Do you guys have wheel locks?

[bmwrocks]

I have not purchased them yet but I think I will cause it seems so easy to steal the wheels without them.

BTW someone stole my metal valve stem caps from all 4 of my wheels last week. How cheap. I bought a new set of chrome ones with chrome valve body sleeves too for $3.99 at Discount Auto Parts. These look a lot better than stock also so maybe stealing them was good thing. I also put on a chrome license plate frame which looks really good with my color scheme.

I looked into a white neon one but I will save that for Pushakov Resident Hot Xenon Ricer. What do you think MrElussive?

 

[Tom]

I purchased locks for my M3 from Discount Tire Co. since the first day I own my car. Getting your caps stolen is fairly normal. You can tighten it more with a socket to make it harder for people to unscrew it by hand.

 

[Bryan330i]

I thought that BMW included the wheel locks??? Mine came with that funky looking tool to remove one nut on each wheel. I hope that is what it is. If yours did not have them I should check and make sure what I have because it would suck to have someone steal them.

 

[Bryan330i]

I just looked at mine, they look like wheel locks. Perhaps the dealer put them on. I thought it was part of the deal because the tool fits so well in the tool holder in the trunk. But if Tom's M3 did not come with them mine sure did not.

 

[Big Daddy]

My M roadster came with wheel locks as described by Bryan330i. However my 318 and 750 do not have locks.

 

[frolf]

i will use wheel locks next spring when i get my new wheels.

 

[MrElussive]

Wheel locks are definitely a great idea to protect your wheels from getting stolen. Also, I do exactly what Tom said...tighten the valve stem caps with a wrench or whatever tool, that is exactly what I did. Most people who steal valve stem caps usually try to unscrew them by hand, and if they can't unscrew, they move on.
As for the chrome license plate frames, that is always a really classy touch to a silver car.
Also, I already told Push about the neon license plate frame....he wants a color that matches his 6000K Xenons and he is waiting for your PM.

 

[mallards]

i thought wheel locks were useless

cause theifs can get the universal / key's for "purposes of removing the wheel locks in case a customer lost his/her key"

Ben

 

[andreyiv]

I don't think I will ever use wheel locks for one good reason. Once my dad got a flat tire on his way to work, when he finally got there, he and his co workers decided to fix it since they have a tire shop there. After a few tries with the special tool, they stripped the nut and got no where. The tire shop guy came and laughed at them because they couldn't get the damn nut off, after a minute or so he came back with a hammer and a socket that was about the same size as the nut and forced it on. Long story short, any lock nut can be taken off with a sucket wrench and a hammer. If the rim is only a few hammer hits away, wouldn't you do it? My point is, if they want your rims, they will get them, what's the point of spending money on wheel locks if they are almost useless.

 

[Andre]

...if they want your rims, they will get them, what's the point of spending money on wheel locks if they are almost useless.

If they're cruising a parking lot looking for rims to steal, and yours will take them a little longer because you have locks, they'll steal the other guy's first.

For the record, my 2004 330i w/ZHP arrived on the dealer lot with wheel locks already on it.

 

[Big Daddy]

Any theft deterrent can be overcome, locking your factory door locks, the Club, alarms, wheel locks, etc. the key is like what has already been mentioned, making it more difficult for the thief.

 

[MrElussive]

Yeah, exactly....they make removing the lug nuts just a bit harder, and it takes some time when they have to remove like 4 or 5 lug nuts. Wheel locks are only like $30 for the whole set, aren't they? And when you purchase wheel locks, the special "key" comes with them.

 

[Tweet227]

I have had a total of five valve stem caps stolen now. For $.69 a piece, I don't know how anybody can be so cheap. I too have tightened them, and they are more difficult to remove, yet still possible. I keep a few spares around!

 

[Average Jae]

yea why anyone would steal valve stem caps way beyond me..

as for the wheel locks, i didn't get one w/ mine, but it's only like $30 at the dealer.. why not just get one. (altho i still haven't followed my own advice

 

[MrElussive]

I think it's more of a form of vandalism to somebody's car than it is a "Oh I need valve stem caps so let me go steal them." Or at least, it just seems to happen too often to people.

 

[andreyiv]

Actually I know a person who stole a cap just because of the need for it, lol.
BTW I guess you are right about making it harder for the thiefs but then again there usually 2 or more of them, while the first one is jacking up the car, the second one messes with the nuts. I guess it is a good investment if there is a risk of getting your wheel stolen.

 

[codex57]

I thought those universal sockets (the ones with pins in the middle instead of a set opening sized a certain way) could remove wheel locks easily. Thats what people around here tell me. It's not worth it in SoCal. The thieves are too numerous and too good that if they're willing to go through the trouble of jacking up your car for your rims, they'll get through a wheel lock too. Luckily for me, since I have stock rims, they don't bother me since mine are a dime a dozen around here.

 

[Big Daddy]

They only work on the exterior of the bolt which in the case of my locks is round, nothing to grip. And like we have said before, anything can be overcome and stolen but that does not mean I am going to make it easy for them.

 

[samlee4444]

You have a $35,000+ car with $1,000+ rims/tires (at least) on it...get the $30 wheel locks.

 

[MrElussive]

Yeah, I don't follow my advice, either. When I got into my little spin-out and needed my rim replaced, it was $882 for that one rim alone !! But for some reason, I just haven't bothered to purchase wheel locks. I live in a very nice area filled with BMW's and Mercedes, my car sleeps in a garage, and I have never had any bad lucky previously, so those reasons stop me from bothering. But then again, I guess I'm just being ignorant.
As for tightening my wheel caps, I stopped doing that because I like to check my tire pressures often (I like to maintain a perfect balance of 36psi in each tire ) and it is just too much hastle to tighten/untighten them with a wrench.