By TRILBY BERESFORD | Reporter
Catalytic converters were stolen from six street-parked Toyota Priuses in the Alphabet Streets overnight between Wednesday, May 9, and Thursday, May 10. One resident reported two big bolts left behind from underneath the vehicle, and the sound of “a race car without a muffler” when the engine was started. The neighborhood is gearing up to employ its own “night detective” to patrol the area after sunset because of such crimes.
Catalytic converters have been an important addition to the healthy operation of a car since 1975, as they moderate harmful emissions from car exhausts. When it’s gone, the car is left with no functioning exhaust pipe system.
They are targeted because they contain valuable metals such as copper, palladium and rhodium. Often they are taken to scrap yards to sell for around $240. To replace them, owners are looking at prices between $1,000 and $3,000. Without insurance, this crime can mean the end of the road for some cars.
Priuses are especially targeted because they contain platinum and other precious metals, and for the relative ease of removing them. According to Sev Jabadarian, a mechanic at Caliber Collision, one person could remove the converter in about 10 minutes, but they would have to jack up the car and use a pipe cutter or hand-powered saw to cut through a two- to three-inch pipe. That means the overnight spree took at least an hour and was probably not silent. The crime is so common that mechanics often have trouble getting the parts, forcing owners to go to their car dealership.
In the wake of this spree, people are considering lock systems or having the converter welded to the car frame. The Alphabet Streets may also have been targeted due to a high number of Prius drivers.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
