When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
So for the last few months I have been getting horrible mileage and performance out of my 08 F250 4x4. I finally got time and took it up to the muffler shop and he said my CCs were plugged up solid. He "cleaned them out" and my mileage went from 10 to 14 for about a day. Then it went down to 9 . I took it back and he checked the factory muffler and said it was about 3 times heavier than it should be. So I had him cut out the factory muffler and put in a straight pipe and have been driving the **** out of it all weekend, hauling hay and trying to blow out any carbon/trash left in the combustion chamber.
My question is if the cats were plugged for so long, what else might need cleaning/replacing? PCV valve? Spark plugs? I leave for a road trip on Friday to Brownsville, about 16 hours away, and I need all the mpg I can get. I would b happy to just get my 14 back. I know I have an exhaust leak on my drivers side bank, can that effect my mileage? I plan on ordering a 5 star tuner and am about to research CAIs. Any help would be appreciated, thanx .
He took a hammer and rebar and beat the innards out lol, giving me a straight pipe or blank if u will, and yes he said the drivers side had a hole burned through it. No but those two items are on my list for this weeks tune up.
but around here I wouldn't fool with it, we don't have to pass an emissions test, they just look under there to make sure the cats are hooked up lol.
I just figured with them being clogged up the combustion chambers would b full of carbon, and was wondering if there is any fuel additives that might help. Also I wondered what else might have clogged up as a result.
There were reports of bad cats back around 08' or 09' maybe you got some bad ones.
Anyway just gutting the cats is a bad idea. The empty shells will create turbulence and can negatively effect exhaust flow and performance. At the minimum a pipe should put through each cat body.
Your truck may also have other issues which caused the fouled converters. At the very least check for DTCs, replace all filters, clean MAF and etc.
Properly working cats will not effect fuel economy or performance. And if the cats are bad there are other problems.
Beating the guts out of the cats is worse than having the cat removed as far as performance goes.
Is it even legal to run without cats where you are?
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.