Hirudin

Just thinking outside the box a lil'...

Is there any logic to parking real close to the curb? Seems like it would make the car harder to lift.

These look nice...
Gorilla Automotive 71633N "The System" Acorn Wheel Locks
Each lug is a lock. Cheap too.

Take the bling off your wheels (For instance: I can't imagine a "Volk" center cap is going to deter any would-be thieves).

Maybe you could put a sticker inside the wheels (on the rim where it can't be accessed unless the tire is dismounted) that says something like...
Say your wheels and tires get stolen by someone who didn't know about the note/sticker and they take the wheels to a reputable shop to have the tires changed at some point. Perhaps the reputable shop will alert the authorities and/or you.

Actually, that sounds like a damn good idea to me! I'm going to do that with the wheels I'm having delivered today.

FJF

iTrader: (18)

Impressive. An opportunistic ad hominem (personal) attack, an utter inability to follow the flow of the thread, and a little personal inadequacy all rolled into one. That's quite an accomplishment for one sentence.

Hirudin

Welp, I thought I had a good idea up there so I made some labels to put inside my new wheels. I went to Staples and bought a package of Avery "Neon Assorted High Visibility Labels" and printed a message similar to the one I attached. I have also attached the a word document that can be used to print your own labels if you want.

If anyone cares: the labels are ~0.5 grams each.

Jetfixrguy

iTrader: (56)

I use an alarm by Avital that has a 2 way paging system. And I park in the garage when at home, you can never guarantee something from not being stolen just take precautions to limit the chances. Besides alarms and locks are just to keep the honest people honest.

SaulHudson

iTrader: (5)

This sticker seems like it would be easily found when thieves are checking for diameter, offset, and width.

Hirudin

That info is usually on the outside of the wheel, isn't it? I plan to put the sticker inside the tire/rim cavity. So, if the thief dismounts the tire himself, he'll surely find it. I know it's possible to mount and dismount tires at home, but I'm betting it's not common. If he takes the wheel/tire to someone else or sells it to someone who eventually takes it somewhere it's possible a more honest person will see the sticker first. Who knows, for the half hour spent making the stickers you might get some valuable wheels returned to you at some point.

stEVOrgiX

It's not real added security but it definitely gives you a better chance the thief will be caught. +1 for a good idea.

AFD

iTrader: (1)

I think that's a great idea.. but instead of requesting the shop's tire guy to stop what he's doing - come out to find you - then remember your email, to verify it (which at this point the sticker might just be ignored during a busy day).. maybe just a basic descriptor - then a less intrusive verification might be more successful...

Just an idea.. and adjust/remove reward as needed

golgo13

iTrader: (134)

Don't buy nice wheels?
Move to a better neighborhood?
Sleep in your car?
Buy wheel locks?

SaulHudson

iTrader: (5)

I am not sure what kind of wheels you work with, but every one is different. To my experiences, they are usually not on outside, however I have seen a few. Some are stamped in the metal on inside of the wheel, some are on outside, some are on the sticker inside, usually though, if anything is on the out side it will be width and diameter, you usually have to do more searching for offset. I had a set of volks where the only place the offset was noted was on a tiny sticker on the very inside.

Hirudin

I like the part about the car description/license plate number! I wish I had thought of that (or seen your post) before I had the wheels installed today. I also like the inclusion of the phrase "theft warning" - that might be more eye-catching than the word "attention". I thought about putting something regarding the drivers license number as well, but decided that was "personal". I'm a bit paranoid.

Your message also has the added benefit of being more than just "information". It's possible the person stealing my wheels could also know my email address. :/

I was kinda thinking I would alert the store to the sticker before they started any work. I'd say something like "There's a sticker in the wheels that asks for my email address. It's someone@domain.com."

Oooohhh yeah: I figured the email address would work both as a "unique identifier" and also would allow the police to contact you. I guess the license plate number would also do that though.

AFD

iTrader: (1)

Ya, that's why I figured using just the last few digits of a DL should be fairly safe, and remain constant over time.. unless you move out-of-state, or something. Plus, if the tire guy comes out and asks the thief (or buyer of stolen wheels) their email.. it might raise a flag, when they wonder "what for" (same for asking to see a DL, I guess.. but either might pass as the shop's regular business procedures).

Think the description & plate is more important though (both being safe to give out, since the thief already had access to that info). Once the tire guy sees the warning, by then he'd already know the car's a blue Mitsu something at least, ignore the plate info and go about his business. But, if he just pulled the wheels off a white '89 Camry, and then sees the warning, he'll probably be curious enough to check out the plate - and then hopefully try to verify the DL #, email or whatever.

If it actually gets as far as the police being involved, I would think they'd be able to somehow contact you by using the plate # alone. That way you could confirm the wheels were actually stolen, and also to eventually recover them.

Dunno man.. just ideas. Not 100% sure I'd actually want a $3k+ set of TE37s back, if they've been damaged - and the insurance would've covered it otherwise.

Kay, now someone else tell me more about wheel locks, tilt sensors and street justice

Projekticarus

http://site.icbmotorsport.com/New3/V..._SetBlue_3.jpg

those are a ***** to take off, id get those they are a bit pricey but when your spending over 3g's on wheels on why not..

next step. Get Center Lug wheels. Porsche Status. see who would dare take you wheel haha. my 2cents..

trick3d

+1 allows me to NOT CARE
3 bucks a month for any wheels/tires up to 4k. They do it in tiers with a maximum, at least with farmers

WarmMilk

iTrader: (1)

like this