Posts: 6,813
Threads: 1,811
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
-1
Someone cut the cat off my sweet beater van--1994 Dodge (2B7HB21Y4RK128802) last night.
It's not much to look at but if you need something moved it's a heck of a great vehicle to have.
Dealer wants $600 just for the converter and $1200 for a complete exhaust--just in parts.
This is suck.
Posts: 23,743
Threads: 1,348
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
0
Is there any way to prevent such a theft, physically?
Posts: 23,051
Threads: 579
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
4
There are cages. Won’t stop a persistent thief, but might make an opportunist move to the next car.
BTW, this is another reason to keep comprehensive insurance even on a beater.
Posts: 22,262
Threads: 2,504
Joined: May 2025
This is so stupid.
They really need to...I dunno...stamp the VIN into every catalytic converter, and make it illegal to sell or buy one where the VIN has been defaced.
Posts: 6,813
Threads: 1,811
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
-1
Well, I guess you could weld or mount some kind of a grate under there to restrict access but if an undesirable is already under the van with a grinder I don't think a grate is going to stop them.
The crazy thing is that the van was parked over a pretty deep puddle. I mean, they REALLY wanted that cat.
Trying to find an exhaust replacement. Didn't they used to make a thing called a test pipe?
Posts: 24,633
Threads: 1,093
Joined: May 2025
pdq wrote:
This is so stupid.
They really need to...I dunno...stamp the VIN into every catalytic converter, and make it illegal to sell or buy one where the VIN has been defaced.
They're not SELLING the Cat... they're tearing it apart and salvaging the platinum in it. So, the VIN won't do any good.
Chopper;
You got off easy. The Toyota dealer wanted $2600 for a new Cat for my '07 Prius!
Let's just say that my Prius will never pass Smog or be sold in California again...
Posts: 1,271
Threads: 33
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
0
(unless you're in California from what I've heard on this board in the past)
Go to a 3rd party muffler shop for a non-manufacturer replacement. I had the converter cut off my old Grand Cherokee during daylight hours (they left the housing laying there when they found that the valuable media was pretty much gone). A 3rd party shop put on a new converter and muffler for about $600 installed.
Posts: 5,620
Threads: 2,837
Joined: May 2025
Reputation:
1
Yea, keywords , "unless you are in California"...... if you look online for a Catalytic Converter, you will see many at a good price. But it will say good in 49 States. Guess which state requires a little bit better converter... Yep, California.
Lived here all my life, Love the weather, and I'm down South, so I see the sun more often than the North.
Both my Daughter and my Son, can park their Prius in their garage at night....
