fellow mouther breathers ... i have a really dumb/noob question.

are our catalytic converters in a vulnerable spot? is it easy to steal off a 3is? i'm assuming YES with any Japanese car.

 

On a stock IS it's pretty hard to get under the car...good luck stealing the secondary cats. You'd need a jack for sure and then something to rest the front wheels on...i.e. cinder blocks.
If they want the primary cats, you're better off just stealing the entire car.

 

thanks for the reply . .. (as always)

yeah, i was just wondering how at-risk 3is's were in this situation.

 

I eliminated my secondary cats for good lol just for this reason but primary cat is still on but might eliminate it down the line if I can get a daily

 

Don't people steal catalytic converters for more popular cars? I know Corollas catalytic converters fail around 120K miles so people steal those a lot (and other Toyota vehicles) because there's a decent market for it. What would someone do with a catalytic converter for an IS? Someone correct me I'm wrong

 

Most catalytic converters are sold to metal recyclers.

 

Priuses have their cats stolen frequently, especially older models. I worry more about my wife's Infiniti QX30 SUV than my IS.

 

It's not even about popular cars anymore, if it has a cat they want it. Previously it were the Prius model but lately it's happening to any thing that has a cat. Heck they will take the whole car and strip it regardless if it's a popular car for parts or not. Parts are parts and it's free money for these guys. Thieves are taking it up a notch by using actual tow trucks to quickly lift cars and within a minute they are gone.

 

would be funny if a surveillance camera caught a stealer jack up a model 3, lol

 

Absolutely agree...it's all about the precious metals inside the cat...nothing really to do with where it comes from.
Metal recyclers where I am now record your driver license info and the number on the cat when you bring it in...just in case the popo comes asking they will turn you in.