If you were to write down all the ways car dealerships scam people, you’d probably be more prolific than Stephen King. Arguably, there are some extras worth purchasing if you negotiate a good price. However, others are utter wastes of time. For instance, locking lug nuts for your car tires.
At least, that’s according to Mike Davenport, aka Chevy Dude (@chevydude), who is on a crusade to inform people just how pointless lug nut locks are. The idea behind this product is rooted in the idea of security.
If a thief can’t remove just one of the lug nuts on your car, then they’re foiled. They won’t be able to make off with your expensive rim and tire. You avoid the pain of having to file an insurance claim and having to change a wheel on your ride.
However, the TikToker shows just how easy these lug nut locks are to bypass in seconds with just common tools. And despite being a car dealer himself, he says that dealerships will often try to hoodwink you into buying the locks.
Locking lug nuts not worth it
“One of the biggest ripoffs at a car dealership is these guys right here,” The TikToker says, holding up a small bit of metal. “Locking lug nuts. And they tell you that people aren’t gonna steal your car.”
He explains that this isn’t the case at all.
@chevydude This it biggest FALSE sense of secuirty dealers scam you with. #creatorsearchinsights ♬ original sound – Chevy Dude
“I did a video like this a few months ago. Showing and demonstrating how quick and easy these are to take off,” he says, addressing the criticism he received on that video.
He then tosses the lug nut lock off camera before saying, “So I’m gonna show you guys again.”
A 12-second procedure
Davenport doubles down on his exposure to the uselessness of lug nut locks. “About 13 seconds to get this done,” he says. “Right here’s the locking lug nut.”
He then places a metal cylinder over the lug. Next, he grabs a hammer and begins bludgeoning the piece of metal over the locked piece. Once it’s jammed in, he grabs an impact wrench, guiding it into the cylinder. After a few squeezes of the trigger, the lug lock “is off…just like that.”
He stands up holding the piece in his hand with an official timer on the screen indicating how long it took. Davenport ended up beating his projected time to complete the lug lock bypass: 12 seconds.
“And I’m just a car salesman doing this. Imagine if there’s three or four professional thieves going around stealing wheels,” he shares. “You ain’t getting out of bed fast enough. Or even coming out of your house fast enough with any type of weapon to protect your asset. Your wheels are gone.”
He concludes, “Stop spending money on this junk at dealerships.”
Is it true?
YouTube @FlyinGato called the supposed theft-curbing devices a “waste of money” in this video. He plastered the blunt message: “DO NOT BUY” in red letters over a picture of the nuts. Throughout the clip, he explains why they’re not effective at curbing tire thieves.
A Quora user also broke down the insane markups many dealerships append to locking lug nuts. Responding to someone who wondered about their efficacy, the user highlighted how big of a scam they are. They wrote that dealerships will offer the lug nut locks at astronomical markups: $400 for identical sets that retail for $50. And it’s not like these dealers are using locks offered at specialty stores, either. The forum poster said that these locks are usually offered at Auto Zone.
What’s more, there are a limited number of patterns these locks follow. Folks can purchase keys for these patterns and easily get the lug nut out without any hassle. The user also echoed that Davenport’s impact wrench method would work too.
However, they also conceded some lug nut wheel locks are truly great.
“I am not saying there are not good locking lug nuts on the market (Mercedes has a great set, which has five per tire),” they said.
Donut Media also posted a video where they broke into various wheel locks. And while they were to crack all of them, they did pick a clear winner. The $25 McGard wheel lock option, they argued, was their top pick. That’s because they don’t break the bank and are frustrating enough for a thief to remove. This will consequently buy you more time to potentially stop or report a wheel theft in progress.
Viewers weigh in
Much like a lot of the users in this Reddit post, TikTokers believe it’s better to have them on your car than not. One user responded to Davenport, stating, “They may be easier to take off but most times a thief will choose a easier victim.”
Someone else echoed the sentiment, writing, “Well there is a chance they don’t have that tool and it does make noise. So possible it could deter.”
Another penned it’s all about making wheel theft more inconvenient for would-be robbers. “What if you have all locking lug nuts,” one wrote. “It would take longer which means they would run the risk of getting caught.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Davenport via Instagram direct message.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
