Catalytic converters stolen!

[andrewwynn]

It should def be covered if you hadn't comprehensive. Many people won't put comp on a car older than ten years when paid off

[X5only]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

It should def be covered if you hadn't comprehensive. Many people won't put comp on a car older than ten years when paid off

That's right. My X5 has liability only coverage and therefore this theft is not covered. But that's fine. The savings I've made over the years for liability only is certainly worth it. Even if it had comprehensive, the insurance company would probably have written off my X5 given the value of the vehicle vis-à-vis the repair costs to make it whole again.

[X5only]

I'm concerned of this cut. Could it have reached the subframe? It seems really deep. The catalytic converter on that side sits close to that edge and the miserable thief made an overly aggressive cut. Anyone familiar with this part of the vehicle for an internet assessment on the cut? Or am I mistaken and it's just a normal joint of the heat shield?

[andrewwynn]

Originally Posted by X5only

I'm concerned of this cut. Could it have reached the subframe? It seems really deep. The catalytic converter on that side sits close to that edge and the miserable thief made an overly aggressive cut. Anyone familiar with this part of the vehicle for an internet assessment on the cut? Or am I mistaken?

Just looks like heat shield


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[X5only]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

Wow. A buddy of mine and I are working on an anti theft cat saver device. Two part design:

1) alarm uses continuity of the exhaust pipes to set off an extremely loud alarm right under the car. (no accessible wires).

2) hardened steel cuff for the attack areas where they are cut.

I guess I better get into high gear.

Are the cats much more accessible on the 4.4? They seem very hard to get to on the 3.0 (and quite literally impossible on wife's car). (n63 motor the cats are on the top of the engine at the firewall).

You should get into really high gear! I just heard that the cats were stolen off someone's vehicle parked right on their driveway. Jeez!!!

[X5only]

Originally Posted by bmw540san

Sorry, measure the OD (outside diameter) right there where you circled.
I mistankely said ID (inside dameter).

BMW540san, here're the measurements I could make:

Passenger side cat
Front OD - 61mm
Rear OD- 50mm
Gap length - approx 15 inches

Driver side cat
Front OD - 57mm
Rear OD - 52mm
Gap length approx 16.5 inches

I just noticed the driver side front O2 sensor is completely damaged. I'll just replace all O2 sensors. They've never been replaced and vehicle is now around 140k miles.

[bmw540san]

PM sent.

[X5chemist]

Look at Catco catalytic converters. I used one a V6 4.3L engine. The Jimmy had a Magnaflow muffler. After adding the high flow converter, it was even louder! It had a nice rumble. Sound really woke up above 2500 RPMs. On a V8, it would be super nice.

[oldskewel]

Sorry to hear of the troubles there. Kind of shocking what the world is coming to in many areas.

I had a kind of related event a couple of months ago in the SF Bay Area. My son was driving my wife's Prius over in Fremont, parked in the Nordstrom parking lot mid-afternoon on a Sunday. Safe, you'd think, right? Security cams, etc. But not in CA where many are on a mission to decriminalize crimes.

The car is a Prius, super high target for cat theft. So I had already made my own home-brew modified theft solution involving a purchased cat cover plate, welding on some blockers to key bolts, and muffler clamps to make it a PITA to remove.

What the bad guys apparently did was to see what I had done, not even try, and threw a rock through the back window. Other witnesses saw it happen, while my son was inside the store. Police came, took the report, talked to the nice witnesses who stayed to report things, security footage exists, but nothing actually got done. As an example, the store would not release the security footage.

So depending on where you live, you might want to consider the risk for punitive vandalism if you do what I did and make it extra difficult for the cat entrepreneurs to get their jobs done.

Insurance company (USAA) paid for the new Genuine Toyota rear window, very nicely, with the $100 Comprehensive deductible. Comprehensive would have covered the cat if needed ($3k+, weeks delay in getting the part since theft rate is so high, perhaps requiring a tow if the coolant line was cut, etc.).

I talked with the USAA claims agent, while getting the Genuine part approved. He agreed with my theory. Confirmed the Prius cats are being stolen left and right - he had already handled 5 that day so far.

Said he had never seen any of my other cars (Porsches, Honda minivan, and the 2001 X5 3.0i) get their cats stolen. I don't know if he specifically meant the 3.0i vs. the V8s. The cats on the 3.0i's are in a very difficult spot for removal, vs. on the V8s, so maybe that keeps us safer.

Not that I'd do anything differently, but that's my story.

[crystalworks]

I hate people.



That is all. Sorry to hear of your troubles X5only.