Best catalytic converter anti-theft device, Gen 2?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by bnprius, Nov 6, 2021.

  1. srellim234

    srellim234 Senior Member

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    We had the top of the line Miller Cat Shield installed on our Prius and wound up taking it off. Our mechanic spent over a week trying everything he could think of to get it to stop rattling before he even allowed us to take it home. We finally couldn't take the rattling anymore so now the shield just sits propped up against the wall of the garage, waiting for us to either figure out something to do with it or donate it to one of the local thrift shops and make it someone else's headache. Nice idea but a total waste of money.
     
  2. bnprius

    bnprius Our Prius at 200K

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    Vanessa,

    Thanks for your comment on my post from November 2021. Back then I decided to go with MillerCAT. It did seem to solve the theft problem, since my new OEM cat has not been stolen again. This, despite frequent ongoing reports of cat thefts in our area (Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti MI).

    However, the original MillerCAT rattled against the engine, despite the Toyota dealer having installed it carefully following MillerCAT's instructions. The dealer was able to bend out the shield's louvers, which seemed to cure the problem, until it started up again. That time, the dealer made a video showing that it "popped" up & down. When I sent this video to MillerCAT, they offered to replace the shield with a completely redesigned one, for free. Of course, the costs for taking off the old one and installing the new were covered by me.

    The redesigned MillerCAT is a huge improvment over their original design. It has never rattled, not once.

    Bill in Michigan
     
  3. bnprius

    bnprius Our Prius at 200K

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    Srellim234, here's a quote from my reply to Vanessa:

    After our cat was stolen from our Prius in 2021, I had our Toyota dealer install the best MillerCAT stainless steel shield for the Gen 2 Prius.

    However, the original MillerCAT rattled against the engine, despite the Toyota dealer having installed it carefully following MillerCAT's instructions. The dealer was able to bend out the shield's louvers, which seemed to cure the problem, until it started up again. That time, the dealer made a video showing that it "popped" up & down. When I sent this video to MillerCAT, they offered to replace the shield with a completely redesigned one, for free. Of course, the costs for taking off the old one and installing the new were covered by me.

    The redesigned MillerCAT is a huge improvment over their original design. It has never rattled, not once.

    I recommend that you call MillerCAT and ask them to send you the completely redesigned shield--for FREE. You can tell them that they did this for me, Bill Nolting in Ypsilanti MI.
     
  4. Georgina Rudkus

    Georgina Rudkus Senior Member

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    Any kid in high school shop learns that a flat sheet of metal will flop around like a flag in the win.

    Adding longitudinal folds or crowning the sheet like they do with body panels on cars gives the sheet metal structure and rigidity.

    Simply bending three longitudinal radial flows with the lowest part under the exhaust pipe of cat totally eliminates contact from vibration as the car is driven.

    I did this with the flat cat shield that I put on my Prius v. The same can easily be done with ant Gen 2 cat shield.

    212305_IMG_1237.jpg
     
  5. MufflerTech

    MufflerTech New Member

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    Hey all! I may have an additional solution to your cat being stolen through our business Muffler Tech in Sacramento. We now fabricate and sell Locking Exhaust Bolts ( attaches up near Exhaust Manifold and down by rear muffler) Over the years and evolution of helping customer protect their own parts this has been a game changer. You can check out this helpful video to see how they work, what they look like and where they are located. Give us a call or IM me if you need a set. ( Set or 4 locking bolts with Key = $150 shipped anywhere in the 48 states)
     
  6. Mr. Marty

    Mr. Marty Junior Member

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    Fast forward 2.5 years, my daughter's cat was stolen again last night from a crowded area parked on the street near Hartford CT. I thought that stealing cats was a thing of the past, but evidently there is still demand for my poor little Prius's palladium/rhodium/curium pellet cache. Going to have to revive the temp fix before I get a cheap aftermarket cat to reinstall. Glad I still had access to this thread.
     
  7. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    You lucky your not in CA.:(:mad:
    IMHO: any cheap visible plating/armor down there should deter most CAT thieves. That along with a cheap motion alarm - they need to jack up the car to get to it. So if the visible armor doesn't deter them, maybe a car horn & flashing lights going off as soon as they start jacking up the car. I used a $10 12VDC motorcycle alarm and spliced it into my horn and parking lamp relays. The thieves should go looking for easier targets at this point; unless they don't care if they get caught - three hots and a cot.:sleep:
     
  8. MufflerTech

    MufflerTech New Member

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    Yeah, the CA smog is pretty intense.