Catalytic Converter Required?
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 335
Likes: 19
From: Klein TX
Catalytic Converter Required?
So in doing some research for a potential exhaust system upgrade, I notice a lot of guys and vendors talking about catless systems. I thought if a car was equipped with a catalytic converter, it was illegal to remove it. What am I missing? Is it legal to run a catless exhaust? Granted it has to pass emission testing, but is it even technically legal to remove?
I live in the Houston suburbs in Harris county and I have to have a probe stuck up my tailpipe (and we all know how painful THAT can be...) to pass inspection. Do I even have a prayer of passing without cats?
I live in the Houston suburbs in Harris county and I have to have a probe stuck up my tailpipe (and we all know how painful THAT can be...) to pass inspection. Do I even have a prayer of passing without cats?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 6,486
Likes: 1,659
From: Las Vegas NV
It is a federal crime to remove the catalytic converter from a vehicle registered to operate on public roads. Since it is a *federal* law, it supercedes any and all state laws, so it doesn't matter whether your area has inspections or not.
It also doesn't matter if the vehicle can pass a sniffer test without cats (which it most likely cannot anyways) -- the very act of removing the cats itself is the crime, and the feds can levy hefty fines not only on you as the owner, ($2750) but also on the shop that removed them ($25,000). Thus, any reputable shop won't dare remove them.
You'll notice every single catless system states "for offroad use only" -- the federal law is the reason it carries that tag.
It also doesn't matter if the vehicle can pass a sniffer test without cats (which it most likely cannot anyways) -- the very act of removing the cats itself is the crime, and the feds can levy hefty fines not only on you as the owner, ($2750) but also on the shop that removed them ($25,000). Thus, any reputable shop won't dare remove them.
You'll notice every single catless system states "for offroad use only" -- the federal law is the reason it carries that tag.
Last edited by Kent1999; Apr 22, 2015 at 12:52 AM.
