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Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

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Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#11

Post by Kirby64 »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #4
Kirby64 wrote: post #2

This is rebar. It's just as easy to saw/grind through rebar as it is exhaust piping. Sure, your car is less likely to get picked on than someone elses if they have this issue, but it really shouldn't take that much longer to saw through the rebar pieces with a recip saw if this was encountered in the wild.

It is to slow an attacker down and discourage them. The only absolute prevention is a vehicle without a catalytic converter.

Obviously it will slow the attacker and discourage them. I'm commenting on the seller of this vehicle stating it is "Catalytic converter-theft-proof". It most certainly is not.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#12

Post by JumpCrisscross »

Dig1t wrote: post #3

Catalytic converter theft is so common in Southern California, it happened to my mom twice. It's so upsetting because she doesn't have very much money and it's expensive to get a new one. It really hurts to be hit with a random bill for a few thousand dollars.

My father got a Tesla after his Prius’s cat was stolen for the third time. I’m guessing there isn’t a resale market for lithium-ion packs?

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#13

Post by legitster »

Toyota options their cars with a built-in cat shield now.

The interesting thing in our area was that the majority of cat thefts ended up being part of one state-wide ring. It is so hard to get money for them at scrapyards now that it turns out all of them were ending up in one guys' garage. And because he couldn't scrap them either, he just ended up using their value as collateral for other criminal enterprises.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#14

Post by toomuchtodo »

Kirby64 wrote: post #11
toomuchtodo wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is to slow an attacker down and discourage them. The only absolute prevention is a vehicle without a catalytic converter.

Obviously it will slow the attacker and discourage them. I'm commenting on the seller of this vehicle stating it is "Catalytic converter-theft-proof". It most certainly is not.

“Theft resistant” would be more accurate.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#15

Post by legitster »

Kirby64 wrote: post #2

This is rebar. It's just as easy to saw/grind through rebar as it is exhaust piping. Sure, your car is less likely to get picked on than someone elses if they have this issue, but it really shouldn't take that much longer to saw through the rebar pieces with a recip saw if this was encountered in the wild.

> It's just as easy to saw/grind through rebar as it is exhaust piping

Rebar is much denser stuff than the thin muffler material. It takes less than a second to cut through a muffler with a cutoff wheel. Meanwhile it takes 5-10s with rebar. And that's of it doesn't eat your blade in the process.

You are going to have to cut at least 10 pieces of rebar to get that thing out, so you are looking at over at probably 2 minutes of cutting time alone.

The easier the crime, the less deterrent you need to avoid the criminal.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#16

Post by calyth2018 »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #12
Dig1t wrote: post #3

Catalytic converter theft is so common in Southern California, it happened to my mom twice. It's so upsetting because she doesn't have very much money and it's expensive to get a new one. It really hurts to be hit with a random bill for a few thousand dollars.

My father got a Tesla after his Prius’s cat was stolen for the third time. I’m guessing there isn’t a resale market for lithium-ion packs?

https://jalopnik.com/stealing-toyota-prius-batteries-is-now-...

Oh, there is one. It just takes longer with higher risks.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#17

Post by danw1979 »

legitster wrote: post #13

Toyota options their cars with a built-in cat shield now. The interesting thing in our area was that the majority of cat thefts ended up being part of one state-wide ring. It is so hard to get money for them at scrapyards now that it turns out all of them were ending up in one guys' garage. And because he couldn't scrap them either, he just ended up using their value as collateral for other criminal enterprises.

Toyota should be recalling every Prius to have a CatLoc or similar fitted.

As an owner of two Prii that have both had their cats stolen I find it astonishing that they are admitting there is such a fundamental design flaw with their vehicles but only making the fix optional.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#18

Post by pavel_lishin »

danw1979 wrote: post #17
legitster wrote: post #13

Toyota options their cars with a built-in cat shield now. The interesting thing in our area was that the majority of cat thefts ended up being part of one state-wide ring. It is so hard to get money for them at scrapyards now that it turns out all of them were ending up in one guys' garage. And because he couldn't scrap them either, he just ended up using their value as collateral for other criminal enterprises.

Toyota should be recalling every Prius to have a CatLoc or similar fitted. As an owner of two Prii that have both had their cats stolen I find it astonishing that they are admitting there is such a fundamental design flaw with their vehicles but only making the fix optional.

Similarly to Kia and Hyundai, and their incredibly-hot-wireable cars.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#19

Post by OfSanguineFire »

toomanyrichies wrote: post #5

I'm planning on moving back to LA within the next few months after having moved away in 2007, and the plan is to not own a car, at least, for the first few months. Instead, I'll take Ubers or the Metro train for cross-town trips, and walk for local trips (grocery store, etc). If I want to take a roadtrip or something, I'll use Getaround or a similar service. I have no idea how realistic this will be, but my previous…

I have only a single experience walking in the LA area, but I recall all the traffic-light intersections with long waits to be very tiresome. A 2.5 km walk to a supermarket and back to my hotel seemed to take ages longer than in other countries. There were no other pedestrians in sight, and maybe it was all in my head, but I felt like the drivers at stoplights were scrutinizing the weirdo who was walking with his shopping.

Re: Toyota Prius on LA Craigslist Has a Catalytic Converter Cage Like a Prison

#20

Post by rwhitman »

Not sure why this is news worthy. When my Prius catalytic converter was stolen, the mechanic i went to in Silver Lake offered to put one of these on my car and I did. A lot of mechanics in LA will do this for the car models that get them stolen frequently
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