Top 10 Most Popular Cars Among Catalytic Converter Thieves In NY

Thieves in New York have been pretty busy swiping catalytic converters all across the state. You might be driving one of the popular vehicles that they target.

New York State changed the law to better track stolen catalytic converters. As of April 15, 2023, all new motor vehicle dealers and qualified dealers in New York must:

- Keep catalytic converter etching kits in stock.
- Offer catalytic converter etching kit(s) to any person purchasing a new motor vehicle.
- Charge no more than the dealer cost for such etching kit(s).
- Labor cost can be charged, consistent with DMV regulation.

How Much Money Do Thieves Get For A Catalytic Converter

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According to NerdWallet, catalytic converter thefts are low risk, since they don't take much time to steal and can be high reward, netting a few hundred dollars,

Thieves can steal this antipollution device in a matter of minutes and sell it to scrap metal dealers for several hundred dollars for the precious metals it contains.

Conversely, the replacement cost of a catalytic converter for unsuspecting car owners can be up to a couple of thousand dollars, according to CarBrain,

For most vehicles, the average cost of a catalytic converter repair is between $945 and $2475 including parts and labor. The catalytic converter cost itself can be up to $2250 of that.

Do You Drive A Vehicle Catalytic Converter Thieves Target?

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According to CarFax, these 10 vehicles are the most popular vehicles thieves target in the Northeast to steal catalytic converters:

Catalytic converter theft has been a serious threat to car owners for years, but it turns out there have been far more incidents than previously reported, new Carfax data shows – as many as 153,000 in the U.S. in 2022. Carfax data scientists came up with that estimate after a deep dive into catalytic converter replacements from millions of service records.