{"id":12317,"date":"2021-09-11T17:16:40","date_gmt":"2021-09-11T15:16:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/?p=12317"},"modified":"2021-09-11T17:17:50","modified_gmt":"2021-09-11T15:17:50","slug":"catalytic-converter-theft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/2021\/09\/11\/catalytic-converter-theft\/","title":{"rendered":"2 Ways Fleets Can Prevent Catalytic Converter Theft"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photos:\u00a0County of Sacramento, California<\/em><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

1) This is a photo of what the exhaust of a Prius looks like after the catalytic converter was stolen; 2)\u00a0Here is an example of a CatStrap installed on a Prius.; 3) The county has added a clamp for additional security and has also welded the clamp nuts.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Method 1: CatStrap Reduces Thefts<\/span><\/h2>\n

The County of Sacramento, California, has sustained major financial losses due to catalytic converter thefts. Due to the diverse size and location of county facilities, vehicle security has been a challenge. Many of the county\u2019s facilities are gated, but thieves have cut through fencing to steal the valuable car parts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since 2019, county losses due to theft of converters have exceeded $100,000. Initially, the primary target was the Toyota Prius, but in the last year, thefts of catalytic converters have impacted all the fleet\u2019s makes and models. When the thefts were limited to the Prius, fleet management tried protection plates to safeguard the converter; however, the plates are model-specific, labor-intensive to install, and experienced some rattles after installation. Technicians also attempted some in-house modifications to protect the exhaust, but those, too, were labor-intensive.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since all makes and models were being targeted, the fleet department decided to install the CatStrap. This device is universal and can be installed on any vehicle that needs protection. The installation requires less labor to install versus the protection plates, and the rattle problem was also eliminated.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The strap has a high-temperature casing that contains hidden aircraft-grade steel cables that are difficult to cut. For added measure, technicians install two exhaust clamps to secure the straps to the exhaust and then tack weld the clamp nuts. Management prioritized installations on its Toyota Prius models and any vehicle parked at a vulnerable parking location. The county has not experienced an attempted theft on a CatStrap-equipped vehicle so far.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"An<\/span>
\n

An example of a shield made by Cat Security. Photo:\u00a0City of Long Beach, California<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Method 2: Other Anti-Theft Device Possibilities<\/span><\/h2>\n

The City of Long Beach, California, has secured various anti-theft devices that range from shields to cabling systems that act as a deterrent to potential thieves. These include a shield made by Cat Security and a cable clamp made by CatClamp on vehicles such as the Toyota Prius and Ford F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maintenance Superintendent Eric Winterset said the fleet department has offered all city departments the option to get these installed on their units if they so wish.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSome departments chose to install these based on the unit\u2019s parking location, while others chose not to as they feel their vehicles are in a more secure location,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

As of August 2021, the city has not had a catalytic convertor stolen or even a known attempt to steal them on vehicles with an anti-theft device.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe the thieves see these and realize it will take too long, so they move on,\u201d he explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

The various anti-theft devices range in price from $125 to $200 to purchase and take about an hour to install. This would put the department\u2019s internal cost at around $325 to $400 to install in each vehicle.<\/span><\/p>\n

To further prevent theft, Winterset suggested having other departments conduct a risk assessment of their current parking location. If possible, a fenced-in area with bright lighting is best. Doing so on top of researching anti-theft devices that work for your fleet\u2019s vehicles can be a big help.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"An<\/span>
\n

An example of a cable clamp made by CatClamp. Photo:\u00a0City of Long Beach, California<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bonus: Helping Citizens<\/span><\/h2>\n

The City of Long Beach also partnered with its Police Department to conduct a free \u201cEtch and Sketch\u201d program for citizens. Several of the city mechanics worked the event where citizens could bring their vehicle and have the last eight numbers of the VIN engraved onto the vehicles\u2019 catalytic convertor. This was done so, if recovered, the part could be returned to the owner.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0by <\/a>Lexi Tucker<\/a><\/p>\n

Source: https:\/\/www.automotive-fleet.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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KNOW WHO WE ARE<\/strong><\/a><\/h1>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photos:\u00a0County of Sacramento, California 1) This is a photo of what the exhaust of a Prius looks like after the catalytic converter was stolen; 2)\u00a0Here is an example of a CatStrap installed on a Prius.; 3) The county has added a clamp for additional security and has also welded the clamp nuts. Method 1: CatStrap…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12318,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18],"tags":[53],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12317"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12317"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12321,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12317\/revisions\/12321"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}