Rx400H Catalytic Converter Theft

[rich1068]

Haven't been following this so I'm afraid I don't know if I'm adding anything that hasn't been said before but I was underneath a 57 plate 400h yesterday with the cat removed. Goes through the MOT just fine and from what I'm told Toyota/Lexus have dropped the price of genuine replacements by quite a margin too.

[TouringRob]

Just as a warning to others. 

Well aware of the cat theft issues with these cars. Been parking on my driveway for months which is gravel and close to the house. Last night Mrs was on drive so I parked in front of the house. 

10:30 at night hear a buzz saw, I immediately knew what was happening so ran outside with a baseball bat to be confronted by large chap with a machete. Would have obviously loved to give him some but fortunately sense prevailed. Within 3mins they were gone. I will not be replacing the secondary cat much to the dismay of every left wing environmentalist out there. I've bought Jetex pipe and kit from Merlin Motorsports and will (fortunate to have a MIG in the garage) weld it up this weekend. After a chat with the MOT center I use their wording was "if we can't see it we can't test it" So a temporary sheet metal cover so sort the visual inspection. The cover will be removed in the hope that the next thief will use 1 of their 3 brain cells before cutting. 

I guess the warning here is that these guys are potentially armed and violent so be careful, for me a cat wasn't worth a hospital trip. Good luck.

[The-Acre]

15 hours ago, TouringRob said:

Just as a warning to others. 

Well aware of the cat theft issues with these cars. Been parking on my driveway for months which is gravel and close to the house. Last night Mrs was on drive so I parked in front of the house. 

10:30 at night hear a buzz saw, I immediately knew what was happening so ran outside with a baseball bat to be confronted by large chap with a machete. Would have obviously loved to give him some but fortunately sense prevailed. Within 3mins they were gone. I will not be replacing the secondary cat much to the dismay of every left wing environmentalist out there. I've bought Jetex pipe and kit from Merlin Motorsports and will (fortunate to have a MIG in the garage) weld it up this weekend. After a chat with the MOT center I use their wording was "if we can't see it we can't test it" So a temporary sheet metal cover so sort the visual inspection. The cover will be removed in the hope that the next thief will use 1 of their 3 brain cells before cutting. 

I guess the warning here is that these guys are potentially armed and violent so be careful, for me a cat wasn't worth a hospital trip. Good luck.

I think you made the right decision!

[Barry14UK]

I keep a machete and a swordstick to hand for protection against intruders but I think if I used it to protect a car and injury or death resulted, the law might not be so forgiving. 

[MatthewLexus]

I had my Cat stolen from my Lexus RX400H a couple of days ago. This forum really helped me but I managed to get hold of a really helpful company based in Germany that have sold over 500 Cats to the UK specifically for Lexus's. As other have said, the cat they steal is a secondary cat that does not need to be as good as it is. This company sells replacements for between £110 and £130 + shipping to the uk at £20. They go in the place of the original Cat and do the job just fine. It should cost somewhere between £50 and £80 for a garage to fit them for you and pass the UK MOT fine. This is NOT an original Lexus part but the advantage is that thieves don;t generally take them again as they know what they are looking for and it looks very different to the original system.

They currently cost at the time of writing this post £112.95 but I bought a modified version as the inlet is 55mm and the outlet is 60mm on the Lexus RX400H so the modified version has one end modified to fit straight on. The only other thing that you will need is a short piece of 55mm pipe to fit on where they cut yours off...

It is a :

Magnaflow 400 Zeller Ceramic Catalytic Converter Lexus RX 400h

fastforward performance company powered by Magnaflow SRL

Warehouse
Neuendorferstraße 64-69 Halle 24
13585 Berlin
Germany

Administration
Württembergallee 15
14052 Berlin
Germany


Cell:     +49 177 50 100 10
Phone: +49 30 3350 62 42
Phone: +49 30 3036 54 30
Fax:     +49 30 3036 54 21
Fax:     +49 30 3350 62 43
 

PLEASE NOTE : I have no affiliation with this company. I just found them extremely helpful so am posting the details here in case anyone else is in trouble like I was... There are other suppliers of the same Cat I believe. 

[billgatesisaconman]

On 8/23/2020 at 10:55 AM, MatthewLexus said:

I had my Cat stolen from my Lexus RX400H a couple of days ago. This forum really helped me but I managed to get hold of a really helpful company based in Germany that have sold over 500 Cats to the UK specifically for Lexus's. As other have said, the cat they steal is a secondary cat that does not need to be as good as it is. This company sells replacements for between £110 and £130 + shipping to the uk at £20. They go in the place of the original Cat and do the job just fine. It should cost somewhere between £50 and £80 for a garage to fit them for you and pass the UK MOT fine. This is NOT an original Lexus part but the advantage is that thieves don;t generally take them again as they know what they are looking for and it looks very different to the original system.

They currently cost at the time of writing this post £112.95 but I bought a modified version as the inlet is 55mm and the outlet is 60mm on the Lexus RX400H so the modified version has one end modified to fit straight on. The only other thing that you will need is a short piece of 55mm pipe to fit on where they cut yours off...

It is a :

Magnaflow 400 Zeller Ceramic Catalytic Converter Lexus RX 400h

fastforward performance company powered by Magnaflow SRL

Warehouse
Neuendorferstraße 64-69 Halle 24
13585 Berlin
Germany

Administration
Württembergallee 15
14052 Berlin
Germany


Cell:     +49 177 50 100 10
Phone: +49 30 3350 62 42
Phone: +49 30 3036 54 30
Fax:     +49 30 3036 54 21
Fax:     +49 30 3350 62 43
 

PLEASE NOTE : I have no affiliation with this company. I just found them extremely helpful so am posting the details here in case anyone else is in trouble like I was... There are other suppliers of the same Cat I believe. 

Hi Mathew,  I'm very sorry to hear about your theft but unfortunately It appears this problem isn't going to go away any time soon, I have also taken the same approach with an aftermarket cat and It does give me comfort to know the scrap value is pretty much zero ... let's  just hope the cat thieves also know this if they try to steal them again ...

That being said this is the same supplier I looked at but the part numbers are different, these are also advertised for the Rx and are slightly cheaper, and as they are universal cat's I doubt theres any difference, the Magnaflow 400 ceramic was £30 less and is the same size, the Magnaflow 200 metal cat was £20 less and is slightly smaller, it is purported that some improvement in performance can be gained from the metal cat on a petrol engine, I'm not sure whether this would be the case on a hybrid system like the Rx  though ...

Ceramic https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Magnaflow-400-Zeller-Ceramic-Catalytic-Converter-Lexus-Rx-2-1-8in-C4m/303656103323?fits=Car+Make%3ALexus|Model%3ARX|Cars+Type%3A400h&hash=item46b3506d9b:g:1m0AAOSwghddWDin

Metal https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Magnaflow-200-Zeller-Metal-Sport-Catalytic-Converter-Lexus-Rx-2-1-8in-M4a/303638783272?fits=Car+Make%3ALexus|Model%3ARX|Cars+Type%3A400h&hash=item46b2482528:g:7ekAAOSwtOVdZ-Ui

 

[Esskay]

Hello all! New owner for 4 days and on my first overnight in London guess what!!!
 

Taken from Mount View Road Stroud Green - apparently has happened here recently on other Toyota hybrids in the middle of the day.

Surely the only alternative is a straight pipe? 

What’s feelings on Catman’s straight pipe option?

Anyone done a flexipipe repair - I need about 600mm.

Other than that I was really starting to enjoy the car!!

Cheers

[rich1068]

If this problem is as widespread as this and other threads seem to indicate I see absolutely no point in fitting another catalytic converter (genuine or otherwise) if there's a chance of it happening again.

[Esskay]

I can’t see any other sensible alternative - sadly I think crime in general is going to be on the increase for a while yet.

Anyone recommend a reliable garage for this type of work in North/East London?

cheers

 

[Andre2000]

Flowtech Exhausts in Chadwell Heath did the work for me and put on the extra 55mm Pipe as I bought the metal Magnaflow from eBay Germany as above.

[Billsykes]

Been to the old hospital in Derby (DRI) this morning for an appointment, returned to the car to find the cats gone.

Going to try and get someone to sleeve it locally, fingers crossed.

[billgatesisaconman]

On 9/10/2020 at 4:34 PM, Esskay said:

Hello all! New owner for 4 days and on my first overnight in London guess what!!!
 

Taken from Mount View Road Stroud Green - apparently has happened here recently on other Toyota hybrids in the middle of the day.

Surely the only alternative is a straight pipe? 

What’s feelings on Catman’s straight pipe option?

Anyone done a flexipipe repair - I need about 600mm.

Other than that I was really starting to enjoy the car!!

Cheers

This is probably the best option and gets rid of the target off the car if you can get it done, I couldn't find anywhere to fit one in Manchester  ... the main Cats are still there so ... no visible Cat = no problem ...

[Billsykes]

Got mine repaired today 500mm length of mild steel pipe (54mm internal) fits over the rear end of the exhaust and into the front section, 

tacked it on under the car then dropped the exhaust off and it on the bench .Pipe was £12 ish off eBay, welder a few beers, just over an hour  all told.

[Jaystar77]

This reminded me of this thread and tickled me slightly..

 

[JoeJoe]

Long time, first time. The cat converter of my Lexus RX400h was stolen on Monday, 21 Sept, 2020 in South East London. The neighbor saw everything - around 2 pm - 2 white, tall men, white shirts, baseball caps, pulled up in a BLUE Metallic AUDI sedan, 1 got under the car while the other one watched and 30 sec later they were gone with my converter. Sharing this info in case it helps anyone. Neighbor called police immediately, they recorded the info, said "thank you" and went back to sleep. It's amazing they way things work in this country. Btw, I registered mine with the ISR and had a sticker on the window, but that didn't bother the thieves at all (so this is basically useless).

I have a technical question - has anyone tried using a temp fix with pipes and clamps without welding? Would something like that work? I don't have to pass MOT until Summer 21, by which point i ill replace with an aftermarket cat. 

I am now missing a 42cm-long section, diameter of rear side pipe is ~55mm, while at the front the pipe seems wider, around 63mm. Can anyone share links with products and instructions on how to replace that section? As i said, i wanted to use clamps and adapter without welding. 

Thanks,

Joe

[ISJason]

Hi forgive me if this has been covered already. But is the prevalence of the theft of catalytic converters as widespread on the fourth generation Rx?

I heard somewhere that the catalytic converter is on that model is more protected , or maybe I’m wrong.

I was just wondering because I’m hoping to get a 4th gen soon

Thanks


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[ColinBarber]

12 hours ago, ISJason said:

Hi forgive me if this has been covered already. But is the prevalence of the theft of catalytic converters as widespread on the fourth generation Rx?

I heard somewhere that the catalytic converter is on that model is more protected , or maybe I’m wrong.

I was just wondering because I’m hoping to get a 4th gen soon

Thanks

Not as prevalent, in fact it is unheard of at this time but whether that is because it is too difficult or just because cats from older vehicles are more valuable, and therefore are targeted, isn't really known.

We know the cat is further forward on the series IV, but we haven't seen pictures to tell if the front is still accessible or not.

Heard of a few cases with it happening on the series III but no where near as bad as the series II 400h.

[Andre2000]

I am the original poster and unfortunately these thieves were back outside my house last night. My neighbour noticed these guys and went outside, this was 3:30am in the morning. They were under the car. What I don’t know is if the fact that I have a generic replacement had stopped them from taking my cat or the neighbour disturbed them. I am located SE London in Bromley. Beware!! 

[JoeJoe]

On 9/26/2020 at 9:33 AM, Andre2000 said:

I am the original poster and unfortunately these thieves were back outside my house last night. My neighbour noticed these guys and went outside, this was 3:30am in the morning. They were under the car. What I don’t know is if the fact that I have a generic replacement had stopped them from taking my cat or the neighbour disturbed them. I am located SE London in Bromley. Beware!! 

I am nearby in SE9 and mine got cut off this week. I wonder if it's same gang - 2 white men with a Blue Audi. Apparently there's also an "Irish looking guy with a white pickup" caught on camera stealing one from a CRV. It's a plague around this area, multiple thefts recently, thieves caught on camera, including faces, their cars and registration and still no results from police. 

I am also thinking of getting a cheap metal one and relying on the fact it's worthless. Has anyone had their aftermarket/generic cat stolen yet? Is it worth putting a plate to protect a generic cat, or relying on the professionalism of the thieves enough? 

[billgatesisaconman]

17 hours ago, JoeJoe said:

I am nearby in SE9 and mine got cut off this week. I wonder if it's same gang - 2 white men with a Blue Audi. Apparently there's also an "Irish looking guy with a white pickup" caught on camera stealing one from a CRV. It's a plague around this area, multiple thefts recently, thieves caught on camera, including faces, their cars and registration and still no results from police. 

I am also thinking of getting a cheap metal one and relying on the fact it's worthless. Has anyone had their aftermarket/generic cat stolen yet? Is it worth putting a plate to protect a generic cat, or relying on the professionalism of the thieves enough? 

I have fitted a generic cat and I am relying on the fact its worthless ... in my opinion a cat fitted from Lexus is just not an option as this just perpetuates this crime so either this or fitting a straight pipe (if you can) appears to me to be the only way to ensure that these thefts will ever come to an end at least for the Rx ... cat locks cost way too much and have a large variety of problems ...

Although the police appear to be doing absolutely nothing about Catalytic converter thefts, these thefts still need to be reported by everyone , It appears its a big ask of the police forces to do anything about these thefts and increasing the number reported might eventually embarrass them into actually doing something, how else can we drag them away from making sure we all wear a mask and investigate real crime... lol

[Andre2000]

No doubt they are operating in SE London at this time. Am sure you and me are not the only ones. I hope that the generic metal CAT stays on the car, It may be that they realised it was worthless to them. Somewhere in this thread I posted where I purchased from (EBay) and a fitter in East London whom specialises in exhausts so any additional bits for pipes he needs will not be an issue. There was a ceramic and a metal Cat, I opted for the metal which supposed to be the better performing unit.
 

Fingers crossed they don’t come back! 

[andy woodman]

mine was cut off welded on straight pipe passed mot

[Barry14UK]

Lexus and I assume other brands presumably use these expensively filled cats to get maximum reduction in emmisions.  I wonder how much difference it makes to emmisions, noise and fuel ecomomy if the genuine article is replaced with a generic lacking the expensive innards or replacing with a straight pipe and just relying on the cats up front?

[Lydiamight]

Having replaced a stolen cat with a straight through pipe I cannot detect any difference in noise or fuel economy

[royoftherovers]

33 minutes ago, Barry14UK said:

Lexus and I assume other brands presumably use these expensively filled cats to get maximum reduction in emmisions.  I wonder how much difference it makes to emmisions, noise and fuel ecomomy if the genuine article is replaced with a generic lacking the expensive innards or replacing with a straight pipe and just relying on the cats up front?

Hybrids are not subject to emissions testing for M.O.T. purposes.

Several Members have reported replacing C.C. (which have been stolen) with straight through pipe and have passed their M.O.T. tests.

So, why not do as Barry says, but instead of seeking out generic items ,use pipe ?