Ford Repair: 2002 Ranger, ford motor company, quality converters

Question
I own a 2002 Ranger that has been in the service department for over a month.  The catalytic converter was bad and they are telling me the part will not arrive until March 18, 2005.  It is being repaired under CA emissions Law for free so I think I am getting the run around as thay have told me the part had to be built and then it can not be flown due to haz mat and now it is because no one in the US has the part and they are even checking after-market parts.  Is this really possible?  How could I locate the part to see if this is true?

Answer
Catalytic converters are a "vender ship" part, which means that they are shipped directly from the vender that manufactures them for Ford Motor Company.  It usually takes about 6-8 weeks for a dealer to receive them after they place an order.  Your dealer should have a shipping notice that shows when the part was ordered and the tentative shipping date.  I doubt that any dealer in the country has them in stock, unless they were ordered my mistake, or they were ordered for a customer and they never brought their vehicle back to have them installed.  I don't know off-hand if converters are considered hazardous materials, if they are, they cannot be shipped by air, they must be shipped by ground freight.  Converters are basically made of a honeycomb of platinum and rhodium inside of a steel tube that might resemble a small muffler. I would recommend waiting for the factory parts and not using after-market replacments, factory parts are generally are a higher quality.  Converters are very expensive, a small repair like this would normally cost you near $1500.  The repair being covered under warranty (including California Emissions) means literally that Ford Motor Company is paying the dealer for repairing your vehicle, instead of you.  Ford Motor Company generally pays a dealer a little less than what would be the retail price for the repairs, it could be looked at as similar to a volume discount.  No dealer that I have ever worked at, or know of, has wanted to keep a customers vehicle any longer than needed for repairs.  Customer satisfaction is very important to the dealer and to Ford Motor Company.

I hope this helps,
Dave