RCI Cat Guards

They'd be a huge pain in the ass to try to bend.

 

I think everyone is overthinking things with all the security bolts and the like. There is no such thing as 100% security, you're just trying to be a big enough pain in the ass that they move on to something less protected. They want to roll under, hack them off with a battery powered sawzall in 60 seconds, and leave. Any more effort than that and they are highly likely to move on to an easier target.

Or maybe I'm underestimating the motivation of cat thieves.

 

Cool, I have their full skid set and was hoping for something to cover the cats, mainly from theft.

 

I don't have these but anything is possible if you want it bad enough. If a determined thief comes up with a sawzall they cold really just cut the guard off. It is more of a deterrent for the quick grab.

 

Thieves are not that industrious. They see enough precautionary measures by the owner they're gonna move to an easier target. You gotta remember they're not all that smart. They're just desperate. Desperation to cut away through all these precautions will get them caught.

 

I agree. The nuts are on the inside of the apparatus, which make them nearly impossible to get to without removing the whole thing.

Given the extreme difficulty in getting to the nuts, nothing is more secure as far as a bolt head goes than a carriage bolt. There's nothing to grab. There's no screw head that applies. Plus, you can't simply cut a groove into it and use a flathead screwdriver to get it out because of how the head is seated into the square slot - It's locked in there and will not rotate.

 

If someone was strong enough to bend 1/4" aluminum they are making enough money to juice to the point that they wouldn't need to steal catalytic converters.

Less absurdly, at most you could fit a pry bar in there, and I don't see how you would get the leverage to bend them down to fit in something bigger like a jack or a hydraulic ram.

 

Installed these the other the day in about a hour.

 

Any chance you could post some pics? Im interested about the area around the front of the cats where it goes up into the engine. Any chance of someone reaching around the shield for a cut?

 

I like this, anything that makes it tougher for thieves is good

Has anyone tried a secondary cat delete and did it bring up any cel issues? I would think not since secondary cats are post O2 sensors

 

This is the best one I got.

 

Sheesh those look legit!
I am on budget , so ended up going with the steel version of the Miller Cat shield
Easy install though, and came with all the special lock bolts

 

I assume you have no skid plates?

 

Unfortunate no, or rather just the stock SR5 front one . It’s on the someday list

 

Is the cat guard you got, compatible with transfer case skids? It looks wide and seems like it covers a lot of what the transfer case skid would cover.

 

I’ll have to look into that
The side sit up close to the edge of cats and such . I’ll see what I can find out

 

I’m add RCI’s transfer case skid plate onto the back of my Talons Garage cat security skid plate. I have yet to install but it looks as if it will bolt up just fine. Need to get the exhaust pipe reroute done first.

 

For others with similar dilemma:

It seems like the least expensive option--and probably least durable option--is the Millercat aluminum shield at $290. Upgrade to their stainless steel version for $100 more, but still not sure on how thick it is.
Talon's garage has a reasonably priced 1/4" aluminum plate at $345 but the security bolts are $60 extra = $405.

I used the RCI steel skid plate + matching black cat guards = $400 total. It's probably not as easy an install as other plates though, as @cbouch001 pointed out.

For reference on 3rd gen 3.5L 4x4 as of today (5/21/22), shipping and tax not included:

Millercat Cat Shield
- Stainless Steel (thickness?) $390
- 14g (ie ~1/14") aluminum $290
- includes antitheft bolts

RCI Transmission Skid Plate (needed component for cat guard below)
- 3/16" steel black powder coat $250
- 1/4" aluminum raw $310
- 1/4" aluminum black powder coat $345

RCI Cat Guard (need transmission skid plate above)
- 1/4" aluminum raw $125
- 1/4" aluminum black powder coat $150
- secured with carriage bolts (best antitheft option?)

Talon's Garage
- 1/4" aluminum raw $345
- fancy antitheft bolts $60 extra

Cat Security Shield
- 1/8" aluminum raw $389
- 1/8" aluminum black (andonized v coated?) $468

 

Looks like rci would overlap maybe some grinding on the Miller around the mount locationg could make it work.





Victory 4x4 has one that mounts on the back side of the cross member.

 

It almost looks like it continues the skid protection a little further back, in a way