So I got my tax refund and I went down to a local ghetto muffler shop to have my 90006 Magnaflow 2.5" cat installed.


Well.


It is ABOUT 200% LOUDER NOW? huh?


is it possible to install a cat wrong?

Keep in mind I also have a stock resonator. It seems to be VERY loud until maybe 2000 RPM where it quites down. Seems very very raspy and sounds almost like my muffler fell off.


Again it is a magnaflow carsound from ebay 2.5" and I do need to know ASAP if they installed it wrong or that is just the way it is.

Sounds like you at least have a leak. jack the car up and check to see if there is any air escaping from around the cat. there might also be a small amount of sewt bulidup, alghough i dont think there would be enough in such a short period of time to even be noticeable

I am pretty sure it is not leaking. Has anyone here installed a carsound cat on a 94+ with resonator?


Also is it possible to reverse these to be installed wrong?

If you get the "right" mechaninc, anything can be installed wrong. But, I don't know how anything but a leak would cause it to be as much louder as you make it sound like it is.

UNLESS>>> They decided gutting it for you would be a "good idea"....

No it is not really super loud, It was probably an exageration.

You could barely hear the car before though. At idle it is alright. just pops a little. It just sounds VERY raspy at certain ranges. I am guessing 1200-2200RPM.

But my only question I am really concerned about is CAN a cat be installed backwards?

I have a Carsound cat on mine. I had some other exhaust work done too, but I have the stock res. and mufflers. The exhaust did get just a tad louder, but nothing very noticeable.

Noone seems to have really answered your question so I'll say no. Not for the Cat that you bought because it doesnt have an airtube and by looking at the inside and out it all looks the same so the only way I could see it being installed wrong is by having it upside down but that would only be wrong as far as how it looks not how it performs. Meaning the shiny side should be down and the ugly part facing the bottom of the car.

I have the same cat, and the 93 didn't have a resonator. Which means mine should have been worse, but it wasn't. Mine was maybe 25% louder after the high flow cat install.

well took it to another place after the shop installed it said it was normal. They found a small pinhole leak and it did not really do much for the sound. It sounds alright now.


here is a clip: http://cal48.com/carsoundcat.mp3

right click, save as {target}

There is no specified front/rear of the Carsound cats. I know either the box or the papers that came with mine said so.

I have the 94106 on my 1998 SSE with the stocker res and muffler. It'* a little louder, but I also have a 3" DP on it. I don't think it'* twice as loud -maybe 10-20% louder -still quieter than my sister GP GT with the stock exhaust system, and only a tad bit louder than my brothers 1998 Olds LSS.
A cold air intake will also make the exhaust a little louder.