Starting from the exhaust tips back, I've got:
Tips
pipe
Muffler
connecting pipe
Small catalytic converter (?)
...
On top of that small catalytic converter is a "cover plate" or heat shield.
On mine is was rattling something fierce on the driver's side. I was draining the trans fluid this morning and decided to check it out - and while fiddling with it, it came completely loose so I took it off and looked around.
Directly above it and lining the chassis looks like a whole underbody heat shield protecting the rear boot from cat-converter heat. Looking around, the shield only really protected the underbody area. There's no electronics or wiring it was shielding - no rubber of any sort.
So I'm wondering: is this cover plate/heat shield even necessary? Do I need to re-attach it? Seems to me I can just call this 'fixed' and move on
Any thoughts?
Joe