Bob got in our 17-year-old Prius to go to work this morning, and it sounded like a monster truck. Clearly, something was wrong. He drove straight to the dealership, where he was told that our catalytic converter had been stolen!
I wondered why anyone would steal a part from a car that old. Well, it turns out that 2004-2009 Priuses have catalytic converters with more precious metals in them than other cars. The guy at the Toyota dealership told my husband they’re getting a lot of these. My mom’s much newer and nicer car, not a Prius, was parked in our driveway at the time and was apparently not touched.
The catalytic converter was stolen sometime between 6 pm and 8 am. The car was locked and parked directly in front of our house, and we didn’t hear a thing — though now I’m wondering if noises I thought were normal, innocent sounds might not have been.
Bob called the police and insurance company as soon as he got to work this morning. But for now, we’re stuck with a $1,700 bill to have a new catalytic converter installed.
I’ve warned neighbors that those who have older Priuses they haven’t used in a few days, might want to check to see if their catalytic converters are still there.
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