Parting out my 2002 Gen 1 Prius - Why am I being offered so much for the Calalytic converter?

There is a secondary market for those in California.

Repair shops are not allowed to use aftermarket catalysts out there. They must use original Toyota parts. A new one from the Toyota parts counter is prohibitively expensive- so there is a market for functional secondhand units.

 

The "catalytic converter" is more than just the cat converter. The whole assembly (about 6 feet long) contains the valve assembly which controls the just-after-startup emissions, and there is NO third party manufacturer for that part.
Toyota wants about $1000 for that assembly (if you can find one).
For some folks, Eastern Catalytic offers an almost-drop-in catalytic converter for Gen I Prius. Requires some handiwork.

 

IMHO, I doubt it's for resale. There are people who do nothing but scavenge cats. Any ad for parting out a car will make your phone ring off the wall. Most are looking to rip you - they'll ask about the "exhaust system," even claim to have a similar car, looking for the naive person who doesn't know.

And the sites that you find online are mostly the same - they're trying to offer you as little as possible, and figure most people don't have a clue what they're worth. I didn't when I sold mine. Got all those calls, and figured I better research. Called the companies I found online, and got copy-and-paste responses telling me to send pics of the cat with part numbers for a price quote. But, when you looked at their estimated price list, they were not that high.

Sold the first one to a guy for $450, on the condition that he come take it off the car. Showed up in a Ryder rental truck, the back end filled with cats. Said he worked for a big company in Wisconsin and came down here to pick up cats from the area dismantlers, and grabbed any others he could find.

Sold the next one for $600 a few weeks later, and realized I'd be scammed by the first guy. Second guy, came by and took it off too. They didn't want the rest of the exhaust at all, and both tried to just take the cats, but ended up taking that whole section because it was easier.

But, that was a few months ago, and I know gold has gone up, so maybe the other metals have too.

 

You did well...
the retail price for a new Prius exact-fit from Eastern Catalytic is around $250...

 

Hmm, who are you talking to? The price of a new replacement doesn't have anything to do with the value of a cat on the market. The replacements don't have the precious metals. No one will give you much for a replacement cat, they only buy the OEM cats.

Not sure, but I do not that our cars actually have two cats, which adds to their value.

 

RL, I addressed the reply to you...
the absence of precious metals in replacement cats may be news to Eastern Catalytic.
It's entirely possible that the OEM cats have more PMs than replacements, but still...
Here's a link to the Eastern Catalytic product page:

Direct Fit Catalytic Converters | APC Automotive Technologies

Platinum prices bounce around a lot, so what you get for a cat on any day may depend on the world market.
Here's a link to how one ounce of platinum has bounced from $1000 to $600; now about $800/oz in the past year.
Platinum Price Today | Price of Platinum Per Ounce | 24 Hour Spot Chart | KITCO

 

I'm just using common sense. If scrappers will give me $600 for a cat, and a aftermarket can be had for $250, there must be something about the OEM cat that makes it more valuable. Since the only reason scrapped cats have value at all is PMs, it makes sense that they have more PMs that the aftermarket. I've also read that is the case when I researched this a few months back.

Here in Texas, the dismantlers don't even sell used exhaust systems. One told me it was illegal, but it's probably also because they can sell the cats very quickly. Why sit on something for months waiting for a buyer to inquire, when you instantly recover a good chunk of your investment in a wrecked car by selling the cat?

 

I got two Prii right now that I bought for less than I can get for the cats.

 

RL, I have learned a lot about cat converters and their 'second life' doing a bit of digging around, based on this thread. Since certain OEM cat converters (used) will fetch $900, while aftermarket cats (depending) go for low double digits, it's clear that the economics of their designs are playing out in the secondary market. No wonder they were being stolen right off the cars some time back...

 

exactly. And the OP saw the other phenomena - scam websites top the Google results. They target naive people who know their cats are worth something, but don't have a clue how much. I gave up looking for a legitimate company, but there has to be some where the locals sell your cat. Wish I could remember the company in Wisconsin that first buyer worked for. I think it was one of the biggies.