Catalytic Convertors Thefts

Scottie2
Scottie2 Forum Participant Posts: 226
edited January 2016 in Towcars & Towing #1

On a recent caravan rally I happened to notice what I thought was handbrake cables hanging beneath the car on the next pitch to mine..When I met the owner and mentioned it to him he said that it wasn't what I thought but was actually a security cable device
protecting the catalytic convertor on the car as thieves had crawled under his car and stole it and all when the vehicle was on his driveway. Just another issue we have to aware of in today's world.

Comments

  • rogher
    rogher Forum Participant Posts: 609
    500 Comments
    edited January 2016 #2

    I wonder how much a thief would get from one of these?

  • Tigi
    Tigi Forum Participant Posts: 1,038
    500 Comments
    edited January 2016 #3

    Thats been going on for a long time but seems to have dropped off a bit since they tightened up on the scrap metal rules. Motorhomes/ vans were favourites due to the easier access to the underside.

  • Wildwood
    Wildwood Club Member Posts: 3,582 ✭✭✭✭
    1000 Comments Photogenic
    edited January 2016 #4

    I have not heard of these thefts from cars as access to most is very difficult. There is a higher risk with vans though but the problem does seem to be less prevalent than earlier.

  • rayjsj
    rayjsj Forum Participant Posts: 930
    500 Comments
    edited January 2016 #5

    Thieves will only steal them if they can sell them on easily, what with Scrap dealers being watched now,and having to keep genuine records of where scrap comes from, And China in a virtual recession, so prices for the rare metals have dropped. So the toe rags have to find something else to steal.Even in the good times they got very little,just a few pounds for each CAT, they stole. No relationship to how much it cost the insurance companies to replace them.

     

  • Scottie2
    Scottie2 Forum Participant Posts: 226
    edited January 2016 #6

    I wonder how much a thief would get from one of these?

    Write your comments here...Don't know how much the thieves get from the scrap man but I've been told that a replacement  can cost you between £1000 to £1300 . Those stealing them apparently go for cars that have a high ground clearance but in the instance
    Irefer to the owner of said car told me it had been known to be going on in his home area. I also have heard of some owners, when their DPF units clog up and rather than getting them sorted, remove them not knowing that at MOT time it's an automatic failure.

  • rayjsj
    rayjsj Forum Participant Posts: 930
    500 Comments
    edited January 2016 #7

    I wonder how much a thief would get from one of these?

    Write your comments here...Don't know how much the thieves get from the scrap man but I've been told that a replacement  can cost you between £1000 to £1300 . Those stealing them apparently go for cars that have a high ground clearance but in the instance Irefer to the owner of said car told me it had been known to be going on in his home area. I also have heard of some owners, when their DPF units clog up and rather than getting them sorted, remove them not knowing that at MOT time it's an automatic failure.

    Write your comments here...the clever ones remove the DPF ,strip out the internals (the metal filter bit) then replace the casing, no check other than visual is made at Mot  time, AND it WILL pass the emissions test.  DPF 's  are a pain in the bum, as are all of its  related sensors. EGR etc.,

     Diesel pollution is a city problem NOT a rural one, just ban diesels from cities.....easy instead of hobbling all vehicles everywhere.

  • LEON
    LEON Forum Participant Posts: 24
    edited January 2016 #8

    About 200 of our work vans have cat locks fitted