sjmachrihanish

Not to worry - it was just a bit of levity!

I was told that taxi companies operating the Prius have gone for a plate but each car requires a different solution. Since getting my cat nicked I have looked into this matter (as we all have!) and no one has pointed me in the direction of a solution that would protect my RX400h. There are generic clamps but I have not been inspired to go that way from what I've read. I'm now thinking that a visit to a car alarm specialist might be an idea. In the meantime I am thinking of decorating the underside of the car with razor wire. The douchebag will see it and hopefully decide there is an easier target elsewhere. If he doesn't see it then he gets a free shave.

Don't blame you. When I bought my RX it was my first hybrid. After driving Yanks for years I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread, Still do. Then I got my cat stolen. I had the car for months then got my brakes done at a Toyota garage then a service done at Lexus. Shortly after those two jobs I got my cat nicked, and discovered it was a huge problem everywhere, Europe, North America... Of course it has put my wife off buying a hybrid. She was impressed but not now, particularly as no one out there appears to be tackling the theft problem.

Cool stuff. At last, a highbrow forum! I think the specific issues relating to catalytic converters are equally relevant. My guess would be that the sintering that happens as the cat gets subjected to more and more use means the particles are less easily cleaned by those receiving the stolen units and preparing the precious metals for re-use. Can anyone confirm that? It could be the crux of the matter. In the meantime the more of these metals that hit the black market will mean the remainder becomes even more expensive. A double whammy for drivers.

The later the model, the less the problem. The thieves know that a newer hybrid cat has only a fraction of the precious metals inside. With a car registered Dec 2008 I'm a big fat juicy target. On the up side it has a cassette player!!!

When Lexus Reading fitted my replacement cat last week I asked what solution they have to prevent RX450h cat theft. His reply was that they had fitted a "Lexus endorsed" kit a to two RX SUV's but that in recent weeks both owners had asked for the kit to be removed because of NVH being transferred to the cabin interior!

"Hybrid cars are targeted by thieves because they have two power sources – an electric motor and a petrol or diesel engine – so their catalytic converters are used less frequently to process pollutants. This means the metals inside them are less likely to corrode, so they're more valuable and therefore more desirable to thieves." What you learnt in Chemistry might well be correct but the quote above, which can be found everywhere on the internet, echoes what every mechanic I have spoken to, what the police told me when my RX450h cat was stolen (in 30 seconds) and what Lexus Reading told me when they sold me a new one at cost (half price). More crucially, it is what the thieves believe and that is why hybrids are being targeted more often than non hybrids. If your Chemistry teacher was right, and hybrid cats are not cleaner then I wish the experts out there would spread the word and let the thieves know. Then we can share the joys of this crime wave on equal terms with drivers of ordinary petrol cars!

I will tell you why the RX450h will be targeted more than any petrol car: 1. ALL hybrids are targeted over ordinary petrol cars because the cats are cleaner (for what should be an obvious reason!). 2. The RX series are SUV's and they have a higher ground clearance and it takes only one douchebag to nick it, not two.