Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts

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Wed 19 Jan 2022 21:50
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - privateinvestor

Huge volume of catalytic converter thefts in South West London, why is our police so useless in tackling this problem.

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Wed 19 Jan 2022 23:13
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Big John

Catalyst theft is sadly common older on many car designs where it's easily accessible. The Toyota Auris which has similar oily bits to the CT200h is also a target as are a few Honda's of a certain age eg Jazz mkI.

A friend of mine lost his on an Auris hybrid - when replaced he also had an additional security "frame" fitted.

The problem is removal is so quick which makes it very hard to catch the culprits.

Edited by Big John on 19/01/2022 at 23:15

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Thu 20 Jan 2022 08:16
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - RT

Catalyst theft is sadly common older on many car designs where it's easily accessible. The Toyota Auris which has similar oily bits to the CT200h is also a target as are a few Honda's of a certain age eg Jazz mkI.

A friend of mine lost his on an Auris hybrid - when replaced he also had an additional security "frame" fitted.

The problem is removal is so quick which makes it very hard to catch the culprits.

The problem is that some platform designs are so old there's no room for the catalytic converter to be bolted directly to the exhaust manifold or turbo, ie to be placed high up in the engine compartment - this forces the designer to mount the cat underneath in the exhaust run which is much easier to steal - and less efficient at cleaning the exhaust.

It particularly affects the Japanese brands as they seem to evolve platforms slowly rather than replace them every couple of model cycles.

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Thu 20 Jan 2022 08:40
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Brit_in_Germany

A solution would be to oblige every dealer or scrappie to return a used cat to the manufacturer's representative at no cost to the manufacturer. Anyone in posession of used cat without good reason to be guilty of an offence.

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Thu 20 Jan 2022 09:56
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Heidfirst

The problem is that some platform designs are so old there's no room for the catalytic converter to be bolted directly to the exhaust manifold or turbo, ie to be placed high up in the engine compartment - this forces the designer to mount the cat underneath in the exhaust run which is much easier to steal - and less efficient at cleaning the exhaust.

Or alternatively they were designed for ease of access & maintenance long before the value of the materials in cats soared to the levels where it became worthwhile to steal them for the raw materials. It's a very recent phenomena & a car will be in design for several years before the very first production examples.hits the streets..

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Thu 20 Jan 2022 10:12
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - thunderbird

Or alternatively they were designed for ease of access & maintenance

CAT's do not need maintenance so why make access to them easy?

Since they were introduced (early 90's?) I have only known one person need to replace one. That was a young apprentice at work with a 12 year old Corsa.

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Thu 20 Jan 2022 11:41
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - SLO76

Or alternatively they were designed for ease of access & maintenance

CAT's do not need maintenance so why make access to them easy?

Since they were introduced (early 90's?) I have only known one person need to replace one. That was a young apprentice at work with a 12 year old Corsa.

Not a common issue these days. In all my years of driving and buying and selling I’ve only replaced two, an 8yr old Ford Fiesta and the 12yr old Avensis I’m running now. For an exhaust component that was hanging under a well used car for almost 12yrs and running much of the year on wet, salty roads I can’t hold it against the car. Neither were expensive. Theft however is a big problem in some areas.

Edited by SLO76 on 20/01/2022 at 11:42

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 09:17
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - John F

If I had a vulnerable street-parked car I might try wrapping barbed wire round it.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 09:57
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - JonestHon

I was told last year by a local exhaust chap to wash the underneath of the car every couple of weeks in winter plus the AC condenser. He said that by doing this he never had to change the pipes or AC apparatus on his own 15 years old Vauxhall van. I follow his advices since.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 09:33
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Big John

Since they were introduced (early 90's?) I have only known one person need to replace one.

I had to replace the catalyst on my old 2001 Octavia - it was damaged when a coil pack failed dropping the car onto two cylinders with the other two outputting unburnt petrol.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 13:52
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Heidfirst

Or alternatively they were designed for ease of access & maintenance

CAT's do not need maintenance so why make access to them easy?

They can need replacement though, maybe not as often in recent cars as they tend to run cleaner anyway (especially hybrids hence why they are targeted), as can the rest of the exhaust system of which they form part.

The original Toyota New MC platform (which the CT200h uses) probably started design ~2002/3.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 17:47
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Chris M

An acquaintance had the cat stolen from his 2017 Auris Hybrid before Christmas. The dealer said his was more valuable to thieves because it contained more precious metals than others.

Cost his insurers £1,700 to replace the cat, some pipework and wiring loom. On top of that was recovering the car from the top floor of a multi storey car park. Cost him his £300 excess and I guess increased premiums for a few years.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 18:04
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - badbusdriver

Huge volume of catalytic converter thefts in South West London, why is our police so useless in tackling this problem.

Given how these gangs can have a cat off in about a minute (or less) using a cordless grinder, I think it is a little unfair having a go at the Police about their inability to stop it.

Surely the manufacturers are at fault here, for making the cat so easily accessible.

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 18:18
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Ethan Edwards

Shame you can't engrave it with "Stolen from Reg number, call Police" ...

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Fri 21 Jan 2022 19:22
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - bathtub tom

Shame you can't engrave it with "Stolen from Reg number, call Police" ...

Of course you can, but do you think it'll make any difference to the scrap yards that pay a fraction of the value to the scrotes that turn up with armfuls of them?

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Sat 22 Jan 2022 00:32
Lexus CT 200h - Cat thefts - Ethan Edwards

Well if our boys in blue ever manage to be at a scrap yard it'd help with the chain of evidence.

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