No cats, help!
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Junior Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
From: Mid Michigan
No cats! Help!
Hi. 
I recently purchased an awesome Centurion package 1997 Ford F150 4x4 with a 5.4L (and a slight lift) that had the exhaust system hacked off by some incosiderate thief, right at the manifold. I guess the price of scrap must be up.lol. I need to get exhaust back on this bad boy so I can get it on the road, but the info I find is very contradicting... anyone know if I NEED cats? I don't want to deal with a check engine light. It seems to lack power really bad with no exhaust at all, but I know it ran well before the sytem was hacked off. I would like to go without cats if possible, trying to keep the cost down. It still has three of the 02 sensors hanging. Not sure where to go from here... any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!! Thanks for helping!
I recently purchased an awesome Centurion package 1997 Ford F150 4x4 with a 5.4L (and a slight lift) that had the exhaust system hacked off by some incosiderate thief, right at the manifold. I guess the price of scrap must be up.lol. I need to get exhaust back on this bad boy so I can get it on the road, but the info I find is very contradicting... anyone know if I NEED cats? I don't want to deal with a check engine light. It seems to lack power really bad with no exhaust at all, but I know it ran well before the sytem was hacked off. I would like to go without cats if possible, trying to keep the cost down. It still has three of the 02 sensors hanging. Not sure where to go from here... any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!! Thanks for helping!
Last edited by sandtraxgirl; Nov 22, 2007 at 10:50 AM.
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 3,762
Likes: 0
From: Windsor, Ont.
Do you need cats? Yes, legally you do need at least one per side I'd guess, but if you decide against, there are ways to defeat the check engine light, others who have done this should explain, I've never done it myself. To me, it would be time for some Longtube headers and a good true dual setup with some hi-flow cats (to keep it legal).
Member
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 96
Likes: 1
From: Daytona Beach
Does your state do emissions testing? If not, then leave them off. There are a lot of people around here who have removed theirs and gained both power and fuel economy in the process.
I dunno if they still sell them, but you used to be able to get O2 simulators (for the rear sensors only, you need the fronts to determine the correct air/fuel mixture) on eBay that would trick the computer into thinking that it had functioning cats on it.
I dunno if they still sell them, but you used to be able to get O2 simulators (for the rear sensors only, you need the fronts to determine the correct air/fuel mixture) on eBay that would trick the computer into thinking that it had functioning cats on it.
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 3,439
Likes: 0
From: farmington hills, MI
yes they do i got rid of my cats and for the rear o2's these worked great! http://www.rpmoutlet.com/gmo2s.htm have to have o2 senors that plug in and the front o2's are in the longtubes *check to be sure* i had a down pipe made but i took my cat down pipe up there so he could get a good bend. long tubes and rear o2 sims i guess... Michigan has no emissions testing!
