Catalytic Converter Theft

[Scooser]

I’ve been reading a lot about catalytic converter theft in the press recently. Exponential rise in thefts due to particular precious metal prices rising by 10 fold in the last couple of years. Reports of it happening in my local area.

Is this something to be worried about on Volvos, and in particular my 58 plate V70 D5?

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Scooser

I’ve been reading a lot about catalytic converter theft in the press recently. Exponential rise in thefts due to particular precious metal prices rising by 10 fold in the last couple of years. Reports of it happening in my local area.

Is this something to be worried about on Volvos, and in particular my 58 plate V70 D5?

Not so much on a diseasel as you don't have a catalytic converter in the same sense as petrol cars do. You may have a DPF but i don't think the metals used are anywhere near as precious as things like platinum that is commonly used in the cats for petrol cars.

[S60D5-185]

I am also on the Honda Jazz Forum ( great cars ) and they have been having big problems with this, especially as the exhaust runs over towards the offside of the car rather than down the centre making it a lot easier to access.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by S60D5-185

I am also on the Honda Jazz Forum ( great cars ) and they have been having big problems with this, especially as the exhaust runs over towards the offside of the car rather than down the centre making it a lot easier to access.

You're not wrong - Hondas are targeted because they use better quality and more precious materials than a lot of others, the Jazz being light is quicker and easier to lift with a trolley jack and in common with many other Honda models, the exhaust is offset to the offside, not dissimilar to the Volvos (or many Volvos at least) and many other cars.

I'm also on a Honda forum and some of the members on there have a Jazz as a second car for their wives/offspring etc and i seem to recall hearing about a weekend where many Jazz models in Swindon were targeted in one weekend!

[ITSv40]

Toyotas have been targeted recently in Northampton. A friend's wife went shopping in M&S Simply Food and in the time it took to buy a few groceries, the scrotes had whipped the cat off her car and disappeared. This was in the daytime in a busy edge of town shopping centre car park. Apparently Prius cars are particularly vulnerable.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by ITSv40

Toyotas have been targeted recently in Northampton. A friend's wife went shopping in M&S Simply Food and in the time it took to buy a few groceries, the scrotes had whipped the cat off her car and disappeared. This was in the daytime in a busy edge of town shopping centre car park. Apparently Prius cars are particularly vulnerable.

I forgot to mention Toyota when i commented on Honda cats - Toyota also use high quality/quantity precious metals making them attractive to these parasites. On a similar thread on another forum, there CCTV footage of one such toerag working solo and stealing the cat from a car parked on a garage forecourt.

Unbeknown to said tea-leaf, the car was in neutral with the handbrake off. He jacked it up, got under and while using his cordless disc cutter to remove the cat, the car rolled - straight off the jack!
One less theiving toerag around! Saved the taxpayer a fortune keeping him in luxury at one of Her Majestys' Hotels!

[dingov70]

When testing vans for MOT many newer models have a CATALOK device fitted to protect Cat / DPF assembly , pretty easy to fit , but bloody difficult afterwards as the heads of the bolts deliberately shear off when installed .

Most of the thefts involve the use of a cordless angle grinder , quieter than a mains powered model & easily carried in a bag . One Customer lost 9 DPF's overnight from their yard from off their Sprinter fleet . A very expensive replacement job

[RS3100]

On VEA engines the cats are I believe very close to the back of the engine, up between the block and bulkhead, so much less likely to be targeted by thieves who like to be able to reach under the car and cut them off the exhaust in seconds.

[Scooser]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

I forgot to mention Toyota when i commented on Honda cats - Toyota also use high quality/quantity precious metals making them attractive to these parasites. On a similar thread on another forum, there CCTV footage of one such toerag working solo and stealing the cat from a car parked on a garage forecourt.

Unbeknown to said tea-leaf, the car was in neutral with the handbrake off. He jacked it up, got under and while using his cordless disc cutter to remove the cat, the car rolled - straight off the jack!
One less theiving toerag around! Saved the taxpayer a fortune keeping him in luxury at one of Her Majestys' Hotels!

I’m all for harsh punishments, but the idea that somehow you are glad that a car had crushed to death a petty criminal beggars belief.

He is someone’s either son, husband, dad - and you don’t know what drove him to crime.

A very sad story.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Scooser

I’m all for harsh punishments, but the idea that somehow you are glad that a car had crushed to death a petty criminal beggars belief.

He is someone’s either son, husband, dad - and you don’t know what drove him to crime.

A very sad story.

Purely out of curiosity, would you share the same view if said toerag had cost you a grand in replacement costs of the cat and exhaust system?

Remember this wasn't the first one he'd done, he had stolen many other cats from people who were all also someones spouse, offspring or siblings. Often it will fall on family members to foot the bill for replacement because the owner (i use the term loosely due to the various finance packages/contract hires etc these days) is just about making ends meet on a good week.

They lose a minimum of a day at work to have the repairs done, never mind the time lost between when it first happens and the parts become available.
That could easily be a week or more and in the worst cases, that person might lose their job because they can't get there or perhaps can't get an ill relative to hospital and that person dies as a result.

The thief knew the risks involved, cars can fall off jacks all too easily - i still bear the scar of when it happened to me. That was in broad daylight in my own drive on my own car, repairing it for the MoT.

I didn't say i was glad, that was you putting words in my mouth. I merely pointed out the obvious advantages of his demise - he would have been caught due to the CCTV and very many hours of Police time (that's your money paying for that time by the way, through your council tax among other methods) actually tracking the guy down, arresting him, taking him to court and so on, not to mention the cost per day of keeping him incarcerated for his crimes.

It's no wonder crime is so high here now, successive govts (of all political orientation) have reduced the Police force to a farce, not only in sheer numbers of officers but in their powers of arrest. I used to watch a lot of emergency service based tv (Road Wars, Police Interceptors, 999 on the front line, 999 what's your emergency and so on) and i've noticed over recent years instead of the arresting officer advising the "perp" they are "Under arrest to facilitate the prompt investigation of the alleged crime" they now say something along the lines of "We're going to have to arrest you, is that alright?".

What would they do if the criminal said "No chance copper" but in more "elaborate" words consisting of at least one Anglo-Saxon derived expletive and did a runner? Not a lot i shouldn't think because they're not allowed to tackle the criminals anymore as far as i'm aware.

Why has this happened? Because do-gooders have successfully badgered the various govts over the years to treat criminals better and now criminals have no fear of the police, possible consequences (loss of liberty etc) or law in general.

I have no idea of your age group and i'm not asking but if you are a certain age group or older, you'll see the logic in what i have presented here - you may not agree with it but i'm sure you'll agree there is logic there.