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After Cat theft attempt, should I repair OEM catalytic converter or replace with an aftermarket one?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Mike Bezuyevskiy, Jul 30, 2022.

  1. Mike Bezuyevskiy

    Mike Bezuyevskiy Junior Member

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    Hello,

    (Fun story first)
    This past Sunday night, I heard sounds outside my front door. I peaked through the window and saw 3 guys jacking my car up to get the catalytic converter. I stepped out onto my front porch and before I could start yelling, there was a guy, about 30' away, pointing a gun with a laser sight at me, telling me to go back into the house. Long story short, I called the 911, the guys left within a few minutes before the police arrived. I didn't notice any damage that night but when I started the car in the morning it sounded like a motorcycle. Also, I found a sawzall blade next to my car, which I kept as a souvenir. The crew seemed to have hit up the neighborhood this whole weekend based on the posts on nextdoor.

    Regarding my catalytic converter, after looking under the car, they seemed to just cut into the pipe before it, as seem in the picture below. My question was whether I should have this cat welded and put on a cat shield or whether I should just remove this cat, sell it, and have a $100-200 ebay/Amazon cat installed instead.

    My concern is that I don't want to have to deal with o2 sensor issues or other codes that may occur due to a low quality cat and I cannot find a well reviewed cat for a gen 3. This is an example of one I want to avoid:


    The gen 2 cat on amazon seems to be well reviewed though:


    Looking for any thoughts on pros/cons on repairing the oem vs replacing with an aftermarket. Are thieves able to bypass the cat shields that are out there? Would thieves be able to clearly identify that a cat is an aftermarket one and leave it alone?

    Thanks in advance for the feedback!
     

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  2. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    If that cut is the extent of damage, maybe it could be welded successfully?

    Do you have comprehensive insurance?

    I wrapped about 6’ of chain around that zone, periodically adding nut/bolt as I wrapped. The last couple I put permanent lock tight on the threads.
     
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  3. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    The former Vice President said all you need to do is fire a shotgun blast twice to scare off the perps and they’ll leave you alone. He Said at a press conference.
     
  4. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    While you do not exactly live on “free soil,” you’re not behind the Tinsel Curtain.

    No brainer.
    Replace it with an aftermarket unit and thank a kind and merciful GOD that you do not live in some dystopian authoritarian hell-scape that forces you to have to source an OEM unit for an almost 13-year-old car.

    Good Luck!
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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  6. Mike Bezuyevskiy

    Mike Bezuyevskiy Junior Member

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    This can be welded according to the muffler shop I stopped at. My concern is having to deal with the risk of theft in the future and getting an aftermarket cat would resolve that issue. I'm just having a hard time identifying a solid replacement out of all the $100-200 ones out there.
     
  7. Noahdoge

    Noahdoge Active Member

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    Have it welded and then have them install a stainless steel cat shield?
     
  8. Rmay635703

    Rmay635703 Senior Member

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    Here in Wisconsin we wouldn’t even think of repairing that, motorcycle or not.

    JB weld has fixed holes in my exhaust, you your area you would need to make it pretty or weld it but might still get a demerit during inspection.

    Aftermarket doesn’t stop CAT thieves, but it is a less expensive item to loose.

    Once repaired a cat shield is prudent
     
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  9. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    JB Weld it.
    Guard it.
    THEN, if necessary, replace it.

    Unless….you just like throwing money away.
     
  10. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    Yeah, I second J-B exhaust weld... Use a lot of it and I learned the hard way that you don't want to try to use your fingernails to pull off the backing tape on both sides or it'll be a mess that takes lots of scrubbing to get off your fingers. Use a razor blade with the tape on a flat surface to get backing tape off. And yeah it gives off a toxic stink before it fully cures, so do your best to avoid breathing it.

    And glad you only got hit with the laser site and not the bullets. I suspect they thought you were going back in to get your own gun and that was enough to scare 'em off.

    Makes me think that best way to handle something like this is yelling loudly that you're going inside to grab your assault rifle and it's ready to go and "if you're still here in 10 seconds hundreds of bullets are coming out my windows..." I bet none of them decide to wait around to know if it's just a bluff.
     
    #10 PriusCamper, Jul 30, 2022
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2022
  11. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

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    All you got to do is run it by a muffler shop before you can smoke a cigarette or whatever it is you do they'll have that thing wire feed welded closed and it'll be done forever I've got three of them or so here like that well only two now one's still on the road with another owner so it's just how it's done nothing needs to be done other than that if they didn't cut the sensor wires and everything is just like it is just sounding like a fart can seal up the hole that's just a slice it's not even an 8-in wide barely That's the blade of the sawzall.
     
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    search for threads where people have cut out the old one, sold it for a thousand bucks and put in a cheapo replacement successfully.
    then wrap it with chain as mendel said.

    1) you make a thousand minus the cost of replacement

    2) you save the cost of a cat shield.
     
  13. PriusII&C

    PriusII&C Active Member

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    #13 PriusII&C, Jul 30, 2022
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2022
  14. WilDavis

    WilDavis Senior Member

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    Welcome to PriusChat! Here's the story of my 2009 Gen II Prius (known as "ChuggyPyg" - it's a Brit thing!:rolleyes:):
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    My insurance covered most of the replacement cost (but didn't spring for the total cost due to "betterment" (it's an insurance thing!o_O)
    Good luck in finding the ideal solution! (y)
     
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  15. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    You USED to make big money... More than a year ago a friend got $1500 cash from a local dude for each of his two Gen2 Prius cats he swapped out. But thanks to new laws to prevent cat theft that dude doesn't return phone calls and last time he did he dropped his price to $850. And those $1600 purchases from California on Ebay don't seem to happen anymore either now that there's an aftermarket cat that got approval in that state for half that price. Many of us waited too long to sell our original cats.
     
  16. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    OP lives in a nice, safe, “gun free zone.”
    No assault weapons allowed.

    Besides, catnapping is a property crime, and no property is worth a human life.
    Better just to yell at them and use the phone to grab a pic or film clip.
    Maybe get a bigger dog…
     
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  17. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    Gun with a laser pointed at me?
    I’d be searching real estate listings
     
  18. Mike Bezuyevskiy

    Mike Bezuyevskiy Junior Member

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    This is actually a really nice neighborhood. I'm renting but the house next door just sold for $2+ mil and all the houses in the area are in the same price range. Everyone parks their nice cars in their garages. The crime comes from individuals coming out from certain areas of the city and targeting these areas. They hit up a bunch of people in the area this weekend and actually had someone intervene in their theft who they had a shootout with, a few blocks from where I live:

    https://cwbchicago.com/2022/07/catalytic-converter-thieves-shoot-man-in-north-center-victim-returns-fire-possibly-injuring-one.html
     
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  19. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    wow, what a thing to die over! :eek:
     
  20. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Last link in my signature shows the chain-wrap I used in the rear cut-zone.