I found a site claiming that a catalytic converter can carry b/t 3-7 ounces of platinum per converter. According to this site(wired.com), platinum is going at a rate of 2075 dollars per oz. This means you would at least have 6225 and up to 14 and a half thousand dollars if you could harvest the platinum purely. The next question is how do you get the platinum in a catalytic converter out of it to get this reward. Stolen catty's go for 200, but I'd rather not go that route. The site also mentione other metals involved in the production of converters such as rhodium and palladium are going for 445 and 7300 an ounce. I might have to recant on that whole not theiving idea.== Answer ==
There are usually about 3 grams of platinum in a catalytic converter. There are 31.1 grams in an ounce. Platinum is at $2000/ounce so you can figure right at $200 worth. Please note manufacturers are starting to use other materials so you may have very little, if any, platinum.
There are 28 grams per ounce not 31.1.
CORRECTIONS TO YOUR ANSWER
In every Kg of honetcomb which is the filter you find on average 1.5g of platinum (Pt), 0.5g of palladium (Pd) and 0.1 rhodium (Rh). Some catalytic converters have a heavy honeycomb while others are light depends on the engine size, if the engine is big car companies tend to use a bigger honeycomb. Regarding the ounce the internation ounce weight is 31.1g but the US ounce weight is 28g.
***CORRECTIONS TO YOUR ANSWER****
There are in fact 31.1 grams to a TROY OUNCE, which is the measurement used for precious metals. There are usually between 3 to 7 grams per catalytic converter, which is coated on a honeycomb ceramic substrate. There can be up to 15 grams of platinum in large truck catalytic converters.
*Clarification*
There are two types of converters, ones with the honycomb structures, and ones with platinum-coated pellets. The pellets are easy to harvest, but if you're going to havest them, make sure they're your own!
