Stolen catalytic converter

Tom Dunlap

Tom Dunlap

Here from the beginning
Administrator
Location
Retired in Minneapolis
Just after Christmas someone cut the catalytic converter from my camper. THink of what a uhaul box truck is...same box truck. Pretty damn bold since its parked on the curb outside my place in a residential neighborhood. Couldn't be easier to do with a cordless recip saw.

I got a section of exhaust tubing, adapter and clamps and fitted in the replacement. I'm going to bet the thieves will slip an eye underneath to see if they can steal the replacement...which doesn't exist.

The repair wasn't difficult since I can sit up underneath to work. We had a warm day...30*f..so it wasn't bad sliding around on cardboard on the street. Only cost about $45

If I ever move to a state that requires vehicle inspections I'll get a CC.

Armoring a CC isn't easy on most vehicles. While I was looking for parts I saw a unit made with aircraft cable that slips inside the exhaust pipe. It would snarl up the recip saw making it just a bit more difficult.

Another suggestion was to add a bunch of u-clamps to the bare pipe near the CC. Get ones with long bolts and point the bolts to the access side. Make it difficult is the plan.

Batteries are another item that's easy to steal and sell as 'scrap'

Are there any successful schemes to shield vehicles from scavengers?

Alarm systems that detect if the vehicle is jiggled?

Paying for yard space isn't an option for me. Besides the price its not convenient
 
That’s a shame everyone hates a thief

on the flip side you’ll probably get better fuel mileage and a little better throttle response and maybe 3-10 hp
If you don’t replace it no one will do it again
Michigan don’t do exhaust test they did it in the 80’s maybe even early 90’s
On hot rods I built in the past I would order off-road x-pipe that would do from the headers to the muffler all ready bent with hangers and it would eliminate the catalytic converters
 
well, the cat is already gone, so no worry of it begin cut off again, same people might come back for batteries, it being a camper, id bet you have atleast two big marine batteries on the driver side, what I would do is make a battery hold down out of 1/4x1inch steel strap with holes in the ends, weld some 3/8 allthread to the bottom of the battery box and drill a hole in each stick of allthread, strapping sits on the allthread, nuts on allthread thighten it down on the strapping, and the holes in the allthread is for a lock to go through. Or a 2A sign might keep them away, but ya never know
 
I might have been wrong about having batteries accessible from the outside, just look around (and under) the camper for anything expensive/easily stolen, and either move it if possible to the inside, or secure it somehow
 
Tom Dunlap said:
Are there any successful schemes to shield vehicles from scavengers?

Alarm systems that detect if the vehicle is jiggled?
Click to expand...

Yes, and a lot of alarms can have the sensitivity adjusted. Problem is that the wind will set it off too, and a camper/ box truck has some broad sides that’ll catch the wind like a sail.

If there’s room, you could maybe fab something kinda like a skid plate and use security bolts or screws that need a weird bit to remove them.
If they’re cutting CCs off, this is far from perfect, but it’s another deterrent that’ll slow them down anyways.
 
Even if you did replace it with another CC they won't steal aftermarket CC's, they're not worth the big bucks cause the amount of platinum in them in minimal compared to OEM.

Theves suck.
 
Sorry to hear it Tom.

I had a CC go bad by internal collapse on a 1990 pickup and had it replaced. I have been wondering how much scrap $$ I walked away from by unknowingly leaving it at the muffler shop.

Not to be disagreeable Cereal Killer, but I just saw a news story of a primus owner where the thieves came back and cut out the replacement days later.
 
Merle Nelson said:
...saw a news story of a primus owner where the thieves came back and cut out the replacement days later.
Click to expand...
If they got it replaced at the dealer they use all OEM so the replacement would be just as valuable. It's the aftermarket, $109 out the door at meineke CC's that are almost worthless, not $20 of platinum in those ones.
My very first job, still in high school 18 years ago, was at an exhaust shop. This was when stealing CC's had just became a thing and police had no ways to fight it yet so my job for the first year or so was to weld new ones in all day every day, there'd be a line of customers every single day! EPA had just cracked down on exhaust shops and we wernt aloud to weld straight pipes on anymore, had to replace. Boss didn't mind though, parts markup on those aftermarket converters was huge and now we had a reason to tell customers no when they gawked at the replacement cost and asked for just a pipe.
 
Did you file a police report, Tom?

In my area, I’m pretty sure the scrap yards/ metal recycle facilities are in close contact with the cops.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ATH
Could always bolt down a nail board to your driveway that fits inside tire span and park over top... just remember not to turn as you reverse out...
 
Jonny said:
Did you file a police report, Tom?

In my area, I’m pretty sure the scrap yards/ metal recycle facilities are in close contact with the cops.
Click to expand...
I replaced the entire exhaust system on a sedan we had several years ago. Took it all to a scrap yard...they paid a few bucks for everything except the cat - they said "If we paid a fair price for those, there wouldn't be a car in the neighborhood with one left on it!"

Found another that paid me about 30-50% of what I thought I would get...
 
I put in a high flow stainless cat on my truck a few years ago.
For shits and giggles I brought my stock one to a scrap yard and got $75 for it.
The one in your camper was allot larger so I got a few bucks more for it. ;)
 
The chassis is an E 350 with V 10

my guess is that there are many versions of this chassis setup in arbos fleets.

I think back on how easy it would have been to steal batteries or CC from most of the work vehicles I owned over the years. Mostly...very easy.

inconveniencing a thief is about all we can hope for.
 
Tom Dunlap said:
The chassis is an E 350 with V 10

my guess is that there are many versions of this chassis setup in arbos fleets.

I think back on how easy it would have been to steal batteries or CC from most of the work vehicles I owned over the years. Mostly...very easy.

inconveniencing a thief is about all we can hope for.
Click to expand...
sad thing is, even inconveniencing them isnt a guarantee thay you keep your stuff
 
I can imagine how you feel, my mom and dad were off on a job for I think 7 months, of course I went with since I was like 9, they let my brother stay (He was 18 or 19), we got back in town, found out we had all my brothers friends staying in our house, stuff was broken (Think pizza on the record player type stuff) we went in the garage, had probably 5k in tools stolen, we never got any of them back, atleast it was not stuff that takes a long time to build back up (Like your set of specialty tools that you acquired over the last 30 years), im still mad about it, since some of it was mine, (im mad about the stuff that wasnt mine too) its not a nice feeling
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

New threads New posts

Back
Top Bottom