up to ur stock exhaust manifolds.And possibly replace the loudmouth resinator with a bullet muff or something like that.Or you could just go ahead and get headers as well.Let me know if you have any questions. 
Re: Questions about a removing the cat. converter, please help yes.....you can remove and gut the cats at home (did it) but its going to be kind of hard to get the bolts loose unless you have air tools (I do).....
gutted cats + loudmouth makes a RASPY HARSH sound.....(went through that stage with my car....but I didn't mind it that much....)
gutting the cats give A LOT of hp up top....
with the Loudmouth, you won't gain a lot with a cut out (there really isn't anything back there anyways)....you still have the cats up stream....
if you really want some power and still sound good:
1) gut cats and put a bullet in place of the resinator.....
2) go Hooker LTs and leave the loudmouth alone for now.....
gutted cats + loudmouth makes a RASPY HARSH sound.....(went through that stage with my car....but I didn't mind it that much....)
gutting the cats give A LOT of hp up top....
with the Loudmouth, you won't gain a lot with a cut out (there really isn't anything back there anyways)....you still have the cats up stream....
if you really want some power and still sound good:
1) gut cats and put a bullet in place of the resinator.....
2) go Hooker LTs and leave the loudmouth alone for now.....
Staging Lane
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 70
Likes: 0
From: Memphis, TN
Re: Questions about a removing the cat. converter, please help I had a friend of mine do a new exhaust --- headers to tips --- on his car, so I took his old cats off his hands for free. I gutted them and swapped them in the driveway.
All you need is a 15mm deep socket, a long extension (8 - 10 inches), and some rust cutter spray. You remove 5 nuts from each side, drop the cat, put the gutted one in (or gut yours and replace)and put the 5 nuts back on. Don't forget to install your O2 sims while you're there.
As for gains? I didn't see any at the track. I ran 13.1 with cats and a cutout. I ran 13.1 with no cats and a cutout. 108 MPH trap speed each time.
Since it sounds like SH*T with gutted cats and a cutout, and not much better with gutted cats and the Flowmaster muffler, I put my stock cats back on and sold my gutted cats and O2 sims.
At least it was only a 30 minute job to swap them out.
All you need is a 15mm deep socket, a long extension (8 - 10 inches), and some rust cutter spray. You remove 5 nuts from each side, drop the cat, put the gutted one in (or gut yours and replace)and put the 5 nuts back on. Don't forget to install your O2 sims while you're there.
As for gains? I didn't see any at the track. I ran 13.1 with cats and a cutout. I ran 13.1 with no cats and a cutout. 108 MPH trap speed each time.
Since it sounds like SH*T with gutted cats and a cutout, and not much better with gutted cats and the Flowmaster muffler, I put my stock cats back on and sold my gutted cats and O2 sims.
At least it was only a 30 minute job to swap them out.
