Would the Cat cause my engine to have alot of heat in the engine compartment? My shifter **** feels hot as well? Plus the car doesn't have much power.

 

woundlt exactly say that its your cat. but your piping leading from your header to your cat would definetly cause your shift linkage to be hot. If you ever took a peak under your car, you would understand why your shifter becomes hot, under extreme driving conditions. So in another words.. yes your cat/header would somewhat cause it to be hot.

as for engine compartment.. i wouldnt blame it on your cat. but i what i would say is.. if you have an aftermarket header, it would heat things up a bit. Or otherwise, you were probably working the motor a little too hard IMO.
peace