Hi Chris, It might not be your problem, but if the head gasket went bad
and anti-freeze got into the exhaust pipe, which it can, this can cause
the catalytic converter to plug up. You will have a loss of power and
the engine may over heat. The anti-freeze may also contaminate the "02"
(oxygen) sensor. which helps control the fuel ratio. Most muffler shops
can do a "back pressure" check on the cat. conv. the back pressure
should be under 4 pounds. They drill or burn a small hole in front of
the cat. conv. and test the pressure with a gauge. If the cat. conv.
gets real bad it will break up into smaller pieces and you will hear it
rattle. Try hitting the cat. conv. (when cold) with a rubber hammer or
rag wrapped around your hand, it shouldn't make any noise when lightly
hitting it. Also put a new thermostat back in, as running without one
sometimes lets the water flow through the radiator to fast and it
doesn't have time to cool down. The engine will not run right,
especially when first started, without a thermostat because it won't
warm up fast enough, it may also effect the other smog devices which are
controlled by the water temp. David
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