I got a stainless Cat from Random Tech. It'* a tiny converter, the active element is only 4" in diameter and about 4.5 inches long. The internal structure is a metal matrix, which does not have the nasty habit of cracking and rattling like the ceramic brick style.

My plan is to buy a new front pipe, and weld the new cat to the new front pipe, then weld on another short piece of pipe until it is as long as the original cat (24" !!!). Then I will cut off the old cat, heat up the old manifold studs and replace them, tack weld the new setup and then drop the whole system, muffler and all, to make the final weld to the old tubing. (I am not good at upside-down welding).

There is a lot of controversy surrounding these Random Tech cats. There are some very bad reviews online. A lot of them are problems with heat shields falling off and cracking of ceramic bricks. However the model I have does not have a heat shield or ceramic bricks. Another problem is with vechicles that have an O2 sensor after the cat, which I do not have on my '92.

I was also told by a guy at a local muffler shop that he has had problems with the metal matrix melting away. But he did admit these were guys with major perf mods on their cars. So maybe they are running too rich. After looking at the cat he also pronounced that it will not pass the emissions test. Not sure how he can tell by looking. Maybe he is upset because I am doing the work myself.

I did ask the owner of clearimageautomotive (they sell RT cats) about this, and he claims to have sold about 100 with no major issues.

So this will be an interesting experiment. I hope to post some photos of the new cat and of the job as I work on it.

Ok here are some pictures of the job.

This is the original system removed.



This is the new Random Technology converter and my new front pipe. Turns out I could have re-used the old front pipe, it was still in good shape. I kept the original as a spare.



This is what the inside of the converter looks like.



The finished product. That'* water on the pipes, it was raining that day. I ended up putting the converter after the pipe extension. I figured if I ever had to cut it out, at least I wouldn't have to mess up that new (expensive) front pipe. Used 309L stainless wire and 98/2 argon mix for welding.



The rear ceramic brick of the original converter was loose, it was not broken but whatever material supported it was completely gone. Good riddance.

Looks good. Hows it sound? Any power gain?
Is this a high-flo cat? (sorry, I read the original post, but didn't take the time to re-read).
Was it worth the bling-bling?
I'm thinking Ol blue could use a new one since the one on the car probably is the original with 208,600 miles on it.

BTW, Your rims are the shiznit.

Sweet, I am waiting for my DP / CAT combo to arrive. I hope yours works out well for you.

Thanks. It sounds pretty much the same, maybe a slightly deeper tone but no big change, except for the absence of the death rattle.

Too early to say if there is any power gain, I will report back later. Yes it is supposed to be high flow, because it is only one short brick. Time will tell if it is worth the money.

If your original isn't making noise, leave it alone.

Thanks for the complement on the rims. And they are not even clean in this picture.

Nice clean install, good job

I can now report on some changes I have noticed. The car seems to run more effortlessly at speeds 40 mph and above. What do I mean by that? Well if I am going 40, even with the TC locked up, I can get to 50 faster. Car seems about the same from a dead start. I still haven't driven enough to give a full detailed report, as I haven't been feeling well.

On another note, the engine runs hotter. At idle it gets to the point where the fans must kick on much faster than they ever did. And I have no explanation for this. I have detailed this more in another topic:

http://www.bonnevilleclub.com/forum/...=244040#244040

Any ideas?

For starters get a 180* t-stat and drill two 1/8" or two 1/16" (approximately) holes to prevent heat shock and plus your temps won't run quite as high.