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Old 06-23-2020, 03:27 PM   #1
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2001 E350 V10 - catalytic converter stolen~!

Hi All,

I woke up to the unfortunate realization that my van's catalytic converter had been cut out today. Has anyone dealt with this on the V10?

Is it ok to drive like this until I find a place to fix it?

Any Idea how much this might cost to replace?

Any good mechanics in the Sacramento area?

Thanks !

-Patrick

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Old 06-23-2020, 04:08 PM   #2
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Here's one for $250:

https://mufflerexpress.com/products/...caAjSOEALw_wcB


Probably going to get a check engine light for O2 sensor since the cat is missing, but should be ok. Any muffler shop should be able to fix it. Might be worth going straight there.
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Old 06-23-2020, 04:23 PM   #3
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That sucks! I'm in SF with a newly lifted 2002 V10, I feel even more vulnerable now to someone with a sawzall, 12 seconds and a drug habit. Especially after just watching a YouTube video of a guy (in a Honda Element) getting his cut out from under him, WHILE HE SLEPT!! Been thinking of ways to discourage/frustrate someone enough to look for another target.
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Old 06-23-2020, 09:50 PM   #4
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All I can say is.....Holy crap!! And the fact that metal recyclers actually pay these scroungers up to $50 per cat should be criminal, it’s just encouraging them to keep on doing it, and the word gets out. Do they think they’re coming by them legally?!?
At least they didn’t steel the van and it’s “only” a couple hundred bucks.
I fear that these reports of theft and vandalism out the Bay Area and other hot spots are going to get much worse, get yourselves a motion cam and an alarm with glass breakage sensors set to maximum
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Old 06-23-2020, 10:26 PM   #5
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Bummer!!!

Yes, you can drive without a short distance without the cat. Main concern would be all the fumes dumping under the body. It won't hurt the engine.

Beware that most aftermarket cats don't flow enough for the V10. They should all list the max displacement, and the cheaper ones usually are only good for sub-6.0L motors, and may not be CARB-compliant . I replaced mine 2 years ago, and the cat only was about $900. This was for a good aftermarket one that was carb-compliant.. A OEM one runs about $3,000.
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Old 06-23-2020, 11:33 PM   #6
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Yes, unfortunately, I had the same thing happen in Portland a couple months ago. Definitely made me question humanity for a couple days. Almost made me jump out of my seat when I started it up and was so loud. Our vans are an easy mark since you can almost sit under them and cut the cat out.

I was "lucky" enough that the thief cut inboard of the exhaust manifold and the muffler, so it was a fairly straight forward DIY job to replace. I called the Ford dealers and nobody could locate an OEM cat. I found one online, but like carringb said, it was super expensive. I ended up buying the only cat RockAuto sold for the van and it was about $350. Also had to buy the O2 sensor.

Link to cat here:
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo...1430677&jsn=13

Note that this would have been covered under my comprehensive insurance, so check into that if you have it. Since the parts from RockAuto were fairly inexpensive and the job easy, I went ahead and did it instead of paying the deductible to get it done at a shop.

I planned on making a steel plate to block cat and deter the next thieves and then do a write-up here on the forum.

Good luck, and sorry to hear. It really is dis-heartening.
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Old 06-23-2020, 11:51 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by REF View Post
All I can say is.....Holy crap!! And the fact that metal recyclers actually pay these scroungers up to $50 per cat should be criminal, it’s just encouraging them to keep on doing it, and the word gets out. Do they think they’re coming by them legally?!?

Exactly. Just walking along the sidewalk and found a cat lying there! I was even more dismayed when I searched for catalytic converter on Facebook marketplace and saw all the ads paying top dollar.
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Old 06-24-2020, 09:03 AM   #8
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Mine was stolen in 2018 along with 3 other v10 vans and trucks in our work parking lot.
I took it as a sign to build another custom v-banded exhaust and eliminate the cat. My tuner allows me to run without any codes and the engine is much happier. Smog is challenging, but at nearly $1k for a replacement I can get it passed by some buddies for nearly 8 years for the same value (and the van won't last that long at my current offroad rate).

Scott
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Old 06-24-2020, 09:23 AM   #9
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Covering up the cat with some sort of metal plate should be fairly easy, but I'd be concerned about trapping all that heat, those things get plenty hot. Perhaps a plate with lots of air circulation holes in it?
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Old 06-24-2020, 10:32 AM   #10
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Thanks for the input everyone! I ended up having a very loud drive over to a muffler shop this morning and they are holding it while I deal with my insurance company. I have comprehensive with a $0 deductible so hopefully they cover it. They mentioned they are seeing a huge uptick in Catalytic converter thefts in this area over the last few weeks.
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