Wheel locks

[Linda]

Any opinions on wheel lug locks? Useful or not?
Thx
Linda

[bossbob]

I always found them to be a PIA, had them on the Boss 302, finally got rid of them.

[68DSU]

I've had them on other cars but never the DSU. I suppose the stock wheels are now worth protection as much as aftermarket ones. You have to have a spot for the "key" that you will never forget. For us, the tool bag would work. It is one of those unknown if they work things. I've never had wheels stolen but I don't know if it was because of the locks.
You may never know if they work as intended but you will know if they don't.

[Alvin]

Not useful, and like mentioned above a pain. Especially if you dismount often.

Depending on the style you get, the socket/lugnut wrench approach can still remove locks anyways. If you spring for different style, like "gorilla" nuts--now your're looking at a set of wheel locks worth more than your wheels

[redroadster]

Put ugly wheels on it your probably ok .
I have them on my rides though

I used to do service work for a used car dealer ,with nice imports. audi , nissan , accura , lexus etc . it was not a. brightly lit up lot . he had only 17 cars on it they hit it got 12 wheels . days later there were only about 12 wheels left. This 3 or 4 block from south patrol on a main street

[Linda]

Obviously, none of you live in Los Angeles..
The ugly wheel option is a no go,BTDT
I like my wheels and don’t want anything else so protecting them is important . Car thefts up 10% thanks to Covid.
I see Autozone has some generic locks that might be a deterrent. Will have to research more
Linda

[bossbob]

Linda, I think wheel theft is going to be targeted toward's wheels that are higher in demand. What wheels are you running, if stock, I would think there is no need for concern. 14, 15 inch wheels, again, probably not too much value or demand for someone to steal them.

Is your car garaged at night, driven daily, in empty parking lots for hours at a time? I think the risk of theft is low for our little wheels and tires, but it only takes one time right?

[Alvin]

Obviously, none of you live in Los Angeles..
The ugly wheel option is a no go,BTDT
I like my wheels and don’t want anything else so protecting them is important . Car thefts up 10% thanks to Covid.
I see Autozone has some generic locks that might be a deterrent. Will have to research more
Linda

LOL I had to google what "BTDT" means

Post a pic of your wheels. Then we can tell you if they are going to be stolen.

The Autozone thing and "generic" really won't help deter theft.

[Linda]

Post a pic of your wheels. Then we can tell you if they are going to be stolen.

As noted above, it’s Los Angeles, of course they can be stolen...
Actually, not sure I trust some of you.... joke,joke,joke
As for Eric the Car Guy, there are some locks , I was told, that spin, so you defeat the breaker bar, vice grips approach. But Eric is always entertaining.
Wheels, same as Howard has, though his are pristine and these need polish.
I forget what they are called, kind of rare, similar to some Porsche wheels.
Linda

344F402B-0052-4917-B1FF-D5DD6AAA8951.jpeg

[redroadster]

Yeah the ones that had a key you inserted & turned to lock the shell.
Havent seen those since the 90s, mostly fit domestics IMO

[Gregs672000]

Yeah the ones that had a key you inserted & turned to lock the shell.
Havent seen those since the 90s, mostly fit domestics IMO

The ones that came with my Cosmic wheels ('70's era I'd guess) look like taller lugs but they are keyed. You push the key in and that allows you to remove the outside covering that otherwise just spins and will not allow you to remove it. With the cover off, you now have access to the actual lug. Probably from England, never seen anything like them before, but I haven't looked much. I suppose they could be defeated with some effort but that's the point, it requires a lot more effort/time.

[68DSU]

This kind of hits my general philosophy for safety. We do a lot of travelling often in touristy spots. The thieves are out there and there is no stopping a determined thief. Our goal is to be less of a target than that guy over there. The thief will go for the easy score. I feel safest around the guy with the "I'm a tourist" ball cap, the backpack with open zippers and his wallet bulging out of his back pocket.

Same goes for wheel locks. Put on locks and park near the car with bling wheels and no locks and you'll be safe.

[CSP311]

My 260z has heptagon lock wheel studs, rather than hexagonal, they look the same on the car, but need a separate socket, a bit like;

https://www.rhdjapan.com/nismo-s-tune-m ... t-set.html

I haven't looked if there is something for the roadster, but it wouldn't surprise if someone hasn't.

[mblue97]

This reminds me that my wife's new VW came with wheel locks and I've been meaning to remove them and put the regular ones on in their place.

[vinechoy]

I use McGard locks with a special key but ground down the key to fit lug wrench