I have a sneeking suspicion that my catalytic converter is clogged; my truck wont stay running and it has no power anymore plus it emits black smoke out the tail pipe. I was just curious is there any harm in taking the catalyst off and just replacing it with a extra peice of pipe?

many folks have done it- I don't think the feds will like it( don't tell them). The honeycomb could be breaking up inside.

Changed your fuel filter recently( last 30K miles)?

I had a similar issue with my old catalytic converter. So I went to a local auto part store and bought a universal CAT. When I removed the old one, the honeycomb had turned sideways. It won’t hurt the vehicle to run without one. If you have an inspection in your state they will require one.

You can replace it with pipe. Hazardous to the environment. You will notice some loss in power. IF your cat has been bad for a while you'll notice more power because your engine is running better.

im not sure if wyoming has emissions laws cause they dont require emission tests so i dont think they would mind hopefully

Also i just pulled off the catalyst and looked inside of it and couldnt see through it so i got a screw driver and poked around inside and a bunch of dried nasty lake mud fell out of it from when i dunked my nissan in a nearby gorge i..after closer inspection there was nothing left inside the shell of the catalyst,

so since ive done all this work should i just order a whole new exhuast system for my truck? or just straight pipe it?

and yes i replaced the fuel filter when i replaced the engine about 2300 miles ago or so

General rule of thump with any late model car/truck it's best to have a cat for the backpressure. From the cat back you can do what you want.

I Have duel 2" pipes from the cat-back. No mufflers. Not as loud as you would think. Under 3K she's pretty quiet. Over 4K she screams....

I have a v6...The 4 banger might sound a little different.

I really disagrre about needing a cat...if you are using the stock exhaust taking the cat off (assuming that it is working correctly) will have little or no affect on the way it runs, and if anything, it will run better.

Now, if your cat is clogged, of course it will run better.

And for the record, it is a felony and a major fine to take it off.

Personally, I'd either take the insides out and put it back on, or do the same and then put a pipe through the center...so that from the outside it looks stock. Now, if it has an O2 sensor after the cat, the computer will know that the cat is not right and it will send out trouble codes.

AND, Lordbiotree, I'd venture that your back pressure is lower that his would be by taking his cat off and using the rest of the stock exhaust as you have gone to duals after the cat.

I run stock exhaust and no cat. on my 4 banger and had an increase in power. I just put a Flowmaster 40 on it. But yeah it is illegal.