Catalytic Converter Thefts

[Korgrocker]

Piece of BBC News this morning about a huge increase in catalytic converter thefts. Hybrids vulnerable and Toyota mentioned in the piece as being a target. Cost of replacement into 4 figures, if the parts are even available. Owners can fit a CatLoc but even that won't always stop the scallywags. I have a security camera located just above my Corolla but that's as far as I have gone. Any other thoughts out there?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49767195

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

This has been going on for a few years now, but Auris and Prius models are being increasingly targeted this year. Largely down to legislation covering what scrap metal dealers can buy and from what sources, not being enforced by Local Authorities, etc due to budget cuts and other priorities. 

As far as I'm aware Toyota haven't got a specific fit Catloc for the Corolla or Rav4 as yet, and demand for the Auris/Prius Catlocs is exceeding supp!y.

[Stivino]

There is an article about in today's BBC news.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49767195

[rafletcher]

There appear to be some “universal” catlocs available, both lozenge shaped and circular, I wonder if one o& them would fit the Corolla?

 

https://www.autostylinguk.co.uk/front-styling/catalytic-theft-protection/catloc-1002-universal-fit-lock-for-lozenge-shaped-scatloc1001?returnurl=%2fsearch%3fq%3dcatloc%26count%3d30

[eskemoiain]

I was thinking of removing the 'Hybrid' badges. My thoughts are that they would less likely target it

[roks]

Is there a difference in cats for non hybrid hence they dont target those?

[rafletcher]

Oh but they do, and have done for years. It’s just that hybrid vehicle cats get less use than plain IC engined Ones, so more of the catalyst chemicals, Rhodium, Platinum etc., remain to be recovered. 

ETA it seems (according to Toyota) that older cats are more vulnerable, as they used a higher percentage of precious metals and Toyota “don’t expect it to be a problem” with the new Corolla. 

[Anthony Sutton]

very concerning...  any advice from any Toyota dealerships here?

[eskemoiain]

On 9/24/2019 at 7:32 PM, Anthony Sutton said:

very concerning...  any advice from any Toyota dealerships here?

From CS:

Thank you for your email. 

I have spoken to our Technical Department here at Toyota GB and they have confirmed that unfortunately, there is no tilt switch available for your vehicle. 

To reduce the risk of having your catalytic converter stolen, you should:
· Park your car in a locked garage where possible, but if this isn’t an option, then park it in a well-lit and well-populated area.
· Park close to fences, walls or a kerb with the exhaust being closest to the fence,wall or kerb to make the theft more difficult.
· Avoid parking your vehicle half on the pavement and half on the road, as this may make it easier for thieves to access the catalytic converter.
· If parking in a public car park, consider parking alongside other cars and facing your bonnet towards the wall if possible. With the catalytic converter positioned at the front of your vehicle,   this will make it harder for thieves to get close enough to steal it.
· If your catalytic converter is bolted on, you can ask for your local garage to weld the bolts to make it more difficult to remove.
· Alternatively, you can also etch a serial number on the converter
· If you see someone acting suspiciously under a vehicle, report it to the Police.
· Obtain as much information as possible, including any vehicle registrations.

I hope that this information will be of assistance to you and thank you for contacting Toyota.

Kind regards

[Velvet--Glove]

5 hours ago, eskemoiain said:

From CS:

Thank you for your email. 

 

I have spoken to our Technical Department here at Toyota GB and they have confirmed that unfortunately, there is no tilt switch available for your vehicle. 

To reduce the risk of having your catalytic converter stolen, you should:

· Park your car in a locked garage where possible, but if this isn’t an option, then park it in a well-lit and well-populated area.
· Park close to fences, walls or a kerb with the exhaust being closest to the fence,wall or kerb to make the theft more difficult.
· Avoid parking your vehicle half on the pavement and half on the road, as this may make it easier for thieves to access the catalytic converter.
· If parking in a public car park, consider parking alongside other cars and facing your bonnet towards the wall if possible. With the catalytic converter positioned at the front of your vehicle,   this will make it harder for thieves to get close enough to steal it.
· If your catalytic converter is bolted on, you can ask for your local garage to weld the bolts to make it more difficult to remove.
· Alternatively, you can also etch a serial number on the converter
· If you see someone acting suspiciously under a vehicle, report it to the Police.
· Obtain as much information as possible, including any vehicle registrations.

I hope that this information will be of assistance to you and thank you for contacting Toyota.

Kind regards

Thanks for sharing that information. I did not know that the converter unit was positioned at the front of the car, so that's useful info. 

Fortunately I have a garage at home that I have always used for my car (unlike most other residents around here!) so I will continue to do so and resist the temptation to leave it out on the drive occasionally.

[Chattacks]

Regarding the advice given so its best to have the front of the car facing a wall or reverse park so the exhaust is harder to access??? Seems to conflict?

"

· Park close to fences, walls or a kerb with the exhaust being closest to the fence,wall or kerb to make the theft more difficult.
· Avoid parking your vehicle half on the pavement and half on the road, as this may make it easier for thieves to access the catalytic converter.
· If parking in a public car park, consider parking alongside other cars and facing your bonnet towards the wall if possible. With the catalytic converter positioned at the front of

"

[Cbatoday]

How much do these scroats get for a catalyst that costs us 4 figures to replace

Shame they cant be booby trapped so they blow their fingers off

[Catlover]

12 hours ago, Chattacks said:

Regarding the advice given so its best to have the front of the car facing a wall or reverse park so the exhaust is harder to access??? Seems to conflict?"· Park close to fences, walls or a kerb with the exhaust being closest to the fence,wall or kerb to make the theft more difficult.
· Avoid parking your vehicle half on the pavement and half on the road, as this may make it easier for thieves to access the catalytic converter.
· If parking in a public car park, consider parking alongside other cars and facing your bonnet towards the wall if possible. With the catalytic converter positioned at the front of"

The thieves have to get underneath your car to get at the CAT.  Advice is to make it as hard as possible for them to get at it. If you know, or get to know whereabouts the cat is helps you to put your car in a difficult position for the thief.  An exhaust pipe does not always run down the centre of a car (front to back), therefore find out the run of the exhaust pipe, then park the car so the exhaust is furthest away from an easy access ie the exhaust being closest to fence, wall, kerb. I take this to mean as in parallel parking, if the exhaust runs along the near side of the car then make it hard for the thief to get at by making access only from the drivers side.

When talking about parking in a public car park, parking your car alongside others makes access difficult from the sides, and if the cat on your car is towards the front, parking with the front  close to a wall or fence means the thief has it more difficult to get to it from the rear end.

Just a case of making life more difficult to steal YOUR cat, “go away and do someone else”.

[CurranShelter]

Interesting. I had a letter from my dealership the other day, offering a Catloc for my Auris. I did wonder at the time if the unwritten 'between the lines' message was "sorry mate, your Auris is a particular target". £250 to get one and there's no guarantee it'll stop a determined thief... hmmm. Might call my insurer and see if this is covered, but don't hold out much hope.

[FROSTYBALLS]

2 hours ago, CurranShelter said:

there's no guarantee it'll stop a determined thief.

There is no guarantee that any security device - alarm, immobiliser, steering wheel lock, tracker, catloc, etc, etc - will stop a determined thief.

[Fostel]

The way you park Auris and Prius seems not to be an issue for thugs...

 

[Cbatoday]

shame the jack didn't give way

don't these new cars have an alarm with a tilt sensor built in

[eskemoiain]

2 hours ago, Cbatoday said:

shame the jack didn't give way

don't these new cars have an alarm with a tilt sensor built in

That's why i'm adding one to mine. I rather the low-lifes get a little more deaf and sweaty rather than think it's an easy payout. I was also thinking of attaching a rape alarm for extra fun

[Tott]

The number one question that comes to mind:

Do Toyota make a Catloc to fit the latest 2019 Corolla Hybrid? If so I would be very tempted to Shell out a couple of hundred for one.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Currently, no. Their supplier make Catlocs for the Prius (generation 2 and 3) and the Auris (generation 2).

[CurranShelter]

Asked my insurer (LV) about this and they said "Your car is covered for vandalism so in the unfortunate event that you do need to claim, you will be covered." So that's good to know... not that I relish the idea of having to claim for it. I think my excess is the same as the cost of the Catloc, so I suppose the gamble is to pay nothing now and only have to stump up the excess if the worst happens, or to Shell out £250 proactively on the basis that (with any luck) a one-off payment should protect the car for however many years I have it, and avoid having to claim on insurance for that particular reason. Now, where did I put my crystal ball? 🤔

[eskemoiain]

5 hours ago, CurranShelter said:

Asked my insurer (LV) about this and they said "Your car is covered for vandalism so in the unfortunate event that you do need to claim, you will be covered." So that's good to know... not that I relish the idea of having to claim for it. I think my excess is the same as the cost of the Catloc, so I suppose the gamble is to pay nothing now and only have to stump up the excess if the worst happens, or to shell out £250 proactively on the basis that (with any luck) a one-off payment should protect the car for however many years I have it, and avoid having to claim on insurance for that particular reason. Now, where did I put my crystal ball? 🤔

I think it depends on where you live and where you park. I always think being proactive than reactive is better and, I personally don't like the idea of waiting 3 months for the car to be fixed. I think when one is available I'll probably get it for a bit of comfort.

[AndrueC]

On 9/21/2019 at 2:52 PM, rafletcher said:

ETA it seems (according to Toyota) that older cats are more vulnerable, as they used a higher percentage of precious metals and Toyota “don’t expect it to be a problem” with the new Corolla. 

Maybe that's because the keyless entry means they can just steal the entire car instead 🙂

[eskemoiain]

22 hours ago, AndrueC said:

Maybe that's because the keyless entry means they can just steal the entire car instead 🙂

I always disable the key when parked at home. It's so easy to remember to do when your lock the car (hold lock then press unlock twice. Led flashes a couple of times). They call it power save but it also turns off the RF signal so the car won't detect it. To enable you just have to push unlock on the key.

 

[AndrueC]

2 hours ago, eskemoiain said:

I always disable the key when parked at home. It's so easy to remember to do when your lock the car (hold lock then press unlock twice. Led flashes a couple of times). They call it power save but it also turns off the RF signal so the car won't detect it. To enable you just have to push unlock on the key.

 

Luckily I leave my car in a locked garage at home and a gated office park during the day so I don't have to do anything. But I do think it's daft that Toyota didn't at least design the fobs to go to sleep after a minute without movement when not actively talking to the car.

I've suggested in another thread that they should do two things:

* The fob should have a motion sensor and should disable its transmitter if stationary for more than a minute. The transmitter should enable when motion is detected. This is a simple security fix that might also increase Battery life. It would have no impact on usability.

* Restarting the car within five minutes requires the fob to be pressed against the start button. This prevents a thief from stealing the car just after it has been parked and before the fob has switched off its transmitter.

I don't think either of these would add that much cost or complexity to the system and only people who switch the car off and then restart it within five minutes would notice any usability change.