I am debating whether or not to buy a set of wheel locks. My office is located in a not so desirable part of town and vehicles have been stolen there, mainly American heavy duty pickup trucks. The words is, they are popular to be used in the drug trade. Does anyone think the OEM 5 spoke 17 inch alloys are desirabel targets? The "cool" kids these days are riding around on 22"s and 24"s and have the size spelled out on the front quarter panel to prove it. 17" seems tiny.
It's pretty easy to defeat wheel locks. Any experienced wheel thief which desires your wheels will get them if you have wheel locks or not. IMO, I'd say they are not worth it if you get the genuine Toyota ones which range from $100-$125. If you can find a set for less than $25, then that might be worth it to keep the most honest wheel thief away.
That's what I thought as well. It also addes another level of complication. With my 2002 Camry, Discount Tires over torqued the locks one of them ended up stripping. Good thing I was not caught on the side of the road trying to change a flat. They ended up using a cone shaped device to defeat it.
The 17 inch wheels are more desirable than the 15s for sure. I got some gorilla wheel locks from Amazon for under $20.
I wouldn't spend money on them, but ours came with them. One tip I read (I think on the locking nut site) was to always torque the locking nut last, and loosen it first.
While they can be easily defeated, they can also be viewed as an added level of complication to a theft job...I am assuming a thief will want to get in/out quickly and not have to resort to special tools to avoid drawing any suspicion. If you can get me cheap, then for for them....my dealer installed them on the car before delivery....came with the car so didn't pay a cent for them.
I used to have them on my cars, and ended up cursing them the last few years because the unlocking lug seems to get lost only when you have a flat tire. I finally threw them away three years ago and won't buy any more. Frankly, wheel thefts seem less common today than what I remember they were back in the '80s.
The McGard Genuine Toyota wheel locks are about $40 delivered , when ordered from on line web sites. I got hem for my Prius"v." There is a space on the tire jack an tool holder for the wheel lock. I keep it there and also ordered an extra "key" from McGard for under $15 delivered. They have an 800 number, and by purchasing the extra "key," your locks are registered, so that they can send you a key, even if you lost it. While the professionals have the universal "key" made by OTC or K&D, most thieves will not. I've hand McGards for years, they are the best available. On my older vehicle, the locks are 22 years old and still have no rust on them. I wouldn't buy the cheap Made in Taiwan or Made in China ones.
