My 2004 Jayco with V-10 Ford has a clanging, rattling sound from underneath. I first thought it might have been a loose tailpipe bracket or something cheap and easy, but I believe it is a rattling catalytic converter. I am going underneath again today to make sure I can pinpoint the noise. So, my obvious question is, has anyone on here done their own replacement of this item? Looks like it would be fairly straightforward, but I have never tried it. Any information or tips would be much appreciated so I can decide if I want to tackle it myself.

It depends. if it is welded on you need to do some cutting and welding.. If it is just bolted on then why not. Remember they get very hot and the corrosion you will face in trying to remove it may be somewhat frustrating. My 08 Jeep has the same issue but they are welded on so I have to remove the entire exhaust system to replace them, one on each side. My 90's K-5 blazers had these issues, the ceramic inside comes apart and rattles around. If you are not a "service your own vehicle" kind of guy pay someone.

It is likely the heat shield that goes around the catalytic converter. Easy fix.Get a couple of very large stainless steel hose clamps. They have to be large enough to go around the catalyst and the heat shield. If you can not find and (HD has them in the heating area) put a couple together. One toward the front and one toward the rear. You do NOT need to make them "gorilla" tight.

I just put mine back on over the summer. The clamps were badly rusted so they just snapped off even though I used PB blaster so I just put new ones on. Not a real hard job.

Gjac wrote:I just put mine back on over the summer. The clamps were badly rusted so they just snapped off even though I used PB blaster so I just put new ones on. Not a real hard job.Usually the shield is made out of stainless steel but it is only "tack" welded to the body of the converter in a couple of spots. Over time, those fail and the shield rattles.

Go under when it's COLD and see if those heat shields are loose. Good chance they are. If the monolith inside has broken up, it likely would have clogged the outlet and you'd experience a severe loss of power. You might hear more of a wheeze sound in the exhaust instead of a pulse.What year is your Ford Chassis? A 2004 RV might be on a 2003 chassis. E450, right?

Catalytic converter | Good Sam Community

14 Replies

theoldwizard1
Explorer II
Oct 18, 2016
Gjac wrote:
I just put mine back on over the summer. The clamps were badly rusted so they just snapped off even though I used PB blaster so I just put new ones on. Not a real hard job.

Usually the shield is made out of stainless steel but it is only "tack" welded to the body of the converter in a couple of spots. Over time, those fail and the shield rattles.
Gjac
Explorer III
Oct 18, 2016
I just put mine back on over the summer. The clamps were badly rusted so they just snapped off even though I used PB blaster so I just put new ones on. Not a real hard job.
theoldwizard1
Explorer II
Oct 18, 2016
It is likely the heat shield that goes around the catalytic converter. Easy fix.

Get a couple of very large stainless steel hose clamps. They have to be large enough to go around the catalyst and the heat shield. If you can not find and (HD has them in the heating area) put a couple together. One toward the front and one toward the rear. You do NOT need to make them "gorilla" tight.
klutchdust
Explorer II
Oct 17, 2016
It depends. if it is welded on you need to do some cutting and welding.. If it is just bolted on then why not. Remember they get very hot and the corrosion you will face in trying to remove it may be somewhat frustrating. My 08 Jeep has the same issue but they are welded on so I have to remove the entire exhaust system to replace them, one on each side. My 90's K-5 blazers had these issues, the ceramic inside comes apart and rattles around. If you are not a "service your own vehicle" kind of guy pay someone.

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Catalytic converter

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