possible tampered lugnuts

[mamagoose]

Good day to you all,
There is so much knowledge here that I would like to throw this out. Does anyone know of "special" lugnuts that might be tamper-resistant? My son had the lugs on each of his front wheels on his Dodge Ram sheer off on two separate occasions. DH pointed out that both times he had been to so and so's house with his truck parked there in town for a few hours. And coincidently, these were the only two times he has been to this area since he got his truck and been home from boot camp. He is a Marine Reservist and getting ready to deploy. Of course, he has a couple of Marine stickers on his truck and he his intelligent and has been a highly successful young man. So anyway, I wondered if anyone here knew of a solution to protect my son's life (and ours because we drive it too). Thanks!
mamagoose

Just a side note - our older son when about the same age, was giving a ride to two other football players to an all-star game one night and when he stopped to get gas he believes they put mustard packets down his gas tank. They just don't get life, do they?

[margo]

Sounds like the boy's buddies could use a trip to the Mideast via the US Gov't, or at least a blanket party held in their honor.
Stumps me how anyone can think stunts like that are funny. so I'd assume, were it done to me, that someone is seriously disturbed about something and isn't man enough to open their mouth. But indeed it must be a real problem one that should be solved right away.
As a joke, not funny.....in the order that standing on an overhead pass and lobbing a frozen turkey at cars on the interstate.???? someone thought at some point that that would be a kick....One woman I heard on the news, darn near died from the injury it caused....

People can be stupid beyond belief. I love pranks and stuff, but, there is a place where smart people stop....... Margo

[Wanda]

What do you mean by ''sheer off'' are you saying the front wheel came off?

[Mastiff]

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/P...p-4721/c-10101
they take a special socket...

[Ozarks_1]

Mastiff's got a good idea -

However, I suggest the addition of a GOOD alarm system - one sensitive enough to detect ANY tampering with the vehicle. The alarm system IS necessary because if the "pranksters" can't loosen the lug nuts, they'll simply do something else - posibly worse.

(It's like a locking gas cap to keep your gasoline from getting stolen. Works great ... until whoever wants your gas punches a hole in the gas tank!)

[Pony]

DH has put locking lugnuts on his Jeep CJ to keep the neighborhood darlings from messing with them. (One of the little tykes, much ignored by his parents, once took a bread knife to the treads on our Cherokee... I am so glad they moved!)

Just be sure to keep that key handy in case you need to change the tire(s)!

[Quint]

There are people who are making a concerted effort to damage any service member's vehicles. I've seen it discussed in great detail by certain anti-war, anti-amercian anti-bush groups on the internet. I personally know a guy in California who had a Marine Corps and Bush bumper sticker that has had his vehicle repeatedly vandalized. There are also groups who HATE servicemen especially Marines. I wouldn't put anything past them.

Unfortunately he is a target for certain groups of people and his vehicle is a prime target. Most of them are true cowards who would sh*t and p*ss themselves if confronted by a Marine. I have several friends in the military and I have heard about a couple incidents with guys having their stuff screwed around with or actually being confronted when wearing their uniform. Usually an urban thing.

Having a vehicle screwed around with is something I despise. An act of a coward usually. There are exception of course but usually it is a cowards way of getting even.

Like Vincent Vega said: "What's more chicken<expletive deleted> than <expletive deleted> with a man's automobile? I mean, don't <expletive deleted> with another man's vehicle."

[jerneeon]

That is truly despicable. I hope you've notified the police.

[BCR]

I happen to be anti-war, anti-Bush (George) but not anti-American or prone to violent acts as described. It might simply be a jilted girlfriend.

Why not quit going to that neighborhood, changing vehicles, meeting elsewhere?

[bare]

Originally Posted by Quint

There are people who are making a concerted effort to damage any service member's vehicles. I've seen it discussed in great detail by certain anti-war, anti-amercian anti-bush groups on the internet.

If you don't mind Quint, I'd like to see a cite or two for your contention.

I've had a few tires shear off over the years, which is why I use a torque wrench to tighten my lug nuts. Dang easy for them to back themselves off if they aren't properly tightened.

'Course, I never thought to blame it on the warmongers, republicans or Bush...

[insanity]

Originally Posted by bare

If you don't mind Quint, I'd like to see a cite or two for your contention.

I've had a few tires shear off over the years, which is why I use a torque wrench to tighten my lug nuts. Dang easy for them to back themselves off if they aren't properly tightness.

Thats a very good point! Especially if there aluminum wheels! I put new wheels on a Bronco i had once.They recommend re torquing them when i got home.I did not,and a week later the right ft wheel started to vibrate going down the road.One lug nut was holding it by a couple of treads when i pulled over.Later after they balanced and rotated them,i checked them when i got home.Lets just say they where very loose! Even when i torqued the crap out of them when working on it,they would need another half turn or more after a trip around the block. (As for steel wheels the mechanics usually way over toque them.)

If you think they are truly being tampered with id put all lock lug nuts,or at least two on each wheel.Any Auto parts place sells them for around 6 bucks per four.(only four because most folks only use one per wheel)

If someone is tampering with them, I would park in the same spot some evening and watch from the bushes with a baseball bat.

[Montana Mom]

Originally Posted by Quint

There are people who are making a concerted effort to damage any service member's vehicles...

I'm horrified. What a TERRIBLE thing to do. :waa:

Shame on those fools!!!!

[tinknal]

I doubt anyone coud hand torque the lugs enough to cause them all to shear. Are you sure you don't mean they were lossened? Had he had his tires rotated recently? I've had to retighten lugs after serviving.

[bare]

Tinknal, they don't shear from over-tightening, they shear from working loose and somewhere in the process of loosening, they shear all the lug bolts off. I've had it happen twice, both on back wheels and the first indication is to watch a tire go spinning right on by you at a high rate of speed, Interestingly enough, both times I had time to wonder were the tire came from before it was followed by the bump and grind. Upon inspection, all of the lug nuts were sheared cleanly off the wheel hub. Had the same thing happen to a small trailer, but that was a bit more dramatic because the tire had to escape a wheel well before spinning off into the oncoming lane. In all three cases, I'd recently had the tire off for one reason or other and just didn't get the lug nuts on tight enough.

[inc]

"I've seen it discussed in great detail by certain anti-war, anti-amercian anti-bush groups on the internet"

very sorry to hear this. i wore a badge once and you wouldnt belive what people would do to you.

anti tamper nut with the 'star ' in the center- easy to knock that star out with a hammer and makeshift chisel. is this on the special lugnut? not familiar with these.

[mamagoose]

Thanks for the replies and some heads up info. My son had new tires put on about 6 weeks ago. After the first wheel sheered, he took it into the construction equipment shop where he works and they put it up and said the bearing was fine. Then he took it back to the tire shop and they claimed the the bearing went out and caused it. So, his first inclination was that they were trying to cover up that they had initially over tightened them. Now wouldn't they would have re-checked all the tires at that time? Maybe not, maybe they don't really know what they are doing. The second time was a different wheel and my two sons got together at grandpa's garage and fixed it themselves. Grandpa bought a torque/gauge (whatever that is?) and they were able to go two revolutions on some lugs by hand, so that would suggest that they were loose from the start. (DH was telling of two different guys at the factory who had had their wheels fall off after being found out that they were being promiscuous with married women.) I vote for some type of tamper-resistant/non-loosening lugs and the alarm system!

[mamagoose]

Mastiff, Insanity and Bare,
You all were right on! (Y'all knew that anyway, right?)
Well, it happened again, after the additional torquing. Then, I made DH read this thread. So, he decided he would have to take matters into his own hands and headed to the auto parts store. They referred him to a different tire shop. A guy he knew there from high school told him it's common with aluminum wheels that the lugs loosen and they need to be re-torqued and re-torqued. DS and DH argued whether they are really aluminum. It has been decided that they are. I showed DH the jcwhitney page and he said the tire shop guy explained that that's what he needed to get. We found a less "fancy" version and ordered them. The tire shop guy also added that he would never have aluminum wheels because of this problem, that it was just dangerous. This (aluminum) was a first in our family, as we generally do not buy a vehicle with fancy options, but this was a used truck my son had purchased and it had a few extras that he visually liked. The original tire shop did not tell DS to re-torque or even check them and there is not a warning on the wheels. Shouldn't someone be responsible for making the public aware of this danger? Thankfully, he didn't wreck, as the wheels never came off, it just started shimmying and he stopped driving and called home. He is now on his way to California for dessert training and I pray that his angel is following him. Thanks again to you fellow homesteaders!

[unioncreek]

I have run aluminum wheels on my rigs since the 70's and have only checked the torque on them after they have been off a rig. The reason that they come loose is probably because they have the wrong lugnuts or are a unilug wheels without the right washers/spacers.

BobG

[herefordman]

If he is bolting the same wheels back on after they have been beat up by loosening off, he should dump the wheels as the holes in them are guaranteed to be shot.
For your new wheels go to any speed shop and buy anti-theft lugnuts, they'll stop anyone from tampering, but all aluminum wheels should be torqued first and then checked again after running them, and all the aluminum wheel manufacturers do put literature in the boxes with their wheels that state this, also the vehicle manufacturers have it in their owners manuals too, but we never read those, do we guys !!