catalytic converter

[25Horseplay]

I hollowed it out and noticed no difference.

[gtd2000]

I see - I'm still trying to source the reason our blue 121 (see left) gets around 24mpg (US) and feels like 45hp!

[monkeyracing]

..also if you do go somewhere else there are locations which have random checks for emissions and they don't care what was ''allowed'' where you live-citation,possible impound untill repaired.

I've run into this issue before, and it's illegal for a law enforcement agency to impound a vehicle for something that's a violation in any district outside of the one the vehicle was registered in.

EG: the RCMP in British Columbia would pull Alberta cars over just across the border for things that are okay in Alberta but not in BC, say...no front license plates, aftermarket exhaust, etc. They pulled this crap for years until they got taken to court enough times to make them back off.

As for removing the cat, it will help out a little, but not so much that you'd notice a big difference.

[packrat427]

The cat is a Federal law , not a ordinance or a State to State law , much stricter than a regular violation .

I am not sure how they feel outside the US.

But I know plenty of muffler shops that have had a $25,000.00 fine for removing them .
I personally don't care for the cat either , I am just saying they don't fall into the lic. plate category

[monkeyracing]

The laws are federal here as well, but provincial jurisdiction dictates what is enforced, and how. EG: There is no federal rule in Canada stopping you from removing or disabling your airbags, but local enforcement may differ on the subject. If your insurance company finds out, they'll drop you as soon as they find out, which is usually right after you've crashed your car. Our federal law also states that you may not remove any emissions control devices on your vehicle, but in Alberta emissions are not part of the highway act, or at the very least are completely bypassed. You may still have a hard time finding a shop to remove your cat for you, since they are nervous about undercover federal do-gooders poking around.

Interesting story about emission laws in Alberta: A number of years ago, someone tried to introduce a clunker law. Under this law, they were actually pondering denying registration to older vehicles, on the grounds that they pollute more than modern one. Problem is they didn't differentiate between old clunkers and classics, hot rods, etc.

So, a group of guys from some car clubs got together and had their "clunkers" smog tested, and at the same time smog tested some newer cars that were exempt from this rule. The end result was that the hot rods ran cleaner than cars that were supposedly ideals of modern emissions technology. The difference was that the hot rods were always maintained, tuned and loved, whereas the newer cars were daily drivers that weren't taken care of so obsessively, and therefore being even slightly out of tune, spewed all kinds of crap.

Yeah, it was a bit of a non sequitor, but I just had to get it out once I thought of it.

Jim

[redfestiva]

My 92 Festiva has a straight pipe where the cat used to be. I noticed no performance improvement but the gas mileage improved about 1.5 mpg. Where I live there is no inspections.

[oldgrezmonke]

[quote="monkeyracing"]

..also if you do go somewhere else there are locations which have random checks for emissions and they don't care what was ''allowed'' where you live-citation,possible impound untill repaired.

I've run into this issue before, and it's illegal for a law enforcement agency to impound a vehicle for something that's a violation in any district outside of the one the vehicle was registered in.

i guess i used the wrong word [impound] , but , in some states in the U.S. the police do enforce their local standards and have been known to order your car off the road for various violations - one state has [or had] a "OEM only" standard for exhaust system components and was giving out tickets for chrome exhaust tips! if you had a street rod-say a 32 ford with a chevy engine they would go nuts. thank goodness i live in an area that is not so strict.

[j0nathan67]

yeah i took mine off ( well acually it fell off) and replaced it with a flex pipe from auto zone and mine seem to run a little better and a few extra miles to the tank of fuel