Just a couple minutes and a cordless power saw, and you've got yourself some rhodium, platinum and palladium to sell. Get enough of it - and it's a fairly good payday. Last week metal exchanges were trading rhodium for $9,050 a troy ounce; platinum for $2,025 a troy ounce; and palladium for $446 a troy ounce. Even though there is just a small amount of these substances in your average catalytic converter - it's worth it to thieves because they hit multiple vehicles whenever possible.
So, what can be done?
If you've got a couple hundred dollars to spend, you can always contact American Welding Inc. to get a "CatClamp". $250.
Seems a little extreme doesn't it? Maybe if you've got a fleet of vehicles that need to be customized anyway (work trucks, etc) you can have your customization shop add the CatClamps as part of your package.
And that's not the only trend when it comes to precious metals. You may have noticed thefts of copper wire, tubing and plumbing products on the rise. Copper is trading at about $4 a pound, that doesn't seem like much - but when you've got a roll of wire from a construction site, you're set. I've even seen copper drainpipes stolen off of old buildings recently. In fact, locally we've got the thieves recruiting addicts to go get the copper, and bring it back to the thief to reduce his risk. I've seen trails marked with engineer tape through the woods leading to power substations where copper is stored.
It was just a few months ago that a whole section of copper wire was stolen OFF OF THE POLES in Durham. I think it was a cable company's line and service was out for a while when they got new wire in to fix it.
We're always telling people to park in areas with plenty of lighting and natural surveillance, and that advice is prudent for this as well. I think it may be worth considering making sure the natural surveillance you plan when designing parking areas includes a clear view under the vehicles too.
But basically, we need to adjust our reference to what we consider valuable targets - and include precious and semi-precious metals.
