Will Catalytic Converter Get Rid of Drone?

A

AKStew

New member
Joined
Oct 11, 2012
Messages
15
2006 qclb with muffler, no cat. The exhaust is a cat-back system of unknown origin from the previous owner.

I have a terrible drone when towing. So bad I can't hear the wife and kids when pulling the travel trailer. I need to get rid of it as it defeats the purpose of family trips when you can't talk along the way. Besides, it's just plain uncomfortable on long hauls.

I've read a lot about the FTE resonator but I need to install a cat for emissions inspections where we are moving.

My question is will the cat solve the drone issue or am I looking at needing both a cat and a resonator?

Apparently, mega cabs have factory resonators while qclb's don't. Was the cat good enough for drone suppression or am I missing something?

Thanks,
Stew
 
A good cat is magna flow it will not restrict to much but will definitely help with drone I had one on mine and the exhaust note was perfect
 
Thanks for the reply. That's the cat I'm looking at.

I've got this question going on several forums and it looks like I just need to try the cat alone. If that doesn't cut then add the resonator.

Stew
 
On my old 2007 5.9 when I bought it of course it had stock exhaust. I cut out the muffler and left the cat it hardly made a difference in sound. When I removed the cat totally different story. It was terrible. I then installed an MBRP muffler. It helped it a bunch but it was not as tame as no muffler and cat.

If you need a cat to pass inspection where you are moving and hate the noise then instal one. You won't be disappointed.
 
Gibson said:
Where are you moving to?
Click to expand...

Hill AFB, UT. There are a handful of counties there that require visual inspection as well as use a sniffer for CO and hydrocarbons...if that's what you were getting at.

bbbxcursion said:
The 30'' FTE works better for drone than the stock cat does
Click to expand...

Been reading a lot and you are spot on from what I can tell. I'm now thinking of doing the resonator in addition to the cat. I got under the truck and looked closer. There is a straight pipe from the down pipe to the muffler, which is a Banks Monster. That pipe is about 9 feet long so there will be plenty of room. I think the muffler is good enough and I like the normal sound quality but the in-cab drone is awful. Since I'm going to be under there anyway, I will just throw the resonator on a few inches behind the cat and be done with it.

lightsOUT said:
On my old 2007 5.9 when I bought it of course it had stock exhaust. I cut out the muffler and left the cat it hardly made a difference in sound. When I removed the cat totally different story. It was terrible. I then installed an MBRP muffler. It helped it a bunch but it was not as tame as no muffler and cat.

If you need a cat to pass inspection where you are moving and hate the noise then instal one. You won't be disappointed.
Click to expand...

Good advice! I've come to the same conclusion.

6.6lEater said:
I wonder if a 30" fte resonator with cat written on it will pass?
Click to expand...

Know where I can get an EPA certification sticker? :LOL

Thanks for all the suggestions,

Stew
 
Honestly the cheapest way to go would be a good mbrp muffler . I have tried it many ways and you would not believe how much a straight thru muffler will quiet these things down. With my old set up which was a stainless 4 inch turbo back with just a muffler I had to roll my windows down and try to listen for the exhaust
 
I think my problem may lie in the fact there is a 1- piece pipe, 9' long, from the down pipe to the muffler with no hangers on it. That pipe is probably creating a good bit of harmonic resonance kind of like a giant guitar string. Just breaking it up with a resonator and/or cat it might make the drone go away, in addition to the effect of the resonator itself.

Thoughts?

Stew
 
Just pulled the trigger on a short FTE resonator and Magnaflow 49-State Cat. I will post back here when I get it installed and tested. Since the resonator is a well-proven device, I would like to install the cat, drive it, then install the resonator.

Thanks so far for helping me think through this.

Stew
 
Good choice! That FTE piece will eat any strait through muffler alive, it's amazing how much they help.
 
Now that I have the FTE short resonator and Magnaflow cat coming, in what order do I put them? Wally can't help me since it involves a cat. I will be leaving the Monster muffler in place as well.

Do I put the cat or the resonator nearest the downpipe? Everything I've read says the resonator is supposed to go as far forward as possible but I've yet to find someone with a cat AND a resonator. If the cat is just behind the resonator, will it get hot enough to make it work as it should?

Thanks,
Stew
 
I've decided since I already have the cat and the resonator coming I will go ahead and install both. I would like to do the cat first and see what happens but time is running short before I move and I need to just get it done so I can work on other things.

I see no compelling reason not to put the cat first so I am going with that. If it doesn't work properly there's no point in putting it in at all. I'll place the resonator directly behind it where it will still be under the back seat. Though the resonator might not be at peak efficiency, I think it will be more than adequate when paired with the cat.

I'll report the results when i have something meaningful.

Once again, thanks for helping me think through this.

Stew



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have fte right off the downpipe, almost no sound from exhaust, and then added a donaldson right behind it, now I have absolutely no sound out of the exhaust, and they're both straight through.

I bet if you had two things in there, they'd assume one is a cat with just a visual inspection. I can't see them making you drop it to check the inside.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top