So I was planning on removing the catalytic converter anyway and since the muffler was banging the crossmember I had my mechanic do it...Ran a Straight pipe to my Glasspack Muffler/aka cherry bomb...sounds like A muscle car now! Just wanted to know is their anything else I should be changing or am I fine? Would a new intake make a difference? Not really on my mind...but just wondering. I certainly noticed an increase in power without the cat. My jeep is slowly becoming one mean beast. No check engine light or anything. Will this screw up the sensors? Any vehicle below 95 in jersey needs no inspection. Hence why I picked a 94 cherokee. I can literally do whatever I want...within reason. So any thoughts lemme know but I am lovin it right now! Thanks in advance

 

I've run my 95 for years the same way you are with no issues. In CT 95 and down needs to pass an exhaust gas analysis on a dyno as well as visual cat inspection. Even at 280k and sans cat I still pass every time.

 

It may not need inspection in NJ, but I think the cat would have to be there since it originally was equipped on the vehicle when it came from the factory. Granted, there isn't much of a chance you would be found out, but there is still a chance. No cat and a glasspack is pretty likely to get you stopped by State Police or local cops. And knowing the state of NJ, there will be a whopper of a fine.

I think Magnaflow makes a converter that isn't too bad for performance. You could probably use it and not have too much performance loss.

 

I hear what you are sayin...but nah I am not changin anything...It's not that loud unless I am pushing it...I mean it is a bit loud but luckily I have several good friends who are the local cops and even some state police friends. But my commute is short and I feel ok with the setup. It's nice when the local cops are some of the friends you grew up with. No way am I putting a cat back on there. This is why I bought an uninspected vehicle and put all this money into it...so I can do whatever I want to it! Thanks for the concern though.

 

Minor nit, it is pre-1996 vehicles that are not inspected in NJ. (Basically, only OBD-II vehicles are tested. Due to rust there are few older vehicles around.) One of my vehicles is a 1995 model and inspection is not required. Shortly after the law changed I had an a**hole cop in Lumberton, NJ pull me over for an "expired inspection sticker." Jerk kept me on the side of the road for a good 15-20 minutes. I guess when he called the stop in they set him straight since I didn't get a ticket. (Wish I had, would have had some real fun with that.) I went over to the HQ to lodge a complaint and just got a runaround. Anyone driving through that town should be aware that Lumberton cops suck. Anyhow, enough ranting - sounds like you have a hell of a setup. Nice that you know some decent guys on the force, I just hope a cop you don't know that has a chip on his shoulder doesn't give you a hard time over it.

 

I did leave Pasadena, downwind of LA when I was 4. I still remember not being able to inhale without a clamping feeling in my chest. Believe it or not we all reap huge benefit from these smog "strategies". We who breathe air anyway. The life-layer on Earth is relatively as thick as the wax on a bolleing ball, we would be wise to not foul it up.

 

I understand where you're coming from but there's a reason decades-old vehicles are not inspected here. There are so few left that you could probably take the cats off all of them and it would not make a noticeable difference. The Los Angeles area has unusually high tendency to develop smog problems due to its geography and a much larger population of old cars due to the mild climate.

 

I'm talking about 1964. They weren't old, just belching uncontrolled quantities of hydrocarbons! The result looked like fog, hence the term"smog". In some cities I hear the exhaust from a modern vehicle is cleaner than the air it's taking in! All a functioning catalytic converter does is burn gas that the engine didn't. Unlike lower combustion ratios to lower Nox, retarded timing, or exhaust gas re-circulation, the CC is relatively harmless for performance/economy.

 

heh. Hear ya. Because of the catalytic converters, this guy never even saw that kind of smog so to him it's like...what's the problem? Lol

Not to mention, am not sure how you get around the second O2 sensor throwing that code. Codes are a deal breaker on any inspection.

 

I'm an old phart and was living here in NJ in 1964. Despite the lack of emission controls on cars we never had the kind of severe smog that was experienced in LA, where the problem was greatly magnified due to being situated in a basin surrounded by mountains. That's why that state had earlier and stricter emission controls. (Remember 49-state versus CA cars?)

Worst problem we had was in the northern part of the state around the Newark area due to oil refineries. People up there used to say "smells like money." (Those of us from central and southern NJ had a different description for it.) Is the air cleaner today? Of course. However the LA-style smog problem being described was virtually unknown here even in the pre-cat days.

Today there is no inspection on the few pre-1996 vehicles left here so the error code is not an issue.

 

yeah here in NY a check engine light is a fail.
Ah yes, the days I recall well. Pollution aside, there was nothing like a 10 year old v8 thunder with dual wide open exhaust, maybe a thrush straight glass pack muffler or two. and clutch and floor shifter. That didn't cost $45,000. something just ...American...about it.

 

Again, I've had zero issues running the setup you describe without DTCs. If your engine has been maintained you can pass a sniff test without a cat as I have done. Same emissions parameters so no smog created.

 

Wouldn't the EPA be prosecuting the mechanic under 42 U.S. Code § 7522. Prohibited acts and fine under 42 U.S. Code § 7524 Civil penalties for about $25,000?

I mean, if they were so inclined?

Inquiring minds want to know...

 

The good old days of smog alerts in So.Cal. are all but a memory.

 

This, so this.

Most likely you will never get caught with the catalytic converter thing, but there are plenty of situations where tickets can be given for bs reasons. Don't get me wrong, I support law enforcement, but there can sometimes be complete overreach by police officers. The mother of a friend of mine was pulled over and ticketed for expiring registration. It wasn't expired, but it expired at the end of the month (a few weeks away). They made her park the car in a nearby parking lot and had my friend come get her. Granted, the ticket was dismissed but she still had to pay the court fees.

Just my .02, if you are not worried about it, then go nuts.