Stolen Catalytic Converter- mechanic shop rip off???

Yeah some guys recommend welding the bolts so you can't wrench it off (a lot of guys prefer to wrench it off because it's quiet). But for the guy who really wants it, he'll just use a battery powered sawzall and cut it out in a matter of seconds (and do more damage in the process).

 

Jeanna, sorry to hear about the thefts. 2 k was a little high for that, but I guess you wernt left with too many options.

PS.. Welcome aboard, before you make any large purchase's in the future, come here and get advice. There are a bunch of good people here that will help.

 

Tacoma TRD- Thanks so much for your advice. I should of come here first you are right. Live and learn. There are a lot of good people and that makes it more bearable to deal with all the bad people.

I SHOULD have taken a pic posted it then asked for some help.

Jeanna

 

here ya go... 45 pages worth!!
http://www.topix.com/forum/city/redwood-city-ca/TI0QUTIGUCQU05FSV

 

X2.....those douchebags are reselling them to someone, and the junkyards and recycle centers need to start refusing them from people to stifle the demand, or buy 1 cat from a customer over a long period of time. I think muffler shop owners are in on it.

 

I'm going to claim some ignorance on some of this; nevertheless,

What is meant by a 'clean' cut? I invisioned just forward and aft of the cat. This would only mean purchasing another cat. However, your bill indicates 2 cats (Not aware of a for. and aft. cat???) a new muffler, and a new O2 sensor. I thought the O2 sensor was placed closer to the header? This may indicate that the thiefs took the whole enchilada, from the header back. If this is the case, then the price, though not cheap, sounds about right. I might have looked into aftermarket or used cat's if possible.

Also, I would get my insurance to cover this. It is, after-all, one reason why we have insurance.

To prevent this in the future, may I suggest armor? Several fabricators here create sheets of steel that bolt up under-neath the carriage to protect it from rock beatings; however, it may also serve as a deterrent to steeling crap from there as well. If this is a viable option, do a search and ask if it would serve your needs.

Also, a high quality alarm system might be in order.

Just my $0.02 worth.

Sport

 

For the last part of the question, they are stolen to get the platinum that is in the cat.
Most common on pickups/SUVs since they can crawl under more easily and snag them quickly.

Register it as a farm vehicle so you don't have to have one, then you won't have to worry about starting fires when you are off-roading

 

My friend had her catalytic converter and upstream oxygen sensor stolen last August 2011 on her 1999 Tacoma. (Dallas/Garland Texas area.) They just cut it off- sometime in the night. I apologize for not having a better picture. It was over 110 degrees, and the pavement was burning me when I was trying to get under the truck to take pictures. You can see they used some sort of saw by how clean the cut is.

Unfortunately the place that she paid to do the repair did not replace the missing oxygen sensor, so the CEL has been on ever since the repair. I'm planning on adding a sensor in the next few weeks by drilling a hole in the exhaust before the cat, and welding on the flange that comes with these oxygen sensors. (

$50 Walker Products 250-24154 4-Wire Oxygen Sensor

http://www.amazon.com/Walker-250-24154-Wire-Oxygen-Sensor/dp/B000C94HD0 )I'm hoping that the sensor just unscrews from the Toyota type flange it comes attached to. The plan is to weld the flange to exhaust pipe and screw the sensor into the 5/8inch threaded hole on the flange. I know this is a bit of a kludge- Unfortunately the whole repair is that way because of the really shoddy work the repair shop did on the aftermarket replacement of the CAT.

I will post pictures of the complete repair after I am finished if there is any interest.

 

buy a set of budbuilt skids