Questions and Answers

Chevy K1500 Catalytic Converters Q. I have a 1996 Chevy K1500 Pickup with a 4.3 liter engine. This truck has 102,000 miles. My dealer tells me my catalytic converter needs to be changed. I am thinking about doing this myself to save money. How difficult a job is this going to be, and what should I watch out for? Edward

A. Well, let's see, do you have a set of torches? Most times you will need to heat the nuts for the Y-pipe studs to get them hot. Heat expands the nuts and helps to remove them without breaking the studs off in the exhaust manifolds.

Trust me, you don't want to break off any studs! You will also need to jack up enough to remove the assembly. I hope you go with a GM unit which will be the Y-pipe with catalytic converters, all one piece. It's do-able by yourself if you have the tools and some heat!