Chevrolet catalytic converters run about $30 to $400 for one original unit in 2026. Silverado 2500 and 3500 units lead at $200 to $400, Silverado 1500 V8 units bring $125 to $300 each, and a Cruze or Cavalier unit brings $40 to $150. Buyers price these by GM trade class rather than by model name, and the sections below explain which class yours falls into.
Ask a buyer what your Chevy converter is worth and you may hear “that’s a Large GM” or “that’s low grade” before you hear a number. This is not evasion. General Motors built so many converters across so many divisions that the trade stopped listing them by vehicle decades ago and started sorting them by class instead. Learn the four class names on this page and you will follow the whole conversation.
Why Chevy prices come with GM labels
A scrap price list has to cover thousands of converters without becoming unusable. The industry solved this by grouping units that assay similarly. Domestic converters from Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Saturn and Hummer all fall into GM grades, because they came off related platforms with related catalyst formulations.
The four labels you will meet most often, from the top down:
Large GM. Units off larger General Motors trucks, vans and SUVs. Physically bulkier, often holding multiple ceramic bricks or foil sections inside one shell. Silverado, Tahoe, Suburban, Express.
GM Medium. Mid-size platforms: TrailBlazer, Colorado, Equinox.
GM Regular. The ordinary passenger car unit. Impala, Malibu, older S10.
GM Low Grade. Smaller four-cylinder units with lighter loadings. Cavalier, Cobalt, Cruze, Aveo.
A fifth label, bead, describes construction rather than size, and it gets its own section below because it catches people out.
Chevrolet catalytic converter scrap prices by model
Model Years Notes Indicative range (USD) Measurement Model years covered What sets the unit apart Buyer quotes for one complete unit, honeycomb intact Silverado 2500 and 3500 HD 2000 to 2018 Large GM class, two units; the top Chevy pair $200 to $400 Silverado 1500 (V8) 1999 to 2018 Large GM class, two units; range is per unit $125 to $300 Duramax diesel 2001 to 2018 Diesel oxidation catalyst, plus a separate DPF on later years $150 to $400 Tahoe, Suburban and Avalanche 2000 to 2018 Large GM class, two units $125 to $300 Express and Astro vans 1996 to 2018 Large GM class, van body $100 to $275 Corvette and Camaro V8 1997 to 2018 Large GM, two units $100 to $275 TrailBlazer and Envoy 2002 to 2009 GM medium to large $100 to $250 S10 and Blazer 1994 to 2005 GM regular class $60 to $200 Colorado and Canyon 2004 to 2018 GM medium class $75 to $200 Equinox and Captiva 2005 to 2018 GM medium class $75 to $200 Impala, Malibu and Monte Carlo (V6) 2000 to 2018 GM regular class $60 to $200 Cruze and Sonic 2008 to 2018 GM low grade to regular $40 to $150 Cavalier, Cobalt and HHR 1995 to 2011 GM low grade class $40 to $150 Aveo and Spark 2004 to 2018 GM low grade; the smallest Chevy units $30 to $125 Bead type (vintage GM) 1975 to early 1990s Ceramic beads, not honeycomb; large but light on metal $40 to $150 Manifold pre-cat, any model Various Small unit cast into the exhaust manifold $20 to $100 Aftermarket replacement, any model All years Universal unit, trace metal $5 to $50
Ranges are compiled from published core-buyer class lists, catalyst exchange transaction data and current scrap guides; they are not a live per-code feed. The notes column shows which GM class each model normally falls into. Every figure is for one complete unit, and V8 trucks carry two.
The bead converter, and the mistake it causes
If your Chevy dates from the late 1970s through the early 1990s, look at the shell. A bead converter is filled with thousands of small ceramic pellets rather than a honeycomb brick. They are often physically large, which is exactly why sellers overestimate them: size suggests value, but the precious metal loading per unit of volume is lower than a modern honeycomb unit. Expect $40 to $150, not truck money.
There is a second trap here, and it is worth reading twice. On a honeycomb converter, a rattle when you shake it means the substrate has broken up and the price drops. On a bead converter, a soft sand-like sound is completely normal — that is simply the beads moving, and it means the unit is still full. Applying the honeycomb rule to a bead cat will make you think a perfectly good unit is scrap.
One more rule: never open a bead converter to pour the beads out. Buyers price the sealed unit, and an emptied shell loses most of its value.
Chevy prices around the world
Platinum, palladium and rhodium settle in US dollars, so the metal inside a Chevy unit carries the same value in every market. The currency and the depth of the local buyer pool are what change. The table converts the Chevrolet span, from an Aveo unit at the bottom to a Silverado HD unit at the top, into each market’s money at today’s rate.
Market Currency Unit Equivalent range United States USD per unit $30.00 to 400.00 United Kingdom GBP per unit £22.19 to 295.89 Canada CAD per unit C$41.49 to 553.23 Australia AUD per unit A$41.63 to 555.07 Germany EUR per unit €25.83 to 344.43 India INR per unit ₹2,836 to 37,819 Bangladesh BDT per unit ৳3,688 to 49,171 United Arab Emirates AED per unit AED110.18 to 1,469 Saudi Arabia SAR per unit SAR112.50 to 1,500 Turkey TRY per unit ₺1,454 to 19,384 South Africa ZAR per unit R478.72 to 6,383 China CNY per unit CN¥201.58 to 2,688
These conversions are the metal-value anchor rather than a local quote. The United States and United Kingdom settle near it; markets that export units for refining, including Bangladesh and India, come in below it once freight and the exporter’s margin are deducted.
Duramax and diesel: a different market entirely
A Duramax converter is not a Large GM unit with a diesel badge. Diesel oxidation catalysts use mostly platinum, carry little palladium and essentially no rhodium, and hold roughly 2 to 3 grams of precious metal against 10 to 15 grams in a comparable petrol unit. They are priced on a separate line of every buyer list.
On 2007 and later Duramax trucks there is also a diesel particulate filter, a physically larger component fitted downstream. It is a different part with a different price. If a buyer quotes you one figure for “the diesel exhaust,” ask which component that covers, because it rarely covers both.
Getting classed fairly at the yard
Class assignment is where money is won or lost on a Chevy, so make it easy to get right.
Photograph the unit from directly above and from the side, so its size and shape are both visible. Include any stamped numbers on the shell. State the vehicle, the engine and the year, since a 4.8 Silverado and a 2.2 Cavalier sit three classes apart. If a buyer assigns a class that seems low against the table above, ask what makes it that grade — a fair buyer will explain the size, the internal construction or the code, and an unfair one will not.
Then check the date on the quote. Every class list re-marks when the three metals move, and precious metal prices have risen through 2026 rather than fallen, so a stale quote runs low.
Common mistakes
- Reading a bead converter’s sand-like sound as damage, when it means the opposite.
- Emptying a bead unit before selling, which removes most of its value.
- Quoting one converter on a V8 truck that carries two.
- Assuming a Duramax unit prices like a petrol Silverado unit.
- Selling the diesel oxidation catalyst and the particulate filter as a single item.
- Accepting a class label without asking what puts the unit in that grade.
Questions people actually ask
What is a Large GM catalytic converter?
It is the trade class for units off larger General Motors trucks, vans and SUVs — Silverado, Tahoe, Suburban, Express and their GMC twins. They are bulkier than passenger units and often hold multiple ceramic sections in one shell, which is why they price at $125 to $300 each.
Do GMC and Chevy converters price the same?
Usually yes. A Sierra and a Silverado, or a Yukon and a Tahoe, are the same platform with different badges, and both land in the same GM class. Quote the class and the engine rather than the badge.
Is a Chevy converter worth less than a Toyota or Honda one?
Per unit at the small end, generally yes — a Cruze unit sits below a comparable Toyota Corolla unit, since foreign OEM units typically carry heavier loadings. At the large end the picture reverses, and a Silverado HD pair beats anything on the Honda list.
Figures on this page are indicative buyer ranges for complete, uncut original units and are not offers to buy. Converter types, codes and selling rules are covered on the main catalytic converter price page.
Frequently asked questions
How much is a Chevy catalytic converter worth as scrap?
Between roughly $30 and $400 for one original unit in 2026. Aveo and Spark units run $30 to $125, Cruze and Cavalier units $40 to $150, Impala and Malibu units $60 to $200, Silverado 1500 V8 units $125 to $300 each, and Silverado 2500 or 3500 units $200 to $400.
What does Large GM mean on a catalytic converter price list?
It is the trade class for scrap OEM converters removed from larger General Motors trucks, vans and SUVs. These units are physically bulkier and often contain multiple ceramic cores or foil sections in one shell, which places them well above GM Regular and GM Low Grade units.
What is a bead catalytic converter and what is it worth?
A bead converter is filled with thousands of small ceramic pellets instead of a honeycomb brick, and was fitted to GM vehicles from the late 1970s into the early 1990s. They look large but carry less precious metal than their size suggests, typically bringing $40 to $150.
My Chevy converter rattles — is it broken?
It depends on the type. On a honeycomb converter, rattling means the substrate has broken up and the value drops sharply. On a bead converter, a soft sand-like sound is normal and simply means the beads are still inside, so the unit is intact.
Is a Duramax catalytic converter worth more than a petrol Silverado one?
Not usually. Diesel oxidation catalysts use mostly platinum with little palladium and essentially no rhodium, holding about 2 to 3 grams of precious metal against 10 to 15 grams in a petrol unit. They sit on a separate line of the price list, at roughly $150 to $400.
How many catalytic converters does a Chevy Silverado have?
Most V8 Silverados carry two, one per exhaust bank, each worth $125 to $300 on the 1500 and $200 to $400 on the 2500 and 3500. Because the range is per unit, a single truck commonly holds $250 to $800 in converters.