removing leaking Cats. MEOW

[badwithcomputer]

sorry for the lighthearted'ness

well i had some exhaust work done the other day because my Y pipe cracked off and my exhaust flange before the cats was leaking. We got the Y pipe welded and the "donut gasket" fixed but i still have a leak in one or both of my cats.

I am contemplating removing them and welding in a straight pipe because there is two things i hate 1 is sloppy steering and 2 it's an exhaust leak.

what affect will this have on performance/gas mileage?

i planned to weld in a bung for the o2 sensors but is that even necessary if you're not running any cats? i realize it's illegal and harmful to the environment but it's just a work truck. hauls junk back and forth only uses a tank a month. its got 187k on it now so it only a matter of time before something major happens to it and it's not worth fixing.

thanks!