5 ms·

Is that a fun way of putting it or does that actually happen?

by caturopath 5y ago

danlugo92 5y ago
It does happen.
zitterbewegung 5y ago
Its in the article that it can be that fast.
- caturopath 5y ago
  My question wasn't whether it was fast enough, it's whether it happens. There are so many other places cars are parked that seem so much better choices, so I was asking about whether it actually happens rather than if it were feasible.
  - zitterbewegung 5y ago
    At my former workplace in the north suburbs of Chicago it happened to a few cars. I think they were on the edges of the parking lot.
    - caturopath 5y ago
      Yeah, at a workplace makes more sense than a gas station. Even if you can be in and out in under a minute, you might as well go somewhere someone has left their car for hours most likely. (All my friends who've had cats stolen I can think of had them stolen when parked at home.)
      - erik_seaberg 5y ago
        If a car has been parked for a while, the thieves can handle parts at ambient temperature rather than 900 °F.
        zitterbewegung 5y ago
        Well that’s true unless it’s -10 F in Chicago.
NikolaeVarius 5y ago
Its a thin pipe. 60 seconds of work.
rmetzler 5y ago
You can find videos of these on youtube. It's really possible to do in less than a minute and it depends on whether the thieve(s) jack up the car or not. Here is one video of a rather dangerous job, but the removing of the cat takes less than 40s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVKFNhuEkN8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVKFNhuEkN8 Thieve goes under the car at 2:30
- mygoodaccount 5y ago
  Haha great comment section: "Why can't a hydraulic jack fail when you want it to?"
- caturopath 5y ago
  That's parked in a driveway, not at a gas station -- my question was trying to get at whether the gas station thing was literal or just a colorful way of emphasizing just how quick they can operate.
jcrawfordor 5y ago
Depends on the vehicle. Late '90s, early '00s trucks and SUVs, and still some new ones, all you need is a battery sawzall and you can reach it lying on the ground. Newer vehicles and smaller vehicles it tends to be harder to get at, thief may need a jack which will slow them down and require carrying more stuff around. A lot of newer vehicles are putting at least the first-stage catalytic converter(s) (for those with two-stage systems) closer to the exhaust manifold, more in the wheel well space like where the oil filter is on Ford light diesels. I'm not sure what all the motivations are for this but it does make it a lot harder to steal as you kind of need to take the wheel off and sometimes more to get access. Of course that might just lead some thieves to take an even more destructive approach but I at least haven't seen it myself.

Is that a fun way of putting it or does that actually happen?

danlugo92 5y ago

It does happen.

zitterbewegung 5y ago

Its in the article that it can be that fast.

caturopath 5y ago
My question wasn't whether it was fast enough, it's whether it happens. There are so many other places cars are parked that seem so much better choices, so I was asking about whether it actually happens rather than if it were feasible.
- zitterbewegung 5y ago
  At my former workplace in the north suburbs of Chicago it happened to a few cars. I think they were on the edges of the parking lot.
  - caturopath 5y ago
    Yeah, at a workplace makes more sense than a gas station. Even if you can be in and out in under a minute, you might as well go somewhere someone has left their car for hours most likely. (All my friends who've had cats stolen I can think of had them stolen when parked at home.)
    - erik_seaberg 5y ago
      If a car has been parked for a while, the thieves can handle parts at ambient temperature rather than 900 °F.
      - zitterbewegung 5y ago
        Well that’s true unless it’s -10 F in Chicago.

NikolaeVarius 5y ago

Its a thin pipe. 60 seconds of work.

rmetzler 5y ago

You can find videos of these on youtube. It's really possible to do in less than a minute and it depends on whether the thieve(s) jack up the car or not. Here is one video of a rather dangerous job, but the removing of the cat takes less than 40s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVKFNhuEkN8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVKFNhuEkN8 Thieve goes under the car at 2:30

mygoodaccount 5y ago
Haha great comment section: "Why can't a hydraulic jack fail when you want it to?"
caturopath 5y ago
That's parked in a driveway, not at a gas station -- my question was trying to get at whether the gas station thing was literal or just a colorful way of emphasizing just how quick they can operate.

jcrawfordor 5y ago

Depends on the vehicle. Late '90s, early '00s trucks and SUVs, and still some new ones, all you need is a battery sawzall and you can reach it lying on the ground. Newer vehicles and smaller vehicles it tends to be harder to get at, thief may need a jack which will slow them down and require carrying more stuff around. A lot of newer vehicles are putting at least the first-stage catalytic converter(s) (for those with two-stage systems) closer to the exhaust manifold, more in the wheel well space like where the oil filter is on Ford light diesels. I'm not sure what all the motivations are for this but it does make it a lot harder to steal as you kind of need to take the wheel off and sometimes more to get access. Of course that might just lead some thieves to take an even more destructive approach but I at least haven't seen it myself.