By Ray Mundine

A standard catalytic converter repair averages $3000. Many Americans are not prepared to have a charge of that size dropped in their lap. However, it happens every day in Fort Collins. Catalytic converter, or ‘cat’ for short, theft is on the rise due to its rapid popularization on social media. With just a hacksaw a thief can get under your car, saw off this specialized piece of your exhaust, and be on their way home within 5 minutes. Do you need to get groceries for the week? A cat thief can reliably steal 5 converters in a 30-minute shopping trip.

The purpose of a catalytic converter is to remove harmful pollutants from your car’s exhaust. “They are incredibly important to the car’s exhaust system and will leave your vehicle running loud and will affect its acceleration,” says Brian of Fort Collins Muffler and Exhaust. Brian has been working with exhaust system repair since the 1970s. Brian has seen a recent spike in converter theft in recent years due to the popularization of the crime. “We have two or three customers come in a week with missing cats.” That is roughly $45,000 in repairs a week from just this shop. There are dozens of auto-body shops in Fort Collins that deal with catalytic converter replacements.

Aiden Rocchio is a Fort Collins Resident that had his converter stolen recently. “It’s a terrible feeling. Being victimized at no fault of your own is something that weighs on you every day. Not to mention the financial burden that a crime like this will inflict on people. I almost had to drop out of school because I couldn’t afford to pay for school and get my car repaired.”

The reason these thieves steal converters is unknown to many. There are specialized metals within the cat itself that are sold purely for the value of the commodities. The three most valuable metals are platinum, palladium, and rhodium. The irony of the matter is that the metals contained within the converter only sell for between $50-$250. The Universal Technical Institute is a technical training school. Many of their mechanical engineering classes include education about catalytic converters. Jackson Diedrichs is a mechanical engineering professor whom I spoke with about the school’s curriculum involving catalytic converters. “Because they are being stolen more frequently the school’s curriculum board has decided that our graduates should be well educated about the part as well as the reason for stealing it.” Mr. Diedrichs has a deep hatred for converter thieves and hopes to develop a better way to protect the part. He described a few methods to keep your converters safe:

1. Be aware of where you leave your car.

Unfortunately, the crime’s rate is much higher in low-economic locations. Try and avoid parking your car in these locations for long periods of time, especially on the street. The longer your car is parked in a high-risk location the greater the odds you will become a victim.

• 2. Go to the light.

Make sure wherever you do park your car is a well-lit area. Thieves are much less likely to put a saw to your converter if the area is illuminated. It is much easier to get away with crime if no one can see you.

• 3. Park near windows.

If you can see your car, you can protect your car. Thieves will usually go into the middle of a parking isle where cars are concealed by other cars.

• 4. Stay within the vision of security cameras.

While they do act as a deterrent for thieves. These cameras could also be used to catch the perpetrator. For instance, many grocery stores are installing security camera towers in their parking lots due to all kinds of vehicle theft. Parking near these is highly recommended.

• 5. Purchase vehicles that are less susceptible to converter theft.

Toyota Prius is the number one target for converter thieves due to the value of the part and the ease of access. Many Hondas have similar issues. There are plenty of car brands that have better-protected undercarriages like Ford or Nissan.

Thankfully over the next few decades catalytic converter theft should become less common due to electric cars. Because electric vehicles do not produce any exhaust there is no need for a catalytic converter. “As these vehicles become more common on the road converter thieves should begin going out of business,” Diedrich says with a sigh of relief.

Nithya Raman, a Los Angeles city council member, is under fire due to her hot takes on catalytic converter theft. “In this case, I think one of the things that infuriates me, is that we have a company – whatever, Toyota – who makes the Prius, that essentially has a device on their cars which is super easy to remove. It’s basically the value of a MacBook right?” This is an interesting way to look at the issue. However, most experts believe this is treating the symptoms, not the disease. A representative for Fort Collins Police Department Media gave a brief rundown of the situation “The cars are already out there. It is our job alongside local politicians to enact policies and procedures that protect our citizens from catalytic converter theft. We shouldn’t be punishing companies for an unforeseeable circumstance.”

Follow these strategies and be on the lookout for catalytic converter thieves. You never know when your cat could be in danger.