protecting my cat!

[lqhikers]

We went out last Tuesday (12/20/22) to one of our local trailheads to get a little hike in as the weather down here in the desert has been great.
When we pulled into the parking area their was a police car parked with a couple of people talking.
What happened was while two different groups were out hiking some low life cut catalytic converters off of two different trucks.
You read about it all the time but this time it got me thinking i should maybe consider a guard to deter
it happening to our tacoma.

After looking under truck i saw it would not be hard to weld up some scrap metal to form a shield
to make it hard to access converter, two hours later job done.

Maybe we will get a pass if the next low life sees the shield!

Just a heads up you to might want to protect your cat!

Les,lqhikers

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Les the lowlifes are everywhere unfortunately.
Back in August we were house sitting for our daughter
in Oakland,the LoLIs got to out 06 Highlander Hybrid.
Here we were 100 miles from home daughter not due back
next night.
I got in contact with Allstate and started the process.
Come Monday we got luckcky a great muffler shop in Berkley
could get a new one and have our car in a few days.
I had gotten a rental.4 days later the car was finished.
They welded 1/2" rebar along the pipe for several feet ,about 5 strips.

Having this happen when you're away from home sure is a stressful event.

In October we got a new RAV 4 Hybrid and had a shield mounted.
It's not any ironclad protection but it should deter the LoLis.

Don't want to have a repeat of that.

Looked at my Tundra it has 2 don't know how well they can be protected.

Have a great Holiday.
Frank

 

[craig333]

Thankfully my truck doesn't have a catalytic converter. But!!!!!!!!!! Do not scroll down if you don't want to read a real cat story with an unhappy ending.















Thump your hood. Regardless of your feelings for felines. At my brothers company a cat enjoyed the heat under the hood until an employee went to start the truck. Damage was significant, including taking out the serpentine belt etc. Needless to say the cat didn't survive.

 

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

They tried getting mine off my ‘05 Element. Sawed most of the way through before my stepson (an LAPD recruit at the time) “interrupted” them. But damage done. It was replaced fairly easily and quickly. The theft of cats has spawned a new industry in protection devices/apparatus.

 

[PaulT]

There was a big bust in a catalytic converter theft chain earlier this year in Lake Oswego, Or.

https://www.wweek.com/news/2022/11/30/from-portland-to-jersey-inside-the-crime-ring-that-shipped-thousands-of-oregons-stolen-catalytic-converters-across-the-country/

Busts in Bend, Or also. The crime ring stretched all across the country and out of the country.

Paul

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Is this just "low level" crime that the police don't spend much time
due to the difficultly to catch people.
After all how do you show up at a site with a trunk load of cats and not look suspicious?
Just saying.
I realize it's a organized crime but somehow it needs more manpower or something to curb it.
Frank

 

[ski3pin]

I like the welded rebar idea.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

The shop that did my work seemed to think that was a good solution.
They welded 5 strips of 1/2" rebar along the length of the whole pipe about 4'.

My new RAV 4 has a shield that covers the front of the cat and up toward
where it leaves the exhaust manifold.It looks like enough but you never know.

It's very disconcerting to think can I leave the car here and not worry.
Oh well such is life.
Enjoy the rain.
Frank