Never heard of too many main cat failures.

Here's some ok pics of manifolds & Y pipe with cat. If it is the main cat get an aftermarket y-pipe. Plenty around for sale.

-'96 SE MTX 3L -'98 SVT 1,173 of 6,535 -'05 Mazda 6s, loaded, g/f's ride -Need a 96-00 manual on CD? PM or email me