Mitsubishi catalytic converters scrap from about $16 to $383, with most Lancer and Outlander units falling between $67 and $229. The high payers are specific: the 2.4-litre unit shared between the Lancer and Outlander has reached $274, and Montero gasoline units run to $383. That is roughly three times the $101 US national average across all converters on 21 August 2026.
| Grade / Item | Low | High | Unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lancer (typical) | $16 | $209 | USD/unit |
| Lancer / Outlander 2.4 | $93 | $274 | USD/unit |
| Outlander | $18 | $229 | USD/unit |
| Eclipse (per unit) | $80 | $160 | USD/unit |
| Montero / Pajero gas | $57 | $383 | USD/unit |
| Montero diesel | $113 | $225 | USD/unit |
| Country | Typical Range | Per Tonne | Cur. |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $50 – $450 /unit (typical OEM) | — | USD |
| Canada | C$65 – C$600 /unit | — | CAD |
| United Kingdom | £40 – £350 /unit | — | GBP |
| Germany / EU | €45 – €400 /unit | — | EUR |
| Australia | A$75 – A$650 /unit | — | AUD |
| India | ₹4,000 – ₹35,000 /unit | — | INR |
| UAE / Dubai | 180 – 1,600 AED /unit | — | AED |
The honest version of the high-payer claim
Mitsubishi has a reputation in scrap circles as a brand that sometimes pays above its weight. That is half true, and the distinction matters when you are holding one.
Mitsubishi is not a high-payer brand across the board. No buyer price list reviewed for this article grades Mitsubishi as a premium category the way Honda O2 high grade or the exotic and torpedo grades are graded. Base Mirage and small Lancer units bottom out at $16–$28, which is scrap-floor territory.
What is true is that a handful of specific Mitsubishi units punch well above the foreign small grade they get sorted into. The 2.4 Lancer and Outlander unit at $274 and the Montero V6 at up to $383 both beat the published foreign large category price of $210 from 17 August 2026. If a buyer eyeballs one of those as a generic small foreign cat at $30–$105, you are being underpaid by a wide margin.
So the working rule is: Mitsubishi units are worth identifying by number rather than by size, because the spread within the brand is roughly 24 to 1 from bottom to top.
Values by model
| Model | Gasoline | Ceramic | Diesel | DPF | Data date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancer | $16–$209 | $16–$209 | n/a | n/a | 2026 |
| Outlander | $18–$173 | $18–$229 | $25–$229 | $25–$110 | 23 Jan 2025 |
| Montero / Pajero | $57–$383 | $57–$383 | $113–$225 | n/a | 6 Feb 2025 |
Lancer
The Lancer spans a wide value band because the engine range is wide. Recorded per-unit maximums:
- Lancer 2.4 / Outlander shared unit — $274. The best number in the Lancer catalogue.
- Lancer X — $93 to $131, depending on the specific listing.
- Lancer 2.0i — $114.
- Lancer VII CS 1.6 16V — $67.
- Lancer 9 — $28. The floor.
The gap between a Lancer 9 unit at $28 and a Lancer 2.4 unit at $274 is the whole argument for reading the stamp before you sell.
Outlander
Outlander units cluster tighter. The gasoline range tops at $173 and the ceramic range at $229. A 2022 trade write-up on second and third generation Outlanders put the main converter at up to $280 from a recycling company and pre-cats at $60–$80 each. That same source laid out the payout ladder plainly, and it still holds:
| Who you sell to | Typical Outlander main cat offer |
|---|---|
| Recycling company | Up to $280 |
| Reseller or middleman | Up to $200 |
| Local scrapyard | About $125 |
| Exhaust shop, as a trade-in credit | About $100 off a replacement |
Those are 2022 figures and the metal market has moved since, so treat the ladder as a ratio rather than a price. The point is that the lowest offer is roughly 45 percent of the highest for the identical part.
Eclipse
Eclipse values are modest per unit but add up. A 2022 assessment put recycler offers at $80–$160 per converter. Most Eclipses carry two converters, which puts a complete set at roughly $320. The same source warned that some buyers open at about $30 on the assumption the seller has not checked. Against an OEM replacement cost above $1,500, a $30 offer is not a serious one.
Because Eclipse figures come from a 2022 source and no current per-unit data surfaced, treat these as historical reference points, not live quotes.
Montero and Pajero
The strongest Mitsubishi gasoline numbers. The V6 units run $57–$383. Diesel Montero units run $113–$225, which is unusually strong for a diesel category that is otherwise near worthless.
Reading a Mitsubishi converter
Mitsubishi is the odd one out on identification, and this trips up people used to Toyota or Honda stamps.
The short body code
Mitsubishi converters carry very short serial codes, typically only two or three characters, stamped near or around the Mitsubishi logo. Buyer guides list examples such as AHE, AV, YQ, 8Y, T2, Z3, X2 and ZS.
Two rules follow from that. First, the Mitsubishi three-diamond logo is usually centred on the heat shield, and the serial is near it — so do not remove the heat shield. The number you need is often on the shield you would be throwing away. Second, a two-character code carries very little information on its own. Photograph the code, the logo and the whole unit together.
The long OEM part number
Separately, Mitsubishi OEM part numbers follow longer patterns that show up in dealer catalogues and on some units:
- MR plus six digits — the common passenger-car prefix.
- ME plus six digits — commercial and Fuso diesel units, for example ME225953.
- 158xA or 158xB plus three digits — for example 1585B422 and 1584A079.
If you can find both the short body code and a long OEM number, quote both. Buyers price off whichever they can match.
How Mitsubishi units grade
Most Mitsubishi converters get sorted into foreign small or foreign medium. Published category prices on 21 August 2026 were small foreign $30–$228, medium foreign $40–$452 and foreign pre-cat $20–$271.
The nominal size bands are foreign small under 10 inches long and 3–4 inches in diameter, foreign medium 10–14 inches, foreign large 14–18 inches and up. But the published category prices contradict the idea that bigger is better. On 17 August 2026 ScrapMonster listed foreign small at $192 and foreign medium at $150. The smaller grade paid more.
That is the whole reason a Lancer 2.4 unit can be worth $274 while sitting in a bin marked foreign small. Grading sorts by size because size is fast to judge. Value comes from washcoat loading, which you cannot see.
One more filter: factory units hold substantially more precious metal than aftermarket replacements, by one estimate 50–90 percent more. An aftermarket Mitsubishi converter that looks clean and new is worth a fraction of a battered original.
Metal prices behind the number
Converter payouts run roughly 25–35 percent of recoverable metal value after refining costs. Spot prices in the week of 17–21 August 2026 varied by source, so these are ranges rather than single figures:
| Metal | Range across sources | Role in the converter |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | $1,706–$1,799/oz | Oxidises CO and hydrocarbons |
| Palladium | $1,273–$1,312/oz | Oxidises CO and hydrocarbons |
| Rhodium | $8,300–$8,800/oz | Reduces NOx, the value driver |
Rhodium was up 7.32 percent on the month and 17.73 percent year on year as of 20 August 2026. Two widely used online calculators were badly stale in August 2026, one quoting rhodium at $4,800/oz and another running platinum at $1,050/oz. Both would understate a Mitsubishi unit by a wide margin.