Catco And X-force Cats Whats Your Opinion?

[335]

Hello

I wanted to get everyone's opinion on how good the Catco and X-Force high flow cats are. Are they better than stock?

[Hanaldo]

Have a read of the info on this page mate http://www.metalcat.com.au/

[midnight]

personally I would not buy catco.

[335]

personally I would not buy catco.

Thanks for the link,

Why wouldn't you buy Catco?

[R31Nismoid]

Anything bigger than stock is going to be better mate.

That is just simple logic.

I'd take a stab your car is faily standard, so just get whatever 3.5" CAT is cheaper really.

Wont be much between them.

[V28VX37]

I recently asked Just Jap about their entry level 3" cats for an R34, the flow rates are as follows:

X force claim 570cfm and Catco claim 428cfm.

These are for the ceramic cats, not metallic. Note that 'stainless' refers to casing not catalyser type.

I went with the XForce in the end due to (claimed) higher flow rate. So far so good.

Edited August 11, 2010 by V28VX37

[335]

I recently asked Just Jap about their entry level 3" cats for an R34, the flow rates are as follows:

These are for the ceramic cats, not metallic. Note that 'stainless' refers to casing not catalyser type.

I went with the XForce in the end due to (claimed) higher flow rate. So far so good.

Whats the difference between ceramin and metallic when it comes to cats?

[V28VX37]

Whats the difference between ceramin and metallic when it comes to cats?

Metallic ones flow better & last longer AFAIK. They're plenty more expensive too, roughly double the price of a ceramic one for a 3" XForce.

[R31Nismoid]

Ye i wouldnt get ceramic.

Ceramic cat + turbo heat = the big bad wolf

[wolverine]

There are quite a few melted metallic cats out there.

[Hanaldo]

Yeh, try putting a ceramic cat on a car that melted a metallic cat. It wouldn't last 2 weeks.

High quality metal cats will take a lot more heat than cheap metal cats, don't stinge out on your cat.

[Mayuri Krab]

Hello

I wanted to get everyone's opinion on how good the Catco and X-Force high flow cats are. Are they better than stock?

I've the X-force CAT, it got it as a pack with my 3.5" turbo back exhaust.There is definitely a improvement over the stock system & CAT.

If you car is heavily modified then get something better, but for near-stock cars then it is good.

Edited August 11, 2010 by Mayuri Krab

[V28VX37]

Yeh, try putting a ceramic cat on a car that melted a metallic cat. It wouldn't last 2 weeks.

High quality metal cats will take a lot more heat than cheap metal cats, don't stinge out on your cat.

Well, cat prices start at around $150 at the cheap end and I just checked Nengun and they have plenty in the US$1000+ range (with a HKS set for the R35 at US$5k+!)

You can get a complete turbo back exhaust system for under a grand using second hand parts, or you can easily spend 5k and above for the same. I reckon the value of the car plays a role too, I wouldn't spend 5k on the exhaust for a 10k car ... 100k car is a different matter of course

Horses for courses I suppose.

[bubba]

I have a 3" Xforce ceramic cat for my 32 that I only use for the pits. It's shit. Turned my 3L from an insanely responsive torque monster into a doughy POS, and that was only with 183rwkw.

My Stagea came with a welded in Xforce metallic cat and that collapsed a few months ago

[335]

Well, cat prices start at around $150 at the cheap end and I just checked Nengun and they have plenty in the US$1000+ range (with a HKS set for the R35 at US$5k+!)

You can get a complete turbo back exhaust system for under a grand using second hand parts, or you can easily spend 5k and above for the same. I reckon the value of the car plays a role too, I wouldn't spend 5k on the exhaust for a 10k car ... 100k car is a different matter of course

Horses for courses I suppose.

So are the Catcos and XForces any good? Some say they are and now some are saying ceramic ones will melt?

[Hanaldo]

I have a 3" Xforce ceramic cat for my 32 that I only use for the pits. It's shit. Turned my 3L from an insanely responsive torque monster into a doughy POS, and that was only with 183rwkw.

My Stagea came with a welded in Xforce metallic cat and that collapsed a few months ago

This.

[YawRate]

I'm currently looking to complete my cat-back exhaust to turbo-back. For what its worth, the advice I've been given is to avoid both Catco and X-force, and go with MetalCat. Obviously you'll have to spend more for a MetalCat, but like anything I guess, you get what you pay for.

Also, regarding the flow rates that are often quoted, remember that these usually aren't worth the paper their printed on. One cat might quote say 1000CFM, but won't tell you that the bench flow rate was 4000CFM or something ridiculous. Alternatively, another cat might quote 500CFM, using a bench flow rate of 1000CFM. So the second cat is actually twice as efficent (50% vs 25%), but first cat manufacturer will still claim that their cat is better, quoting the higher flow rate. So only take a CFM value onboard if its provided in the context of the flow rate of a straight through pipe (of the same diameter) for reference (and good look finding such data on the internet, though if you do, pass it along, lol).

[Hanaldo]

Whats the difference between ceramin and metallic when it comes to cats?

Well what's the difference between ceramic turbines and steel turbines? What happens to a ceramic turbine when you boost too high and create too much heat?

What's the solution? Steel turbine. So what do you think the difference will be when it comes to ceramic and metal catalytic converters?

Edited August 12, 2010 by Hanaldo

[Kinks]

I recently asked Just Jap about their entry level 3" cats for an R34, the flow rates are as follows:

X force claim 570cfm and Catco claim 428cfm.

These are for the ceramic cats, not metallic. Note that 'stainless' refers to casing not catalyser type.

I went with the XForce in the end due to (claimed) higher flow rate. So far so good.

Catco's ceramic cat is 428cfm, but their metal cat is 706CFM. I went the catco metal cat (706CFM).

Claimed flow rates are all bullshit unless they tell you what pressure drop (through the part under test) they were done at.

very very few manufacturers state the pressure figure.

[Bliksem]

I have a 5" stainless Catco cat, been on the car for 6 years now without a single problem... horses for courses i think... some claim metal cat is no good either