C3 Catalytic Converters

[Christopher J. Bunsey]

I have a 76 L82, and am contimplating changing my stock converter to a performance one, or even eliminating it all together. I have no emissions testing in OH. I am interested in your thoughts and what is the best flowing converter and where can I find them?

Thanks

[Duke W.]

Re: C3 Catalytic Converters

Try NAPA (Walker brand I think) and "Catco", which may be sold by Jegs, etc.

There were only a handful of "generic" cat. converters used by GM in those early years one with a 260 cubic inch bed and a smaller 160 CI bed, and they are bolt on, so you should be able to find a monolithic direct bolt-on replacement for your model/engine listed in the online catalogs.

The OE part number that you might be able to cross reference is 6498988, which was used on all 76-78 Corvettes and many other GM models; the p/n for '75 is 8998163, and IIRC it has slightly different inlet or outlet geometry.

There is definitely some HP to be gained, weight loss, and reduced thermal loading by replacing the OE "bead bed" cat. with a modern monolithic design.

Duke