![]() Photo by Mindy Schauer/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images. Converters are increasingly being stolen for the precious metals they contain. The free public service, sponsored by local police departments, aimed to deter thefts. As part of the exhaust system on gas powered cars, hybrids and trucks, catalytic converters play a key role in reducing air pollution from cars., which is why the EPA made it a requirement for all cars to have starting in 1975.ĮxperTec Automotive technician Juan Martinez etches a catalytic converter with a license plate number in Huntington Beach, California. Since being introduced and installed on new cars in 1975, a catalytic converter turns the toxic fumes from a car’s engine into less harmful exhaust. Here’s a look at how they work, which cars are being targeted and how to protect your own vehicle. There’s a chance you may not have known what a catalytic converter is, why they’re so valuable, where they are in your car and how critical a role they play in your car’s exhaust system. Last year, lawmakers in 26 states have introduced legislation in an effort to curb these thefts, with 10 states signing new laws into place. Stealing a catalytic converter can take as little as 30 seconds, and the parts have continued to remain prime targets for theft thanks to elevated prices on the precious metals they contain. Across the country, reported catalytic converter thefts have skyrocketed in the last few years.Īnnual thefts of the auto part, which is tucked along the exhaust system to turn fumes from a car’s engine into less harmful gasses, jumped from 1,298 in 2018 to 14,433 in 2020, according to data compiled by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) - an increase of more than 1,000 percent.
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