WHEEL LOCKING NUTS : Mon Jul 01, 2013 9:14 am  

Right, I've got a small problem in that I've lost my wheel locking nut key for my car. It would appear that the nuts are not the originals that came with the vehicle and so going to the manufacturer for a replacement isnt an option. I'm just wanting to know if anyone has any experience of removing these? Are the removal tools that you can get (with a reverse thread) any good? Im kind of stuck as the car is a project that Ive been working on and has no tax or MOT, so getting it to a garage also isnt an option. Any help appreciated.

Re: WHEEL LOCKING NUTS : Mon Jul 01, 2013 12:53 pm  

I bought a Halfords removal tool. It needed an impact driver to work properly and taking the nut out of the special tool afterwards was a pain. I removed the four nuts and found second hand set of replacements with a key on ebay.

Re: WHEEL LOCKING NUTS : Mon Jul 01, 2013 1:00 pm  

I know it won't help much but when I needed a set of locking wheel nuts removing in similar circumstances my local tyre fitters made quick work of the problem, haven't a clue how they did it but the wheels were off in no time and an eye-watering bill for replacement nuts on my desk within the hour.

[Durham Giant]

Re: WHEEL LOCKING NUTS : Mon Jul 01, 2013 4:02 pm  

easthullwesty wrote:

Right, I've got a small problem in that I've lost my wheel locking nut key for my car. It would appear that the nuts are not the originals that came with the vehicle and so going to the manufacturer for a replacement isnt an option. I'm just wanting to know if anyone has any experience of removing these? Are the removal tools that you can get (with a reverse thread) any good? Im kind of stuck as the car is a project that Ive been working on and has no tax or MOT, so getting it to a garage also isnt an option. Any help appreciated.

That happened to me and it was a nightmare. Went to a couple of garages who had the manufacturers sets but with one or two missing and they could not find the right nut.

Ended up going to the Local Garage who basically cut them off. Now i just have standard nuts and bolts and dont bother with the locking nuts at all.

Unless you are driving an expensive car with good wheels i am not sure they are worth replacing as the chances of cheaper tyres being pinched is low.

Re: WHEEL LOCKING NUTS : Mon Jul 01, 2013 4:28 pm  

Durham Giant wrote:

That happened to me and it was a nightmare. Went to a couple of garages who had the manufacturers sets but with one or two missing and they could not find the right nut.

Ended up going to the Local Garage who basically cut them off. Now i just have standard nuts and bolts and dont bother with the locking nuts at all.

Unless you are driving an expensive car with good wheels i am not sure they are worth replacing as the chances of cheaper tyres being pinched is low.

Cheers for the comments guys, ive ordered A set of cutting sockets and an impact wrench to get the blighters off. Judging by how slack the other nuts were, this should sort it. I'd not usually bother Durham, but in this instance the wheels are definitely a nickable object.