Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Catalytic Converter Thefts

It would appear that here seems to be a epademic in certain parts of the UK with catalytic converter thefts. Evidently they use a cordless saw and cut through exhaust pipes in seconds. Having crawled under my roadster the catalytic converters are very exposed and easy to remove.

Has anybody suffered with this problem and I wonder if there is a suitable security device to prevent this happening.

Neil

Not Morgan, but my Brother in Law (ex Police) had his MX5 done overnight on the drive while they were all in the house (and they have a BIG dog). Didn't hear a thing - only realised when he went to drive off in the morning and had a very different exhaust note!

Due to the value of the MX5, the insurance company wrote it off.

Yes we have the problem in Cambridgeshire as well. The +8 of course doesn't have this modern item fitted. The every day 4x4 does and they would be easy to remove, hopefully the vibration/movement alarm would go off.

It is an issue in Wiltshire, mostly SUVs and other vehicles with good ground clearance.

The Aero Plus 8 cats are virtually impossible to remove from underneath, yes the silencer side could be cut through, but not at the manifold end.
It is possible to see the cat from under the bonnet, but getting a small disc cutter to the pipe is impossible, I can't get my fingers round.
So do that is wing off...
And the car lives in a garage... an insurance requirement.

One of my suppliers of car parts has a very large fleet of vans!
One night, over 10 catalytic converters were sawed off in a car park at this supplier!

I suspect the Scrotes view a Mog as an old car & not fitted with a Cat

I am always surprised at the type of automotive thefts that occur in the UK over the years, radio's, GPS, wheels, small items etc.
Is it a nation of petty criminals, desperate people, what is the issue. Are these thefts common in other parts of the world.

Not heard of any in our area as yet..
About 10 years ago there was a spate of it mostly from Strange Rovers being high off the floor I suppose.

These gangs are well organised, ruthless and quite prepared to resort to violence if challenged. They know exactly what cars to target, like Toyota Prius, Auris and Lexus RX. Honda Jazz and CRVs are also high on the list. It has been reported they are mainly Eastern European and can travel between countries with little chance of being caught. Best place for your car is locked in a garage, definitely not on the driveway or on the road.

Back in the eighties a friend got into his XR3 one morning and discovered the steering wheel was missing. The police said that there were other thefts from XR3's in that area and they thought someone was trying to upgrade a standard Escort to XR3 specification.