OEM Cats
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,616
Likes: 5
From: Sandhills of North Carolina
OEM Cats
What is the average life expectancy of them?
Also, would highflow cats be the way to go on a stock engine if they have to be repaced? Any gains in doing so?
1996 LT1 coupe -Mike
Also, would highflow cats be the way to go on a stock engine if they have to be repaced? Any gains in doing so?
1996 LT1 coupe -Mike
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 1999
Posts: 3,504
Likes: 4
From: Mexico Beach FL
My '92 has close to 90K miles with the original cats and they aren't gutted.
I did a back pressure check (as per the service manual) and the cats aren't causing any back pressure.
Tom Piper
I did a back pressure check (as per the service manual) and the cats aren't causing any back pressure.
Tom Piper
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 5,141
Likes: 7
From: Metairie Louisiana
If I remember correctly, I think mine lasted to about 70k-80k miles. You could hear it rattling inside and gas mileage went way down. A piece shot out the back and cracked another vehicles windshield on the interstate. Most people get up to 10hp from deleting the cats. Maybe a bit less in using performance cats.
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,616
Likes: 5
From: Sandhills of North Carolina
Thank guys!
Guess I'll get a back pressure test done. My GF heard something clicking under the console a couple of weekends ago. I thought it might just be a leak in the exhaust fittings because I had just installed the Corsas. But this weekend she said it wasn't there and I haven't done anything to the Corsas as far as tightening anything up in that area. The car has almost 86K on it and I was thinking it might be a cat going bad. Mileage is so so but it seems boggy when accelerating. Until I changed the injectors a while back it was running really rich. It was that way when I got the car back in Nov. I know this isn't a very good condition for cats and I probably put 8K or so on it like that.
Guess I'll get a back pressure test done. My GF heard something clicking under the console a couple of weekends ago. I thought it might just be a leak in the exhaust fittings because I had just installed the Corsas. But this weekend she said it wasn't there and I haven't done anything to the Corsas as far as tightening anything up in that area. The car has almost 86K on it and I was thinking it might be a cat going bad. Mileage is so so but it seems boggy when accelerating. Until I changed the injectors a while back it was running really rich. It was that way when I got the car back in Nov. I know this isn't a very good condition for cats and I probably put 8K or so on it like that.
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,616
Likes: 5
From: Sandhills of North Carolina
Actually, I was thinking about doing that. The previous owner said he just replaced them so I haven't bothered checking. But, it turns out a lot he said is not quite the truth. Guess I'll get the paper clip out.
