Situation with my CATs

[Ace37]

Okay don’t flog me here, just asking questions. For starters, I don’t live in an emissions county and will keep my flowmaster 40 on. The gasket that’s behind my second cat has hardened almost like steel and I can’t remove it so I was thinking of just welding pipe in place of the gasket but now interested in something else. I want to try and put pipe in place of both my cats. Please don’t legal talk me, just looking for a solution that’ll help sound too. I’ve done work on my own exhausts before but the bends in this system seem to frustrate me. Could I sawzall both the cats off and put pipe in or are the bends too close? Not near my truck at the moment and don’t have a lift so when I go under I’m going to work. Thanks in advance.

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[90halfton]

Trash em and never look back. Can't really see what you're working with in the pic but weld it however you can get to it.

 

[big_mike]

It's really ruff to get a welder up in there to weld pipe in place of them. I was able to get 1 easily but the other I could not get the welder tip in there enough to get a good weld all around.

If your just gonna ditch them I'd just go ahead and upgrade the entire pipe. Jegs sells a off road pipe without cats and it's 2.5" instead of the small 1.75 stock pipe. It's like $178, bolts up to stock manifolds and has O2 sensor bungs for the front O2's. And has the flange plate to bolt up to the back half of the stock exhaust.

 

[Nathaniel2g]

If you lower down the exhaust you can cut them out, gut them, and put them back in. Saves having to make custom pipes.

 

[RichLo]

http://www.jegs.com/i/Hooker-Headers/520/16533/10002/-1?ymm=4294829833+4294829741+4294829738

 

[Bob L]

I took a 4" hole saw to the bottom of mine gutted the cat and just welded the circle back in. Visual inspection shows the cat.

 

[90halfton]

I took a 4" hole saw to the bottom of mine gutted the cat and just welded the circle back in. Visual inspection shows the cat.

Pretty good idea. Even though he doesnt need to pass and inspection it would save welding all the way around a pipe still in the truck

 

[Ace37]

Well think I’m gonna lower the exhaust and work from there, I have custom piping and flow masters from the flange back so don’t want to mess with that. Pretty sure my cats are clogged too anyway. I would go the jegs route but was looking for more of a diy and cost friendly thing. Really hate how Chevy put the cats in two very bad spots for users. Really would rather run two pipes back from each manifold down with two flow masters but that’s new hangers and all

 

[Ace37]

Really wish I had a lift.

 

[Ace37]

Need an opinion. Anybody running no cats and no muffler? That flange gasket after the cats is really pissing me off. Gonna cut it right after that bend on the rear cat and get some universal pipes or turndowns to the passenger side about between the front and rear door.