[miamisunray]

I was thinking...(and yes, I am having a new convertor installed as we speak)...The whole idea of thieves being able to steal the cat convertor is they have access to the underside...my idea?

Why not this? A couple of 3 foot aluminum (or steel) angle brackets, say 3 inches welded/screwed to the frame and 4 or 5 inches hanging down...PLUS one shorter piece for the front and back of the car.. building a 'cage'..or effectively lowering the space underneath the car..Let's say, level with the exhaust pipe or something..after all the main reason they are targeting elements (apart from the elements inside that make them valuable) is Elements have decent clearance...I don't go off-roading in Miami Beach so I don't see how the 'lowering' will affect driving....Cheaper...and less $$ to have it welded/screwed in place...THEN the morons will not have any choice but to move onto the next car (sorry..next car owner) What does everyone think about that? I welcome any comments!!

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[K_ole3]

You are on to something, & that something is a fully functioning product offered by many vendors now a days.

Check out this "Cat Cover" from Aerogenics. Let me know if this is what you envisioned?
If you can, I would order one of these now & have the same shop install this while they fix up your exhaust.

ElementDriven- Aerogenics Cat Cover

 

[wannahonda]

they just jack up the car, they bring jacks with them, watch them jack up this prius

 

[wannahonda]

sometimes the jack fails though.....

 

[wannahonda]

you would have to really box in the shield so even if they jack up the car they will have a hard time cutting the pipe and not enough clearance to get the cat out

but some have posted on here that thieves are cutting through the cat shields too, it takes more time but it can still be done, some thieves are using torches now not just sawzalls

 

[ajchien]

Draw a design and price it out, including the bolts and nuts you want to use, as well as any additional tools you need to make it. It’s always good to have a custom made item for your personal specifications. A lot of the time, I find that something home made is of better quality than what is on the market. It often also costs me about the same to a little more to make it than to buy a pre-made item. I would personally choose 1/4” thick aluminum rather than 1/8” though.

 

[klamath_knot]

here's what i've done...my local muff shop fab'd a custom rebar cage for me after we tossed around ideas. I paid $195. he has repaired ALOT of victim cars. he laughed at one cat cage because it was so easy to UNBOLT the thing, he said 4 bolts was all. his highly experienced opinion is, 'If they Really want it they'll get it'. The other idea he promotes is to replace an OEM cat with aftermarket cos they are mostly not taken. *Note my metro area is small, ~220k, FWIW

 

[AWD]

In my experience anytime you are having someone weld/ fabricate something custom, it is not cheap. I didn't think that cat shields were super expensive, am I wrong?

 

[wannahonda]

here's what i've done...my local muff shop fab'd a custom rebar cage for me after we tossed around ideas. I paid $195. he has repaired ALOT of victim cars. he laughed at one cat cage because it was so easy to UNBOLT the thing, he said 4 bolts was all. his highly experienced opinion is, 'If they Really want it they'll get it'. The other idea he promotes is to replace an OEM cat with aftermarket cos they are mostly not taken. *Note my metro area is small, ~220k, FWIW View attachment 215553

Which is the bad one that is only secured with four bolts? I will avoid that brand

 

[klamath_knot]

not sure which

 

[Steve4cr]

You are on to something, & that something is a fully functioning product offered by many vendors now a days.

Check out this "Cat Cover" from Aerogenics. Let me know if this is what you envisioned?
If you can, I would order one of these now & have the same shop install this while they fix up your exhaust.

ElementDriven- Aerogenics Cat Cover

He said alternative to expensive

 

[K_ole3]

He said alternative to expensive

Ohh I thought that route was no protection allowing easy access for these common thieves to take their free car parts. ($1000+ in repairs this route)

I digress- @Steve4cr do you have anything productive to add to the part of the conversation I missed? I offered the little (wrong) information I had.

 

[Steve4cr]

Ohh I thought that route was no protection allowing easy access for these common thieves to take their free car parts. ($1000+ in repairs this route)

I digress- @Steve4cr do you have anything productive to add to the part of the conversation I missed? I offered the little (wrong) information I had.

Actually I seen cat for about 180 and know a guy that will weld it in for about 80 bux. I'd rather keep my original. Seems cat cage makers are cashing in on a bad situation. But we all can have our own opinion...I think

 

[wannahonda]

Overall I would think investing in some sort of cat protection is cheaper than having none at all, since the OEM cat is so expensive and oxygen sensors are not cheap either

But I prefer some sort of Box design as it is more material / metal for a thief to have to cut through vs the cage design and hopefully a better deterent

The cage design is certainly better than nothing and hopefully enough of a deterent that a thief will move onto an easier target but if the cage design is welded to the frame in four spots I would think it will not take a thief that much longer to cut those four metal posts and drop the whole cage down and then cut the cat out

 

[K_ole3]

Actually I seen cat for about 180 and know a guy that will weld it in for about 80 bux

Like they say, its not what you know its who you know. Happy you have community that can help you out with such a pricey repair.

I think considering the materials needed & the skill needed to actually weld in a complete box- the $200-$300 dollar asking price for some of these cage style ones is a wonderful cheap alternative to what would cost most other people a hefty repair fee at any local shop or dealer.

Lastly- please dont ever lose your opinions. Like my dad always taught me, "Opinions are like sphincter's, we all have them & they all stink."
Dont let anyone elses "stink" overpower yours if you are convicted. I commend you for finding alternates in your community to help you in crappy situations.

 

[Steve4cr]

Some mom and pop muffler shops will treat you right. Also DIY is not too bad.

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[marlond]

I’ve had my catalytic converter stolen twice. If I had it to over again I would have had a shop swap out my OEM cat for a cheap one, marked it as aftermarket and kept the original for when it comes time to sell the car or if I need emissions for some reason.

however, at this stage I put the aerogenics cover on myself ($0 labor) it has four screws but also incorporates some screws original to the car. I spent extra for security screws. Time is money. I’d personally feel like an idiot if I spent several weeks designing a fool-proof cat cage and a fool proved me wrong.