I am looking at doing my Bronco exhaust (needs doing) and was looking for opinions, has anyone used Gibson exhaust??

(Gibson Performance Stainless Steel Swept Side Exhaust System - SKU # 619676-GP)

I am also looking at Eastern Y and cat then Gibson back. The eastern gets better reviews than Magnaflow and better warranty.

It is going on 1986 Bronco with 302 efi.

 

Try allied resonators,, they flow as well as any perf muffler, cost 1/2, last 15-20 years, come in just about any dia & length...and just about every muffler shop carries them....they have been around for 30+ years.

 

Gibson is a great muffler, I think they are better than most.

The Eastern cat is the way to go, but pray tell, what is wrong with your original cat? If your original one is intact, and the engine has been kept properly tuned, there should be no reason to replace the factory one. An aftermarket one is not likely to flow better, in fact it may actually be more restrictive. Brand is irrelevant on that point, all aftermarket cats use the same type of substrate unless you specifically get a high performance cat, which is not usually offered in a bolt on assembly.

 

take a look at borla i've only read good about them

 

Not sure anything is wrong with the cat. but truck does have 156000 miles and I know it does have quite a bit of carbon build up in the intakes, just figureing that the life span of the cats. (being 25 years old) they may have had it at this point.

 

Just clean the carbon out with a good product designed to do so, I like Seafoam myself. The cats have no moving parts, they do not wear or break down over time. Their lifespan is the life of the vehicle. Converters that fail either were used on vehicles that were not kept properly tuned, had physical damage, or in a few instances (your doesn't qualify) had design defects in the first place. I would say that unless you have good reason to suspect your converters are clogged, to leave them alone. A few quick questions, does the truck stink badly? If yes, then the cats may be shot, but if it does not produce much smell, then they are functioning correctly, no need to mess with them. Most the aftermarket assembies use much smaller converters. They have as much as 25% less flow than the OEM cat. Likewise, unless you are seeing a restriction in your performance, the cats are probably flowing just fine.

 

I've heard nothing but good about these folks

Bear River Converters - Wholesale distributors of catalytic converters

 

No real smell other than what exhaust should smell like (no rich smell).

 

a few months ago I needed to replace 1 converter on my wifes 97 Cougar sport (it was heating up slow and throwing a cod) for required smog testing....when I called these guys, I couldn't get a straight answer out of them on ANYTHING!

Ended up buying a maggie (carsound) replacement.

 

Thats because cats require technical knowledge, if you couldn't get a straight answer, you probably weren't asking a straight question. Why did your cat fail? I've dealt with them to, they don't sell cats blindly, they want to know that you know why the cat failed in the first place. If I call up and order a part for a specific car, they want to make sure that I have diagnosed the problem properly. The first few times I contacted them, they asked a lot of questions, and educated me about what to look for to determine the cause of failure when no other codes were present. First time I contacted them, had a 2003 Impala that kept setting P0420 codes. with there help, not only got the cat I needed, but they walked me through some steps that allowed me to find and diagnose a ruptured fuel pressure regulator. It was this faulty regulator that probably caused the factory converter to fail. Had they not walked me through the steps, I would have spent a lot more time and money fixing the car. Since I know the steps now, and they trust that I do my diagnostics, they don't ask me many questions anymore, they just ship what I need.

If you don't fix the cause, then the cat will fail again, and the last thing anyone who installs or sells these is a customer coming back and complaining that is failed. It is far easier to not sell you one in the first place than to sell it blindly to someone who knows little or nothing and is just swapping parts blindly. I think you were offended that you were talking to people who know more about converters that you. If you knew what I have experienced with a Magnaflow (they are more than willing to sell you stuff blindly), you wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole.

So your Bronco has no smell, I suggest saving your money for now and not replacing the cat. You could save that money for upgrades, a new barbeque grill, tires, fuel, insurance, unexpected emergencies, etc. Then if the cat goes out sometime further down the road, you can decide if its worth replacing. Mileage has little to do with failure beyond the fact that high mileage engines may not be as well tuned as a low mileage engine. Keep that engine running clean, and the cat should continue to function as it was intended.

 

x2 on what Khan said. These guys are the best in the industry and a wide audience agrees. Maybe they had a bad day but i doubt it. I've had a wicked flow muffler on my truck for 2 years. If you hook up one of thier videos on youtube, I'm confident you'd be impressed with the quality and care that goes into just a muffler with them. They will not sell you something you dont need. Give this a read if you're still thinking they don't know what theyre talking about.

http://www.bearriverconverters.com/AboutCatConv.aspx

 

[QUOTE=KhanTyranitar;11017896]Thats because cats require technical knowledge, if you couldn't get a straight answer, you probably weren't asking a straight question. Why did your cat fail? QUOTE]

To start with you are again violating rulesby making a personal attack- implying I am without or did not have the ability to ask specific questions.

Here were the questions:

I have a 1997 Cougar sport, V8....

1. Do you sell a direct-fit replacement drivers side front cat?

2. Is it California CARB listed/approved?

3. What is the flow rate of your converters?

The 1st person had no information for any of the questions

Person #2 answered question 1 with no, it is a universal but it will fit like a direct fit. In summary, there is simply no way in any world or other that a universal replacement unit will fit in the cinfines of the oem front dr side unit location- there is less than 3/8" clearance on each side at the tightest point, on a L-shape). Had no response or information regarding question #2 or #3

Person #3...and another phone call later that pm.....
No we do not have any CARB listed/approved converters....so there was really no sense in pursuing any further questions.


Now, why did the converter begin to fail...it hadn't...it's heat-up rate was too slow & generated a code- yes for the dr side front cat & since all 1995-7 Cougar/T-Birds/MarkVIII/LSC coupes are e-tagged as "gross-poluters" by CARB (regardless of each vehicles actual emissions) and was due for a bi-ennel smog test within 14 days. That code by itself requires a failure at the smog test.

Given the assumption that if the 1st cat was starting to get "weak", it would be likely that the pa side & the 3rd cat would soon follow. All were replaced including the upstream O2 sensors which had about 75k miles on them (yeah, they were probably good for another 25K, but its alot easier to chang em when the system is down as compared to when it's up/installed.

Considering the vehicle is tested every 24 months and the polutant emmission levels are 5% or less of the max limits in each of the test categories.....no, there was no mechanical/ecm based reason for the cat to "fail"...except old age.

 

Well, if you used a Wickedflow muffler, you are just sucked into the marketing hype ads that most of the muffler shops use (not just for them, Maggie, Borla, Flowmaster) when you could have bought an Allied unit that has been around for 30+ years, flows as well or better than Wickedflows "best" and for 1/2 the price.....
in terms of build quality...all US made from 3 locations in the US.......
My family has used them since the 1950's (when they use to sell the parts to our muffler shop and we would assemble them for each customer).

 

Ummm nope, no sucking. Just studied how each were made and made my decision. Liked the lifer warranty too. And it sounded cool. thats all. btw, no shop used and bear river doesnt advertise much, do all my own work. And I like supporting small business, which they are.

 

Much thanks for all your input guys.

I am going to go the route of just muffler and tail pipe for now and like Khan said save the money for fuel (HA HA HA)