Bloody Nails...

[cheekyfutch]

Just returned back to my car this evening to find the rear driver side tyre flat. Fair enough, take off the flat wheel and bolt on the spare. Everything was going according to plan until I found out that the locking wheel nut itself didn't want to come off!

After much straining, it moved ever so slightly - but after taking off the wheel nut adapter it looked as though the slight give was because one of the holes gave away slightly so now the locking wheel nut itself is damaged which looks like a whole replacement set is due.

RAC man couldn't get it off either but he managed to remove a 2 and a half inch nail from the tyre and plug it up temporarily using his resin stuff. Only took 15 mins to arrive as well!

Has anybody else had problems with the standard wheel nuts 'giving way' when too much force is applied to them?

[flotsam]

Once had a garage tighten the wheel nuts so tightly I couldn't get them off. Broke one of my sockets as a result. You have to make sure you go to a reputable garage who don't employ thugs and gorillas.

Tightening my wheel nuts to recommended torque requires just enough force for it to begin to be difficult but not a strain using the wrench in the supplied tool kit.

I just took a wheel off the other day to check the brake pads and noticed there was some copper grease from my last service at Lexus Guildford. The wheel nuts were at the correct torque.

On the matter of nails: Once rented at a house with one of those garage in a block arrangements. My scumbag neighbours had the garage facing mine. With the entrance to their garage taken up with one car, their rodent son used to park his in between the two garages but parked closer to my side to allow their other car to drive in and out. Charming! I even had a Carlton saloon which was bigger than their car. I asked them if the rodent could park a little closer to their side as politely as I could. Being rodents, I received nails in both rear tyres. Let's face it nails don't generally stand up for you to run over them, especially when their long enough to go through several millimetres of tyre.

[cheekyfutch]

Oh dear...

I've just been told by my bro that Toyota in Hendon, Northway Tyres in Colindale and Kwik Fit won't touch my damaged locking wheel nut as they 'aren't insured in case anything goes wrong with the removal of it'.

I assume they didn't want to drill it out because of the brake pads and discs but at the moment, I'm left with a car that can do a max of 40mph.

Does anyone know someone reputable within the M25 area who'd be able to remove the nut, preferably today or between Xmas and New Years?

[flotsam]

There is no-one reputable within the M25 area.