Truck History?

[JaCeD_X]

I'm having a tough time determining what has been done here.

Had a brain fart when I removed my Belanger's, or more like the O2 sensors.

I can't remember where I read it, but when going from stock exhaust manifolds/stock exhaust to headers/catback exhaust, isn't there a CEL issue with the upstreams when they go back in?

I'd like to order replacement upstream O2's while my headers get re-jetted but worried if replacing them will give me a CEL because the O2's are simulated of some kind or if I indeed had a tune to remove the CEL.. because... the truck came from Hawaii originally with all this stuff on it, so I would assume emissions law there and a dealer would not remove those codes. Right? Given if the question of CEL issue holds true.

I am going to be removing my rear HFC's (passenger side I believe is falling apart) and don't know if by gutting them will throw a CEL when the downstream O2's are put back in. The fact I didn't get a code thrown with one (HFC) in bad condition is making me suspicious..

Are they all turned off?
What am I missing?

*EDIT* In my case, by removing the HFC's from this setup, I'll get a CEL, correct? In which case, sim the rears?

 

[ARRESTmeRed04]

I honestly think it depends ok the truck, I ditched my rears and didn't change anything with the o2's and it never threw any CEL's.

 

[oldcolt]

If you don't do something with the rear sensor's you will start throwing codes. You could get sims, or get Torrie or Chris (DC Perf.) to send you some tunes, that eliminate the rear sensor's.

 

[JeffBoyette]

I say do what you want, gut them or remove them, and then have torrie tune it for you. I had Belangers HFC that i removed. Although i had neglible performance change, it did make it a little louder and deeper.

"Federal" law mandates you cannot remove and you cannot replace your cat unless they are damaged or more than 60k miles. That said, even tho your state may not have inspection laws, if a cop pulls you for noise violation or whatever else and visually inspects under the truck and there are no cats there, he can write you a ticket in any state. Dealers will require you to re-install them when trading in, and you sign forms saying the emissions equipment is unaltered at all dealers nation wide. If it is altered or missing and you sign the paper, you are commiting fraud. It is also illegal to sell or trade the vehicle with your knowlege of this. If you have a state that does vehicle inspections just for CEL then you will be ok without them as long as the light isnt on.

Ive had Stock exhaust, Rear cats removed, belangers with high flow cats, and no cats, on 2 different trucks. I can tell you that considering the perfomance, risk, and hassle, its best to keep high flow cats on there. The belanger cats flow well, and provide a slight increase in low rpm torque compared to without them. The only time i would say go catless, is if you are running stock manifold, and are trying to get performance increase on a budget. But if you are buying belangers or an exhaust that has them, or have a truck that already has HFC its not advisable to take them off. From personal experience.

The cel most people get from removing cats are with the downstream. They take the reading from the front 02 and compare them to the rears, if they percentages are beyond threshold "X" the CEL comes on signaling catalyst inefficiency. So if your not tuned, and dont have a CEL, then replace the front 02 sensors, It could possibly read more accuratly than your previous O2 and make your computer think the cats have degraded further.

You can take the rear O2 out of the exhaust, plug the hole, and just tie them up to the transmission or something. They have to be plugged into the harness, as regardless what they are reading, with a tune the readings are omitted, however if the computer sees the circuit open (as in not plugged in) it will kick a different kind of code

My best guess is it was tuned, and if it wasnt and your running the belangers, get them tuned and dont worry about the light. I had a shop build me a custom midpipe using the belanger template and weld flanges on it. They bolt up to the header and slip on to the catback on the passenger side and on the driver side they slide into the midpipe after the 90 degree where it slips on. Purpose is that i have to swap them with my belanger cat midpipe, i can do it in my driveway with simple tools in 20 minutes. Additionally i had quicktime performance cutouts installed in the same location as the belanger cats dumping downward right after the crossmember. They sound FUCKIN incredible. Check my video on Photobucket under username JeffBoyette. Im too lazy to link it after typing this long ass post. Good luck

 

[JaCeD_X]

Much respect for the posts. Now I gotta make a decision.
Replace with another set of HFC's or remove the HFC's but keep the catpipe appearance for visual inspection and get a tune to remove any CEL I may get with 'em out. I think sims may make it too obvious.

Anyway, gives me some things to ponder about, especially future use.

And the videos of your truck Jeff sounds amazing! Sounds like it's consuming whatever is in front of it.


:rock:

 

[oldcolt]

You may have seen this video of my truck;

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEbQDcY2EI0]Ram SRT10 Mopar/Borla Exhaust - YouTube[/ame]


Mopar longtubes, catless mid's and Mopar/Borla cat-back. If I was to do my exhaust again, I would install high flow cats. (Not a noise issue!)

 

[viperhauler]

originally i ran only two oem cats, i cut the rears out and left all oem sensors in place... drove 60k miles that way and never threw a code until the fronts got clogged.

at that time, i orderd the belangers and the high flows (only two), put all my original sensors back in and now at 105k, no lights or issues.

 

[JeffBoyette]

The problem with gutted cats is the increased area in the cat chamber. Exhaust operates in pulses, it doesnt blow.... per say. When you have that hollow chamber it effects flow. Even tho the hole is larger in diameter than straight pipe it flows less. There are cats that are made with a straight through pipe inside. i forget the namebrand or the link but it has something to do with "ICE" /shrug

I would install new HFC. Especially if it was tuned with them. Just not a fan of gutted cats for reasons stated above. A HFC may perform better down low than a gutted cat because of flow, the backpressure our engines need.