[mlev]

Hey guys,
So I had a mobile installer come out to install my brand new tires + rims, and before getting started, the mechanic was unable to remove my current OEM wheels with my OEM wheel key. He ended up stripping the key because the wheel locks were on too tight

With my stripped key (and possibly one stripped wheel lock lug), I went over to the Santa Monica BMW dealership (not my primary) and they tried to loosen with a breaker bar and their master key, but had no luck. They quoted me $200 per wheel and 4-5 hours of labor to drill them out using a special method and recommended I go to whoever caused the issue instead.

So I'm taking the car to my original service provider and dealership I bought the car from on Friday. I bought the car 1.5 years ago and serviced it with them once 6 months ago, nobody else has touched my wheels since. I assume some knucklehead at the dealership tightened them with an airgun against spec

Does anyone have any experience with this issue or a safe solution in case my regular dealership tries to gouge me for waiting 6 months to bring the issue up?

Thanks in advance.

[cfm56d7b]

Nothing is more disappointing than a mechanic taking a short cut and using an impact wrench instead of properly torquing lug nuts and for that matter anything which has a torque specification. This means failure on many levels: foreman not instructing the team, the team not caring enough about following proper procedures, and no system with positive / negative incentives in place.

I suggest to return to the dealer and explain the problem.

[sspade]

I had the exact same issue with two of my locks. Cost me a couple hundred at the end of the ordeal to have them removed by my BMW dealer.

I wouldnt trust the same retard that over tightened them to drill them off. Shop around at BMW dealers so that if they mess up your rim in the process, it will be their cost to replace.

Should be .5 hours per wheel to remove. Thats what I paid.

Never again will I use wheel locks. This is a very common issue, believe it or not. Lesson learned!

[strobe89]

I just recently bought a CPO F30 and almost all my lugs were unable to be loosened by my strength with a 25" breaker bar. I borrowed my dads 1100 ftlb impact and got all but 6 of them out. Also broke a couple impact rated sockets and used a bunch of PB blaster.

I took it to a local dealer and they charged me $144 after a bunch of "discounts" to remove the 6 stuck bolts (no locks). 3 bolts they got out with a really big bar, the other 3 they destroyed with a bolt extractor. I'm still pretty sour because the dealer I bought the car from is 5+ hours away and claims they use torque sticks.

I also have no way to prove them at fault as I bought the car 5k miles ago. They also claimed they didn't have to take the wheels off to CPO the car anyway. However, there was 3 refinished wheels on my car, and 3 stuck wheels behind those 6 bolts. Seems a bit convenient.

[mlev]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

Nothing is more disappointing than a mechanic taking a short cut and using an impact wrench instead of properly torquing lug nuts and for that matter anything which has a torque specification. This means failure on many levels: foreman not instructing the team, the team not caring enough about following proper procedures, and no system with positive / negative incentives in place.

I suggest to return to the dealer and explain the problem.

Totally agree...this has been a huge learning experience for me to check this sort of thing after service (and buying a car).

Originally Posted by sspade

I had the exact same issue with two of my locks. Cost me a couple hundred at the end of the ordeal to have them removed by my BMW dealer.

I wouldnt trust the same retard that over tightened them to drill them off. Shop around at BMW dealers so that if they mess up your rim in the process, it will be their cost to replace.

Should be .5 hours per wheel to remove. Thats what I paid.

Never again will I use wheel locks. This is a very common issue, believe it or not. Lesson learned!

Lesson definitely learned...this is something I had never even considered being an issue before. Thanks for the tip to call around at other dealerships.

Originally Posted by strobe89

I just recently bought a CPO F30 and almost all my lugs were unable to be loosened by my strength with a 25" breaker bar. I borrowed my dads 1100 ftlb impact and got all but 6 of them out. Also broke a couple impact rated sockets and used a bunch of PB blaster.

I took it to a local dealer and they charged me $144 after a bunch of "discounts" to remove the 6 stuck bolts (no locks). 3 bolts they got out with a really big bar, the other 3 they destroyed with a bolt extractor. I'm still pretty sour because the dealer I bought the car from is 5+ hours away and claims they use torque sticks.

I also have no way to prove them at fault as I bought the car 5k miles ago. They also claimed they didn't have to take the wheels off to CPO the car anyway. However, there was 3 refinished wheels on my car, and 3 stuck wheels behind those 6 bolts. Seems a bit convenient.

This is what I was worried about...I totally can't imagine that a CPO would be sold without removing the wheels to check the breaks, etc. Mine is a CPO as well. I guess it comes down to how genuine the dealership is. I scheduled my appointment with the service manager so hoping that helps bypass some of the BS. Thanks for the input.

[_bdiddyb_]

I don't think there is a safe solution considering our lug nuts are inside the wheels. I went thru 5 carbide drill bits to get a stuck nut out from my previous car. The retard tightened the wheel with impact gun after he replaced tire. This is why I always unmount my wheels and bring them to the tire shops every time I need new tires. Tedious, but peace of mind.

[cfm56d7b]

Originally Posted by _bdiddyb_

I don't think there is a safe solution considering our lug nuts are inside the wheels. I went thru 5 carbide drill bits to get a stuck nut out from my previous car. The retard tightened the wheel with impact gun after he replaced tire. This is why I always unmount my wheels and bring them to the tire shops every time I need new tires. Tedious, but peace of mind.

I literally hear you. The last time the dealer swapped a wheel on my car I asked SA and foreman to ensure that a proper torque wrench would be used.

[ooshnoo]

Had this issue last summer. The wheel locks are most likely supplied by McGard. http://www.mcgard.com/

Contact them and for a $100 refundable deposit, they'll send you a special drill kit with bits, channled drilling "sleeves"...so you don't damage the wheel...that you can use to drill out the bolt. There's also replacement bolts for you to keep.

Once you're done, return the kit and get your money back.

No dealers or tire shop needed. No money to shell out. It'll just cost you some time and a little elbow grease.

[mlev]

Originally Posted by ooshnoo

Had this issue last summer. The wheel locks are most likely supplied by McGard. http://www.mcgard.com/

Contact them and for a $100 refundable deposit, they'll send you a special drill kit with bits, channled drilling "sleeves"...so you don't damage the wheel...that you can use to drill out the bolt. There's also replacement bolts for you to keep.

Once you're done, return the kit and get your money back.

No dealers or tire shop needed. No money to shell out. It'll just cost you some time and a little elbow grease.

Thanks for this tip! I called McGard and they generously offered to send me 3 replacement keys priority mail. I will give that another shot, and if no luck, they will send me their drill set. Impressed with their customer service. BMW dealerships wanted to charge $100 to order one replacement key...

[M2Rush]

Originally Posted by mlev

Thanks for this tip! I called McGard and they generously offered to send me 3 replacement keys priority mail. I will give that another shot, and if no luck, they will send me their drill set. Impressed with their customer service. BMW dealerships wanted to charge $100 to order one replacement key...

Glad to hear they're taking care of you with the great CS team.

Have you tried adding heat to the mix? It helps to loosen up the the seize.

If it doesn't work and you don't want to wait for the kit, you can always weld a nut onto the key and take it off this way. Many shops know how to do this and probably has done it in the past, comes off very easily with nut attached and heat from welding.

[Sam!]

BMW torque specs are a bit excessive too. They say 105ft/lb for lug bolts, anything from 85-90 should be fine.

[Ralph335]

Originally Posted by strobe89

I just recently bought a CPO F30 and almost all my lugs were unable to be loosened by my strength with a 25" breaker bar. I borrowed my dads 1100 ftlb impact and got all but 6 of them out. Also broke a couple impact rated sockets and used a bunch of PB blaster.

I took it to a local dealer and they charged me $144 after a bunch of "discounts" to remove the 6 stuck bolts (no locks). 3 bolts they got out with a really big bar, the other 3 they destroyed with a bolt extractor. I'm still pretty sour because the dealer I bought the car from is 5+ hours away and claims they use torque sticks.

I also have no way to prove them at fault as I bought the car 5k miles ago. They also claimed they didn't have to take the wheels off to CPO the car anyway. However, there was 3 refinished wheels on my car, and 3 stuck wheels behind those 6 bolts. Seems a bit convenient.

I would have still called the selling dealer over that.
I didn't have a stuck bolt but had a stripped bolt on one of the wheels of my CPO 335. Noticed 3+ months after buying the car from a dealer 2.5 hours away. After playing phone tag a bit, I got the selling dealership to agree to pay my local dealership to drill out the bolt and replace the hub.

I can't believe that they wouldn't take the wheels off to inspect the car for CPO. I know for a fact mine had the wheels off because they gave me 4 brand new tires at the CPO check.

[vanbmw]

My buddy has a shop that works on mainly high end European cars. Mainly German car but lots of Italians added to the mix.
He says at least once a week they have a car with impossible lug nuts. He says it happens way more often then you would think. Requires heating and special tools and is a major pain. You would think when someone is working on a expensive car...say a Ferrari or Lambo... they would take some care putting on the wheels? He said nope. Very common to have those cars with lug nut problems. Not the cars fault...stupid mechanics fault.

[mlev]

I took it to my home dealer and service provider this morning and they told me they could get all 4 removed and drilled out for 1 hour of labor, which was $189 total. I gave in, especially since other dealerships were quoting 4-5 hours of labor and my tire mechanic was holding my new rims+tires. They basically told me that my wheels weren't taken off last time it was serviced (even though I expressed concern for my loud breaks), and that since I bought the car a year and a half ago, they don't know what I could've done to it in that time. Nothing they wanted to cover being a CPO under warranty.

It is what it is - hopefully someone reading this thread learns something just as I did.
Thanks for your input guys.

Bonus pics with my new OEM 437m's! Tires are General G-Max RS 245/35/19 & 265/35/19. Special thanks to @alohasurftoad for the tire advice. Lowering springs are next.