catalytic converter, catalytic converter Options

[redceli]

im getting my exhaust system done at a shop and someone told me if i take the catalytic converter out you will loose some torque. is this true? if it is then how much horse power would a performance catalytic converter give you.....thanks

[Galcobar]

Cars do not need backpressure -- it's a myth.

Big pipes have lower initial backpressure, but quickly create turbulence (a form of backpressure) because they let the gas expand, cool and slow down. Exhaust therefore cannot exit the engine as quickly and efficiently, and energy that should be going to turning the crank is instead being used to push exhaust gases out.

Backpressure is an inevitable consequence of not having a variable exhaust size. The harder the engine is working, the more exhaust it needs to get rid of, and the ideal situation would be for the exhaust pipes to grow as the engine pumps out more fumes.

Since we don't have that technology, what we do is pick a compromise size. It's not as efficient at low revs as a small pipe, because the exhaust gases have room to expand, cool and slowdown, reducing the scavenging effect and forcing the engine to expend energy on moving what is now heavier gas. At high revs it's not as efficient as a larger pipe, because the gas bottlenecks. Either way, you get backpressure. The compromise aims to minimize that backpressure over the band, and preferably have the most efficient exhaust extraction (high velocity, lowest backpressure) at the RPM point where the engine spends the most time.

Really big pipes are good only if you're producing enough exhaust to be efficiently using them. This is where FI and NO2 come in, since they effectively simulate greater displacement and therefore a bigger engine.

The muffler is part of that compromise. Removing it alters the volume at which the exhaust system is most efficient at extracting exhaust gases from the engine.

Don't confuse free-flowing (aka high velocity) with high capacity. A small straight pipe is more freeflowing than a large serpentine pipe for good reason. And once you get the piping as straight as possible, you're back into the issue of matching size to exhaust volumes.