jetta2NV Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 So I'm driving on 315 south between 161 and bethel rd last Friday night when a lady driving a Explorer a few hundred yards ahead of me loses control and hits a light post (she was driving drunk while text messaging). The post falls and scatters glass, metal etc all across the freeway. About 6 cars (myself include) hit varies pieces of the post because there was no time to react. Lucky for my I only got a flat tire on my drivers side rear.....or at least I thought I was lucky. So I pull off to the side of the road so I can change my tire only to find out that I have the wrong locking lug key (I just go the car last week). I call up one my friends who has almost the same car to come help me and let me use his key. He shows up about 20 min later (by this time is about midnight) and we try his key and it doesn't fit. So I call up another friend who was at a bar downtown who said he might have the correct key in his car. So I have my friend who came to help me drive me downtown to pick up the key from my other friend and then drive me back to my car again only to find out that it was also the wrong key. By this time it was 1 am and I was tired so decided to just have the car towed home and deal with getting the wheel off the next day. I call a tow company and they said they would be there in about 25 minutes. So I told my friend I would be fine and he could go ahead and leave and I would ride home with the tow truck. Fast forward to 4 am and still no tow truck. While I had been waiting on the side of the road I called them several times and they kept telling me they were on there way. I finally got a phone call from them at 4:30 am and the lady told me they would not make it until later on in the morning because they were too busy. So by this time I was pissed and was about to tell the lady off just before my cell phone died (and I didn't have a car charger). So at this point it gets even worse. I end up driving the car at 3 mph down the side of 315 all the way to bethel road and stop at a BP gas station. I leave my car there and call a taxi from the gas station that charged me $40.00 to drive me home (hillard area), by this time its 5:30 am. Here is where the fun begins, I wake up later that morning at 8:30 am and meet with a friend to help me deal with the car. So I call up the dealer and ask them if they have a lug key and they said yes but they have to see the car because there are 30 different ones it could be. No problem right......so I call a tow truck and have my friend take me to meet the tow truck at the gas station and then have the car towed to the dealer. After about an hour the service guy comes out and tells me "sorry but we don't have a key that fits, yours is one that they don't make anymore". He then tells me they have no way to get the wheel off and I would have to take the car somewhere else. So I call up Discount tire and the guy there says "oh we deal with that stuff all the time and we can get the wheel off without a problem". So I have the car towed again to Discount Tire. After about 2 hours the guy comes out and tells me "sorry we tried everything and can't get your locking lug off, your wheel is just stuck and there is nothing we can do". At this point I was at a lost of what to do so I call my 80 year old grandpa for advice. He told me to have the car towed to his house and have him take a look at it. So I have the car towed another time across town to his house so he can take a look at it. After about 10 min we were able to get the wheel off without a problem. We just took an oversized socket and hammered it onto the lug bolt, put a breaker bar on it and it came right off. Its just funny that my 80 year old grandpa and myself had it off and 10 min but the dealer and tire shop were unable to. What a crappy night/day that was. Just wanted to vent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakotart Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I'm surprised that none of the shops had a socket to remove them. I have a set of 4 flip sockets to remove stripped/locking lug nuts. http://www.mactools.com/Product/tabid/120/productid/319176/variantid/309935/Default.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForeverMaker Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Old people can be useful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FyrhzrdGT Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Hammering on a socket is the trick I have always used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRAWDAD Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 that was a costly tire fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowflake Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Everyone at the dealership and the tire place should be ashamed of themselves for not getting that lug nut off. Id be calling and complaining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otis Nice Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Sucks man. Sorry. Sometimes good ol' wisdom prevails. Glad you got it fixed finally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKilbourne Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 This story is why I work on my own car. What the hell were the guys at the dealer and tire store thinking? If you have a locking lug stuck on, then hammer on the socket and buy another socket and lug. Not overly complicated. So what if it costs extra money, they just send that bill to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodRed Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 wow that really sucks. And it is crazy that you had it at 2 different places and they couldn't get that lug off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I would be bitching up a storm that no one had a locking lug removal tool set. Hell, we have one and wheels/tires are not what we do all day everyday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetta2NV Posted June 2, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Oh it sucked pretty bad, i called myself trying to save some time and trouble by taking the car in. Well next time i know to just fix it myself. And yes it cost an arm and leg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berto Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 We just took an oversized socket and hammered it onto the lug bolt, put a breaker bar on it and it came right off. Thats what we used to do when I worked a Discount Tire if the tool didn't work. Sounds like the help there is not up to par anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ringo Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Moral of the story dont drive drunk !. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nurkvinny Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 I grew up watching some "old guys" do what dealerships and tire shops said couldn't be done. Doesn't surprise me a bit. Glad you got it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 so Cory... I hooked you up on shit like 8 years ago with your jetta... why did you think present day would be any different... before you blow $400 on towing next time.. call me.. 232-8881 -Derek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonneVille Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Which Discount Tire did you get towed to? Cause I know for a fact that if it was Hilliard-Rome or Brice, the guy would have to have been a total moron. They have sets of lug bolt/nut extractors sitting right in the drawers beneath the registers at both locations. I've seen em in use at both locations. Think socket with counter-thread sharp edges on the inside to grip the nut and back it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forrest Gump 9 Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 That's really sux, but AAA FTW!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flippy1974 Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 that sucks . got a dumb q did u take the other 3 locks off while u were at it ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 how much did you spend on towing??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fubar231 Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 that sucks . got a dumb q did u take the other 3 locks off while u were at it ? haha. this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetta2NV Posted June 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Yea Derek I didn't even think to call you but i'll hit you up for sure if i need anything. I haven't taken the other ones off yet but i'm going to this weekend for sure. I went to the discount tire at easton. They were really nice but not very helpful. AAA covered my first tow but they wouldn't cover the other ones so I spent about $300 all together :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Fuck that noise 2x I woulda just made the drunker pay for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetta2NV Posted June 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Oh she has insurance so i'm getting them to at least pay for the tire. I dont think they are going to pay for all the tows :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hpfiend Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 sorry dude... that sux. Now you will probably carry all sorts of tools/lug keys/hammers etc for the rest of your life to prevent this sort of thing from happening again and then if it does as murphys law will prove- the one thing you left out will be the essential piece to the puzzle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xyster101 Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 That blows! They couldn't just beat it with a hammer and a rod to break it off? I had some stuck on my car and they just broke it off and I needed to get a new stud and nut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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