Catalytic converter theft

An instant tire deflate function may work.

CaptainMusky wrote:

That’s the problem. The judges dont penalize these offenders once they are caught and if they are caught we have the “Freedom Fund” that bails these dirtbags out so they dont stay in jail and commit more crimes. Countless serious criminals have been bailed out only to offend again because of this.

thats not really the case here. The problem is these people arent being caught in the act so you cant charge them with the act. In order to get a severe penalty a person needs to be caught in the act of stealing. the odds of that happening in a theft that takes about 90 seconds are slim to none. So most of these people that are caught are just caught with burglary tools in their cars or they are suspected of committing the crimes. you cant put someone in jail and throw away the key for finding a sawzall in their car nor should you be able to.

There are some law proposals that would allow these losers to be prosecuted for felony theft if they just posses a cat in their car but to my knowledge those are just proposals at this point.

They dont need to be caught in the act. If they are in possession with stolen property that is a crime as well. Its pretty obvious someone selling a ton of cats isnt doing it legitimately. They need to crack down on the places where they are being bought that will bring justice.

CaptainMusky wrote:

They dont need to be caught in the act. If they are in possession with stolen property that is a crime as well. Its pretty obvious someone selling a ton of cats isnt doing it legitimately. They need to crack down on the places where they are being bought that will bring justice.

yes that can be a crime but it needs to be proven that the cats are stolen. just possessing a cat isnt a crime. Additionally possessing stolen items is not the same crime as being caught in the act of stealing it. just like possessing drugs is not the same crime as distributing it or growing it. Possessing a stolen cat might carry a jail term of 30 days while being caught stealing it might be a maximum of 5 years (Im just giving a guess of an example here those numbers are just a guess)

im not a lawyer. This is just what ive read from policeman and legislatures who have been working to try and put a stop to these crimes

As soon as inflation drives cat prices over $1000 it will become theft over $1000 and maybe it will be considered a real crime at that point.

crappie55369 wrote:

yes that can be a crime but it needs to be proven that the cats are stolen

That’s where the spray painted ones come in. If the thief sees that its marked, they might think twice about stealing it knowing that a marked one isn’t going be bought.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>crappie55369 wrote:</div>
yes that can be a crime but it needs to be proven that the cats are stolen

That’s where the spray painted ones come in. If the thief sees that its marked, they might think twice about stealing it knowing that a marked one isn’t going be bought.

What ? Spray painted ? You under stand how easily spray paints come off metal correct ? Especially mn rusty metal

Bearcat89 wrote:

What ? Spray painted ? You under stand how easily spray paints come off metal correct ? Especially mn rusty metal

I’m only referencing the article in the Star Tribune. Apparently there is a way to mark them so that when they try to sell one, the buyer can see that it’s stolen.

gimruis wrote:

That’s where the spray painted ones come in. If the thief sees that its marked, they might think twice about stealing it knowing that a marked one isn’t going be bought

Yeah I’ve seen examples in my truck Facebook groups there theives began to steal someone’s cat, saw that it was spray painted or had a sheild, got pissed off and took the Sawzall to other parts of their truck like brake cables and gas tanks. Maybe not a likely scenario but ive seen people showing that happen with their cat intact cause they had a sheild installed

Dutchboy wrote:

I don’t want to get my hand slapped so I will bow out of this. We all know the problem but nobody will say it.

I have 0 faith in our justice system after the past couple of years…

KPE wrote:

As soon as inflation drives cat prices over $1000 it will become theft over $1000 and maybe it will be considered a real crime at that point.

Replacement cost on a cat and exhaust repair is usually well over $1000 now.

Replacement cost on a cat and exhaust repair is usually well over $1000 now.
[/quote]

Yup. Quotes I’ve seen from people online is 2-3k on a tundra and anywhere from 2-6 months wait while supply comes in.

The $500 deductible isn’t a problem it’s the waiting 4 months to get your truck back that wouldn’t be cool with me. And with a shortage of rental vehicles many dealerships are limiting how long they will loan you a vehicle to a month or less. Again just what I’ve read from people who have gone through it recently

CaptainMusky wrote:

They dont need to be caught in the act. If they are in possession with stolen property that is a crime as well. Its pretty obvious someone selling a ton of cats isnt doing it legitimately. They need to crack down on the places where they are being bought that will bring justice.

The problem is proving it is stolen. Just because it obviously is, will never hold up in court. I had a stretch where I dealt with this on a daily basis. I even tried matching the cat up to the truck based on cut marks. The problem is they cut them off vehicle, bring them back to their garage and then trim down the exhaust pipe even further so you can’t match up cut marks.
DT

MX1825 wrote:

Replacement cost on a cat and exhaust repair is usually well over $1000 now.

You’re talking replacement cost, including labor. Cats themselves are nowhere near $1k, $250 is a more accurate assessment for the part that was stolen.

But if anyone believes for a second that this is ever going to be more heavily policed you’re wrong. What will happen is regulations will be passed that require manufacturers, or more likely owners, to install deterrent devices on our own dime. IF you haven’t noticed that’s how government works, they don’t punish criminals they punish victims.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Bearcat89 wrote:</div>
What ? Spray painted ? You under stand how easily spray paints come off metal correct ? Especially mn rusty metal

I’m only referencing the article in the Star Tribune. Apparently there is a way to mark them so that when they try to sell one, the buyer can see that it’s stolen.

You don’t think these buyers know that when 1 guy brings in 30 cats, that they are stolen. I get what you mean but I’m not buying that it deters any one.

KPE wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>MX1825 wrote:</div>
Replacement cost on a cat and exhaust repair is usually well over $1000 now.

You’re talking replacement cost, including labor. Cats themselves are nowhere near $1k, $250 is a more accurate assessment for the part that was stolen.

But if anyone believes for a second that this is ever going to be more heavily policed you’re wrong. What will happen is regulations will be passed that require manufacturers, or more likely owners, to install deterrent devices on our own dime. IF you haven’t noticed that’s how government works, they don’t punish criminals they punish victims.

Replacement and repair cost comes into play for the level of crime it is. It’s the total loss, not just the part.
DT

“Only two of the thefts this year have been painted”

In order to fully interpret this data, Star Tribune would have to know what percentage of cats are spray painted and an accurate number of stolen cats.

Let’s make up some numbers for demonstration sake:

If 1/ 10 cats are painted, but 2/10 cats ever stolen are painted, that would indicate something entirely different than if 5/10 cats are painted and 2/10 stolen cats are painted.

KPE wrote:

In order to fully interpret this data, Star Tribune would have to know what percentage of cats are spray painted and an accurate number of stolen cats.

agree the statement in the article is pointless. Another thing to consider is that, again this is just what ive read, and it looks like deertracker touched on the subject already, these guys take the cats back to their garages and cut the valuable metals out of the cat. if thats happening what good is a spray painted cat…

coincidentally enough my work just sent out an email today on this very subject stating they have increased parking lot security and they put up a fence around the lot. I work for a very large company and things move slow around here so you know that if they have taken action its had an impact

KPE wrote:

You’re talking replacement cost, including labor. Cats themselves are nowhere near $1k, $250 is a more accurate assessment for the part that was stolen

You must be talking aftermarket for $250 just sold one the other day for a 2018 Silverado. It was $1400 plus $400 dollar core that they obviously no longer had. That dont include labor.

JEREMY wrote:

You must be talking aftermarket for $250 just sold one the other day for a 2018 Silverado. It was $1400 plus $400 dollar core that they obviously no longer had. That dont include labor.

I understand that parts stamped AC Delco or GM generally fetch a hefty markup, my point is a catalytic converter does not need to cost $1400. I sure hope you sold them a full Y pipe with both cats for that price, as that is what you’ll get if you purchase at that price point anywhere online.

My brother is a insurance adjuster. He has authorized a lot of Cat replacement checks for $2,500 and up.

This will be an issue as long as the market is there for stolen cats. Find who buys them, or the metals out of them, or any stolen component of value and you have a start to addressing the problem.

I agree the criminals who steal them should get a severe penalty, but it’s very unlikely to change a junkie/thug/idiot’s behavior. At least it will keep them out of the stealing business for as long as they’d sit.

These issues aren’t just urban or suburban, but I thank my lucky stars and knock on wood that I’ve not seen this issue personally where I live.

A single catalytic converter for a Toyota Tacoma cost $1250 in 2015 dollars.Mine was replaced because there was a bad batch for certain year models.Asian vehicles have higher quality converters,so they are on the top of the hit list.

milemark_714 wrote:

A single catalytic converter for a Toyota Tacoma cost $1250 in 2015 dollars.Mine was replaced because there was a bad batch for certain year models.Asian vehicles have higher quality converters,so they are on the top of the hit list.

Is that why Toyota always smell like rotting eggs when you are behind them

I know that a Toyota Prius is a very targeted vehicle for this type of theft.

I seen a video of a guy trying to find the cat on a Tesla, LOL

bigcrappie wrote:

I seen a video of a guy trying to find the cat on a Tesla, LOL

You cant even make this stuff up. I saw a video of a chick sitting at a gas station trying to find where to put the gas in.

Add my Nissan nv to the list

Deuces wrote:

Add my Nissan nv to the list

Grrr

If anyone can find a 2019 Nissan nv 2500 cat located under the driver’s door I’d appreciate it. Backordered around here.