What kind a bunch for helping out Minsu the last few days..............

:iagree:

I work at a salvage yard and over 120 tires are dismounted every day with various locking lug nuts that come through daily. There is not one that we can't get off so like I said locking lug nuts are really a waste of time and money. If it makes you feel better though keep them on. You can buy every key set out there. Want the Web site? If your car is targeted for the wheels they will be gone. A lithium ion impact wrench and a key set will get you any wheel you want.

Most good shops can change the tires without taking the wheels off the car guys. duh.

I need answers REally fast
 

Sorry, I think something got lost in translation. I was trying to make a general point about reducing the risk of theft. I thought I conceded that much, if not all of what we do cannot be guaranteed 100% foolproof in preventing theft, but some things can reduce the likelihood of being a victim. I lock my bike at the metro, not because it is foolproof, but because it has been reasonably effective to date. I am as certain as one can be that had I not locked my bike all these years, it would have been stolen by now. Not foolproof, yet (likely) highly effective.

A significant amount of theft is opportunistic; not planned or prepared for. Modest measures that increase the time and effort to steal something can be all that is needed to get the bad guy to move on to someone else - this is actually well studied. I never intended to take particular address of whether or not wheel locks are a worthwhile investment, so your response to my post is a bit off target (but understandable if you read it strictly in the thread's wheel lock context). Investing in any form of theft deterrence is (or should be) a subjective assessment of the perceived benefits and costs and should be made with recognition that nothing is a certain 100%prevention. The frequent refrain that "if people want it bad enough they will find a way to steal it" might be correct, but maybe of only limited usefulness and that was the issues I was (perhaps obtusely) getting at. Mea culpa if I wasn't clear.

No, I don't need the wheel lock website;'I'm sure it does exist. I wouldn't specifically buy wheel locks for any of my vehicles (skateboard included). Doing an informal cost-benefit analysis leads me to conclude they are not worthwhile for my circumstances.

Your point that you can get any set of wheels off at the salvage yard is of limited usefulness, unless we assume that all wheels are stolen at salvage yards. I'd expect a salvage yard to have some pretty serious hardware that may or may not be owned by a thief on the street. Your point about the keys is a more helpful and folks investing in wheel locks should weigh their easy availability into a decision about buying wheel locks. They might also consider that not everyone with intent to steal wheels will necessarily be walking around with a big wad of keys in their pocket. Again, cost benefit with the understanding that nothing is foolproof.

Note: tone doesn't come across well in email or in a forum - not trying to be dickish here, just trying to clarify. Having said that, apparently I can be a real **** if you ask my wife, or my neighbors, or some of the people I work with or probably a few other folks.

Sorta like leaving your car door unlocked because someone has a way to get
in anyway...............


:iagree:

Well thought out and said. My point I was getting across was wheel locks specifically. I do not want them on my car because they are useless. An oversized socket tapped on one can easily be removed even without a key.
We dismount every tire and wheel on every car purchased at our yard and have had every type of wheel lock to deal with. We use the master set on most but use sockets as well and by my observations this is why I choose not to buy them. They are too easy to remove
Yes maybe the locking lug will stop the amateur thief but with some planning and thought your 4k of wheels will be gone in a heartbeat. Kinda like having your screen door locked at night to your house with your other door open

I wonder if you could modify your car to take F1 Wheel Nuts.

Imagine how pissed off a thief would be if he came to take your wheels and found them held on by one of those. :icon17:

Had a similar problem with our Mazda after a tire shop over torqued the nuts and stripped the locks. Mazda dealer had them off in 20 min for $20.

AFAIK, only one company makes a center lock conversion kit. It is as expensive as a decent set of wheels. Then you have to buy new wheels on top of that. Which are as expensive as other top of the line wheels. You're looking at over $7000 for the full setup.

Forgeline: Forgeline Flush-Loc Center Lock Wheel and Hub Conversion Package

There are a number of spin on conversion kits for older British cars (MG, Triumph etc.) Though these are a very different type of center locking (spline drive) wheel. Someone could just beat off the wheel with a mallet. Hehe. Beat off.

Also I've never seen anyone convert to centerlocking on a modern car, but at the track I've come across a few porsche owners who convert to conventional lugs since it's a pain in the *** to work with center lock wheels unless you have all the fancy equipment yourself.