A few months ago my muffler was cracking and falling apart, so i bought flowmaster 40s. it sounds pretty sweet but its not loud enough anymore

My cat converter is very old, and more than likely stealing some power (needs to be replaced) and muffling a better sound. Can I just cut it out, replace it with a 2.5" straight pipe with 2 clamps and some muffler cement (just like I did with my flowmaster 40s, worked perfectly) until I purchase a high flow cat a couple months down the road from now? Is there more to it than that?

Oh, I'll be adding a cold air intake system and a proper exhaust system in the near future aswell.

Does anyone have this combination of no cat / single out flow master 40? How does it sound? I have the 318 (5.2) v8

Thanks for the info

 

I have that combo on a '95 Dakota with shorty headers. It sounds good to me, especially at WOT. The only problem you will run into is you'll trip a CEL from the rear o2s, but they are emissions only o2 sensors and have nothing to do with tuning the engine. I didn't have that problem cause mine is OBDI.

If you have vehicle emissions inspections in your area, just be sure to get the new cat on and CELS reset before you get it inspected.

 

I dont have to take it through a vehicle inspection for 18 months. What exactly is a "CEL" and how do i reset it?

 

Check Engine Light. You can reset them by taking a scanner and erasing all codes, or you can unplug the battery for 20-30 minutes.

 

So with a 98 Dak with the 318. It has two o2 sensors, one in front of the cat and one behind. But they just deal with emissions not with the engine?

Basically what I'm getting at is I could Remove the cat and my truck would run just fine?

 

It depends how strict you county is for emmisions. Ours is we have to have a cat its just a visual check I took mine in with the check engine light on and didnt say a word about it.

 

The one before the cat helps regulated how much fuel is fed to the cylinders. The one after the cat is strictly emissions.

 

i have that combo, my exaust ends shortly after my cab
on a 4 banger sounds pretty good

 

I've been toying with the idea of gutting my cat, but I'm concerned about losing low end torque. Is low end torque a problem after gutting it? I'm also planning to add shorty headers come tax time, so will that be a problem? I mean will I lose too much back pressure?

 

Don't gut the cat or you'll lose power across the entire powerband. If you want to lose the cat, cut it off and replace it with a straight pipe.