You've gotta be kidding me - catalytic converter cut out of car in broad daylight!

[Buug959]

So I have new downpipes for my own car that I'm installing soon. My plan was to sell my old cats for scrap to help finance some more parts. I wonder if I'll be able to sell them or not. I don't know any Russians.

[Mason Hatcher]

Saw this driving around yesterday. Forwarded to my local PD

[NeverL8]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I'd love to see that shit going on. One twist of the jack handle would...

There was an incident in LA couple month back where a thief tried to steal one out of Prius but his Jack failed and crushed him to death. I LOLed

[PandaM3]

Originally Posted by DETRoadster

Was serious indeed. After some Googling and dragging my fat ass out to the driveway to actually look under the FJ, I can see it's not a really desirable target. Crossmember is in the way.

I'm digging some of the DIY projects I'm seeing online though!

I’ve got an FJ Cruiser too... I wonder if getting skid plates also covers up the cat a bit better as well.

I’m actually considering going catless and just swapping the cat back in for emissions. But I wonder how quickly and easily the emissions controls on an FJ Cruiser resets? For my M3 the emissions readiness takes a little bit of time to reset while going through some drive modes which makes it a bit more difficult.

I figure going catless means increased power, improved sound, and nothing for thieves to steal.

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by TheRussski

There was an incident in LA couple month back where a thief tried to steal one out of Prius but his Jack failed and crushed him to death. I LOLed

Guess that's the price he paid for being a dickhead.

[Buug959]

Originally Posted by TheRussski

There was an incident in LA couple month back where a thief tried to steal one out of Prius but his Jack failed and crushed him to death. I LOLed

And the world is a better place now.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by flybigjet

According to my muffler guy? It's a Russian crime ring operating in a few states. In CO, as a muffler guy, he has to account for every cat installed. He said that if he takes one to a junkyard, he has to show a picture ID, give contact information and have video taken of him while that information is held for 90 days.

But, the Bad Guys steal the cats and take them to OK, since apparently there's no problem with them selling them there. (Thanks, Oklahoma!)

I got the truck fixed-- $1800 and that was a "good deal". Just think of the amount of car parts I could have had for that! Sigh.

I am truly sorry to hear you were a victim of a crime. But just curious why you did not make an insurance claim.

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I am truly sorry to hear you were a victim of a crime. But just curious why you did not make an insurance claim.

That's the project for Monday-- this happened, I was out of town, home a night, and currently out of town again. The paperwork is sitting on my kitchen table.

I've got a $1000 deductible, so we're only talking recovering about $800. Since it falls under "Comprehensive", hopefully my rates won't go up.

[Littlebear]

Originally Posted by PandaM3

....
I figure going catless means increased power, improved sound, and nothing for thieves to steal.

Pls don't pollute more....

[PandaM3]

Originally Posted by Littlebear

Pls don't pollute more....

I kid, I kid.

I actually reinstalled the cats back onto my M3 because getting the computer to switch to emissions readiness with my second x pipe with cats was a pain every time.

On top of that my M-F car is my Tesla Model 3.

I'll probably see about getting skid plates installed onto my FJ.

[DETRoadster]

Originally Posted by PandaM3

I’ve got an FJ Cruiser too... I wonder if getting skid plates also covers up the cat a bit better as well.

I’m actually considering going catless and just swapping the cat back in for emissions. But I wonder how quickly and easily the emissions controls on an FJ Cruiser resets? For my M3 the emissions readiness takes a little bit of time to reset while going through some drive modes which makes it a bit more difficult.

I figure going catless means increased power, improved sound, and nothing for thieves to steal.

From what I've read on the FJ forums, the engine ECU does not deal well with the lack of the cat. May want to read up on it and see if there are any work-arounds before you yank them out of there.

[dscabra]

I saw a story on a local Denver news station last night about a non-profit that had six vans liberated of their catalytic converters and a seventh partially removed. What I'd like to know is who is buying the darn things as scrap. Maybe they should be called out and the thieves wouldn't be incentivized to steal them.

[dscabra]

Originally Posted by DETRoadster

Tell us more, please. is this an off the shelf product you can weld on or is it custom fit?

https://getcatsecurity.com/?gclid=Cj...waAmiCEALw_wcB

[P1]

flybigjet

Saw this on Reddit this morning and had to think of you. All done in 40 seconds.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Austin/comm...021_se_austin/

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by P1

flybigjet

Saw this on Reddit this morning and had to think of you. All done in 40 seconds.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Austin/comm...021_se_austin/

Heh. I'm **STILL** mad about it.

On the plus side, I installed a shield over the replacement cat. Stealing might not be impossible, but the shield's certainly going to deter anyone who doesn't want to spend significantly more time under the car with a grinder.

[PINeely]

The BMW/Lexus dealership here used to leave their gates open overnight, until a few years ago when thieves stole the cats out of about 40 brand new cars. Cut them out with a sawzall in the span of about fifteen minutes, loaded into a van and they were gone. I used to love going to shop cars at night to avoid the heat but I guess this is why we can't have nice things. People are stealing stuff that is literally bolted down.

[BMWGUYinCO]

Originally Posted by flybigjet

Heh. I'm **STILL** mad about it.

On the plus side, I installed a shield over the replacement cat. Stealing might not be impossible, but the shield's certainly going to deter anyone who doesn't want to spend significantly more time under the car with a grinder.

That looks amazingly clean underneath the car - did you wash it prior to installing the shield?

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by BMWGUYinCO

That looks amazingly clean underneath the car - did you wash it prior to installing the shield?

Nope. What you see is what you get.

[kb2wji]

Originally Posted by Mason Hatcher

Saw this driving around yesterday. Forwarded to my local PD

poetic justice would be this guy getting his catalytic converter stolen

[Fritzer]

I'm sorry, before I finish the rest of this thread.... Did you just call your Honda Element a "truck"?

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by Fritzer

I'm sorry, before I finish the rest of this thread.... Did you just call your Honda Element a "truck"?

Consider it a generic term. It's sort of an orphan that doesn't really fit in any category. And considering how much stuff you can fit inside? Truck works as well as anything.