CARFAX estimates more than 137,000 catalytic converters were stolen across the United States in 2025, with thousands more already reported missing in early 2026. Law enforcement in multiple states is warning of a fresh surge, driven in part by a dramatic rise in the value of the precious metals hidden inside those emission-control devices.
The New Target List
The top ten vehicles most frequently hit by catalytic converter thieves nationwide, according to CARFAX, are the Ford F-150 pickup truck, Hyundai Tucson SUV, Ford Explorer SUV, Ram 2500 heavy-duty pickup truck, Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck, Chevrolet Traverse SUV, Ram 3500 heavy-duty pickup truck, Ford EcoSport SUV, Ford Expedition SUV, and Chevrolet Trax SUV.
The list is striking for what it doesn’t include: no Prius, no hybrid-only nameplate at the top. What it does include are the backbone vehicles of American roads — full-size and heavy-duty pickups, three-row family haulers, and compact SUVs that sit in driveways and parking lots across the country every night.
“There are a wide range of vehicles impacted, and most of these are pickup trucks and SUVs, which tend to sit higher off the ground, making it easier for thieves to get in and out,” said Patrick Olsen, Editor-in-Chief at CARFAX.
The geometry matters. A thief with a battery-powered reciprocating saw can slide under a lifted F-150 or a Ram 2500 dually in seconds, cut the converter free, and disappear before anyone notices. Ground clearance, once a selling point for capability and comfort, has become a liability.
Precious Metals Are Driving the Crime
Catalytic converters contain platinum, palladium, and rhodium — rare metals that act as catalysts to neutralize toxic exhaust gases. Those metals are also extraordinarily valuable, and their prices have been climbing.
Rhodium, one of the most potent catalysts in the converter and among the rarest metals on earth, has more than doubled in value over the past year, reaching approximately $11,000 per ounce as of March 2026. While that remains well below the staggering peak of roughly $30,000 per ounce reached in 2021, the renewed price trajectory is drawing thieves back to the crime.
A standard catalytic converter might fetch a thief anywhere from $25 to $300 at a scrapyard or through a black-market buyer. But converters from hybrid vehicles — which process more exhaust and therefore contain higher concentrations of precious metals — can sell for up to $1,400 each, Olsen noted.
That economic calculus explains both why hybrids were the original prime target and why the crime has now metastasized across the broader vehicle population. At today’s prices, virtually any converter is worth taking.
Law Enforcement Is Seeing the Surge Firsthand
The data is being confirmed on the street. In Maryland, the Sykesville Police Department recently confirmed at least two drivers were victimized within weeks of each other — a local echo of what agencies across the country are reporting.
“Thieves stripped these catalytic converters in a matter of minutes, leaving the car owners to face thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket repair bills,” said Cpl. Annelise Barrett of the Sykesville Police Department. “We are seeing a noticeable bump in these incidents, not only in our area, but in the surrounding cities as well.”
The financial damage to victims can be severe. Replacement costs for a catalytic converter can reach $3,000, and for drivers without comprehensive insurance coverage, that bill lands entirely out of pocket. The theft itself takes minutes. The recovery — the claims, the rental car, the repair shop wait — can take weeks.
What Owners Can Do
Law enforcement and vehicle security experts recommend a layered approach to deterrence. The core principle: thieves look for easy targets, and anything that slows them down may cause them to move on to the next vehicle.
Parking in a locked garage whenever possible remains the most effective protection. For those who park on the street or in lots, choosing well-lit spaces with high foot traffic makes a vehicle a less attractive target. Motion-sensor lights and a vehicle alarm with heightened sensitivity add another layer of friction.
Physical deterrents — metal cages or converter locks that bolt around the device — have proven effective. They do not make theft impossible, but the additional time and noise required to defeat them often discourages thieves who are operating under time pressure.
One low-tech but potentially high-impact measure: engraving the vehicle identification number directly onto the catalytic converter. If law enforcement, a scrapyard, or a pawn shop encounters a stolen converter with a legible VIN, they can trace it back to the victim — and potentially to the thief.
The Broader Picture
The resurgence of catalytic converter theft is a reminder that vehicle crime often tracks commodity prices as closely as it tracks law enforcement pressure. When rhodium spiked to $30,000 per ounce in 2021, the crime exploded. When prices fell, so did some of the activity. Now, with prices rising again and thieves apparently recalibrating their operations, the vehicles in the greatest danger are no longer the outliers — they are the mainstream.
The Ford F-150 is the best-selling vehicle in America. The Chevrolet Silverado is not far behind. If those are now the top targets for converter theft, the problem has moved from a niche concern for hybrid owners into a mainstream risk for tens of millions of American drivers.