HELP, how am I going to get these rims off?

[Frostie]

I recently discovered the theft protection on my fancy rims, the problem is the ‘key’ is not with the car. I contacted the past owner and he assured me the key was in the glove compartment, but unfortunately it seems to have walked away. With the cheap lock nuts you can just pound a socket over it and twist it off or use a socket with teeth on the inside but in this case it impossible to get around the lock nut. Am I going to have to use an air chisel?

This sucks =(


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[Frostie]

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[Vipergrün]

If they are Porcshe, you should be able to go to a dealership and go thru a case of 40 or so of them until you find the right one......then pay their 'bend me over price' of 70.00 for it...

-Brad, who went to steel lugs cuz I lost TWO keys.....

[Frostie]

hey thanx Brad, so you say those are stock Porsche locks? It's hard to get a good close pic. Looks to about 1/4" thick round with 5 holes for the key. Panted black. Fits perfectly flush into the rim

[techweenie]

Can't tell from the photo, but they could be McGard locking lugs as well. They use a similar pin key.

[yelcab1]

Hard to see what that.

McGard wheel locks designed for and sold under the porsche label sells for $25 at my dealer. They have a master set full of all possible variations. Drive your car up, they find one that fits, orders you one, and that is it.

Get it now while you do not need it. I actually have two, because i always misplace the one in the car.

[ewave]

I had a set of these locking lugs nuts on a 1980 SC. I used a hole saw that just had an inside diameter of the wheel stud. Carefully use it to cut out the locking lug nut. These were aluminum on my car, and they cut pretty easily. Just be careful not to go to fast and cut into the wheel. Because the inside surface of the wheel and locking nut are beveled, there was a gap that the hole saw reached before it contacted the wheel surface.

[Frostie]

Unfortunately the McGard web site seems to be down right now so I couldn’t make a positive identification. All the McGard lugs I’ve had in the past replaced the stock Lug and were around 1 ¼” long. The strange lock Lug I have is only around ¼” deep so an original lug nut was put on after it. I’ve never seen anything like this before

[vash]

frostie, it is your car so it is your call. but i had a friend that needed to take off a lock lug. (camaro) we took a cheapo china 12pt socket that would barely slide over the lock lug and hammered it into place. then just put a rachet on it and crank off as usual. we destroyed some hardware that day.

[Frostie]

I figure I only have two real options:

1 air chisel...

2 over tight lug nut that goes on after the lock until the stud shears off...

[chrisp]

I have locks like this that came with the Fikse's I bought used. I am not sure of the supplier but they are pretty cool because there's a polished aluminum lugnut that's only 3/4 the length of a normal lug nut and it threads on to cover the locking portion you've taken pics of. Looks totally stock. Anyway maybe it's a standard part that someone could lend you the tool for. If you can get me exact dimension of the pin spacing I could measure mine and if it matches let you borrow it.

You could also use a small drill bit and drill a few holes in line radially from the center and make a little "channel" in the locknut and drive a chisel in there (won't touch the wheel) until it cracks open.

[john walker's workshop]

get a deep 3/4" hole saw and mandrel and your electric drill motor. that removes all but a thin shell around the threads that can be gently picked/tapped off with a small pointed punch and a hammer. don't use a drill or air chisel, or the wheels will get damaged.