Catalytic Converts Stolen

I was in oakland a couple years back and there was some crackheads stealing one at the enterprise rent a car by my hotel

 

Damn.. This is getting crazy... I mean gotta build that high ass fence around your house as it was Mexico, or some other 3rd world country... Cops aint gonna do nothing, as its a non violent crime, these cats will walk.... nothing against cops, but they aren't obligated to act...

 

An appropriate name Mad Max. It fits this scenerio. The last of the big v8 s and the end of the oil where folks search far and wide for the black goo; killing anyone who get in the way...Im there dude

 

cats are getting hit hard up around Chicago again. Prius, any Toyota trucks. Etc.. pretty much anything Japanese the cats are worth 40-250 bucks for scrap (hybrids being the highest). best defense is parking in a well lit area, skids that make it harder to reach, and 120 volts wired up to the frame to electrocute the would be thieves (ok don't do that last part.. that's not legal!)

 

We got hit in my area last couple mouths. Only vehicles getting cats stolen were late 90's-early 2000's Ford 3/4 tons with the V10. Actually had multiple victims watch the crime in progress and NOT call LEO! Dirt bag is using a cordless reciprocating saw. On the bright side, a department in central Oklahoma did make an arrest last week on a guy that we believe is our guy. He was hitting Northern Texas, Oklahoma and SW Kansas. All of our thefts were vehicles parked in the street or driveway at a residence.

 

Any chance of getting the dimensions from one of these plates? I can get one fabricated faster than the current wait.

 

Ordered one of the desert eagle plates, should have it by friday or monday.

 

I put my new to me TRD skid plate on. I already had the DE plate. What a Bi*** it was.
I ended up cutting out the section where the TRD plate bolts through the cross member. Then I mounted everything up. With the DE bolts, the heads were to large and stopped the TRD plate, resulting in the rear crossmember bolts not exposing enough thread to bight the nut. Uhhh. Went to the Hardware store and grabbed some low profile torx bolts, like the guy in the video did. Finally it worked. But twisting my arm backwards to thread the TRD bolts above the DE plate was rough.

 

Maybe a dumb question, but how did you cut the DE plate?

 

I started with a cutoff wheel on my
Angle grinder. It wore down, as I didn’t have much of a wheel to start with, so I went to a sawzall with a bi-metal blade and it worked good. Took a grinder and file to smooth out the cuts a little and re-painted cuts with satin black . I used these type of bolts for the front DE mount under the TRD skid plate .
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hillman-10...sJ75xLF_zfxNt29v2zRoCUikQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

Thanks. I appreciate the info. I already have the trd plate and will be getting the DE soon

 

I made the cutouts larger
Than they need to be. I incorrectly marked the wrong holes. Identify which holes the rear of the skid plates goes through. Then remove the skid.
You’ll be able to dry mount the DE plate and notch out only those two holes needed for the Skid.

 

Hearing a lot about this lately where I’m at, San Antonio, TX. Folks that park a motor home/RV/bus at a storage facility, or even ones at a repair center, are going to pick them up, for service or annual inspections after being parked for a few months, or just overnight, and they are cutting them out. Around here I’ve only heard of larger vehicles being targeted, but not to say it can’t or won’t happen...The storage places are finding that once one is reported, a few others are also missing in the facility, and that they find a place in the fence where they are sneaking in at night. And the service places are finding that just a night or a few nights being parked outside, they go missing. Sucks that’s happening, thieves suck.

 

Just get yourself some fireARMS and defend yourselves

 

I ended up calling Don McGill Toyota of Katy and ordering mine from them. You will have to call and see if they have any left. Ask for Frank in the parts department.

 

I’d be inspecting the fence every night before dark and getting myself a couple of big dogs to roam my facility grounds.