Our Japanese Auto Repair Blog

The last few months have been hard for everyone, especially with the COVID global shutdown making it difficult to work and go on with everyday life, that’s why it was disappointing to see an increasing number of Prius owners coming in needing a Catalytic Converter. Unfortunately, all these customers had one thing in common, each had their vehicle’s Catalytic Converter cut off and stolen right where their car was parked!

Today most people in the Automotive industry know that Catalytic Converter theft is a wide-spread problem. It’s a billion-dollar black-market industry that’s destroying the environment and the lives of so many Prius owners.

Now, Catalytic Converter theft is not partial to Prius only; it’s a problem with many vehicles on the road today, but Prius has been at the forefront of this issue. On top of that, dealers in many instances are on a national backorder of replacement Catalytic Converters and because of this, repairs are taking much longer.

Although precious metal prices dropped in March/April, they have once again started climbing. One of these precious metals, palladium, is already worth $2426 per ounce at the time of this article. The thieves who are stealing these Catalytic Converters aren’t stupid, they know how to be in and out within 3 minutes or less. You could walk into a friend’s house and come back a few minutes later and be wholly blindsided with a repair cost of your Prius from $2500 to $5000.

Just in the past two months, Seattle has seen a huge increase in these thefts. Already the Seattle Police Department has issued a warning to people in the area to be sure everyone was made aware. A good place to check to see if your area has seen an increase is to check your local crime watch sites/organizations.

There are a few ways to keep your Toyota Prius safe from these cat burglars. First, park in a well-lit area and somewhere near possible theft deterrents like security cameras. Second, if you can, park in a garage where potential thieves can’t even see the Prius. Although even with both these suggestions, we’ve still had customers tell us how their Prius was in a secured parking garage and the thieves were still able to cut the catalytic converters off and get away.

That’s why Greg’s is now offering a new security plate that can cover the underbody of the car protecting the Catalytic Converter, installed with rivets and security screws making your Catalytic Converter not only hard to get to but extremely hard to cut off.

Conclusion

Catalytic Converter theft continues to increase. The sheer demand from these thefts has made it harder for dealers to get replacement converters in a timely fashion for our cars, and hundreds of Prius each week are sitting on dealer lots or garages waiting for repair.

Your Prius could be next, and so could mine. I’ve already scheduled to install a Cat Security plate on my personal Prius, especially since I live in an area where I park out in the open. Save the time, the towing, and the inconvenience of losing your Prius for any extended amount of time. Take some SERIOUS consideration to protect it with the best protective shield on the market through Greg’s Japanese Auto.

Think about it this way, for less than a few hundred dollars you can avoid $2500-$5000 in unnecessary repairs. Call your local Greg’s Japanese Auto today for more information and to schedule your appointment.