hi all , went to do a bit of suspension work on the car on last sat, started by undoing the wheels , then , bang , locking wheel nut socket broke, ...its the type that has 3 male lugs that fit into the female part on the stud , , phoned vauxhall they asked if i had a vauxhall card with the code on it ??? as they can order a new one in ...... if not they want £80 per wheel ....yea course they do ......any ideas , cheers all . john .

Can you post up a pic of the key pls as i have on here that i got when i broke a car a couple of years ago. if the same you can have it foc to try.
Gary :y

I was in a sticky situation when i bought my car, no locking wheel nut key.
Sounds the same as yours too, with the 3 prong thing.

Yes providing you have the original key there should be a number stamped on it.
If these are original VX parts, then VX will be able to replace the key for a fee.

Other option, like i had to, is remove them by other means..
If they are the same as mine were, they will have an outer shielding which is designed to spin (anti theft).
You need to split this off the rest of the nut using a chisel or similar point hittable device.
Then once shielding is removed, i was able to tap (i mean knock really) a 16-17mm socket onto the nut using a lump hammer.
It should be fairly easy to be honest, as long as you use a decent socket it will take the stress of it.
I used a Draper expert 12point socket, seemed to fit better than the lesser point ones.

Impact socket i ideal for strength, but most of them are lesser points, so harder to knock on.

Anyways, once knocked on, put your breaker bar on it and turn away, should loosen off just fine if on tight. Then before unscrewing the bolt all the way, take off your breaker and tap the socket with a hammer again, mash the nut as much as you like to get it off. Socket should stay intact and then undo by hand once you have the socket off.

And repeat.

This is all that VX will do if you take it to them.
My VX dealer said no they would not do mine as they have broken too many tools in the past.

I did mine by myself in 10 mins...was easy once i got the shielding off each one.

have a crack at it and see what happens.

80 quid per wheel now that's service! man main dealers eat away at me slowly but surely the more stories i hear! i certanly would be going the diy route spinning cap away knock a socket on job done or get the opposite to ezi outs but can't for the life of me remember the name of them anyway the sockets with the grabby teeth!(technichal term!) but 80 quid?? that sort of shit is so unhelpful it makes me want nothing to do with vauxhall >:(

mrgreen wrote on 24. Mar 2011 at 00:17:

80 quid per wheel now that's service! man main dealers eat away at me slowly but surely the more stories i hear! i certanly would be going the diy route spinning cap away knock a socket on job done or get the opposite to ezi outs but can't for the life of me remember the name of them anyway the sockets with the grabby teeth!(technichal term!) but 80 quid?? that sort of shit is so unhelpful it makes me want nothing to do with vauxhall >:(

You mean 'locking wheel nut removers'?  ;) ;) ;)
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_196491_langId_-1_categoryId_165469 ; :y

o-meg-a wrote on 23. Mar 2011 at 19:37:

I was in a sticky situation when i bought my car, no locking wheel nut key. Sounds the same as yours too, with the 3 prong thing. Yes providing you have the original key there should be a number stamped on it. If these are original VX parts, then VX will be able to replace the key for a fee. Other option, like i had to, is remove them by other means.. If they are the same as mine were, they will have an outer shielding which is designed to spin (anti theft). You need to split this off the rest of the nut using a chisel or similar point hittable device. Then once shielding is removed, i was able to tap (i mean knock really) a 16-17mm socket onto the nut using a lump hammer. It should be fairly easy to be honest, as long as you use a decent socket it will take the stress of it. I used a Draper expert 12point socket, seemed to fit better than the lesser point ones. Impact socket i ideal for strength, but most of them are lesser points, so harder to knock on. Anyways, once knocked on, put your breaker bar on it and turn away, should loosen off just fine if on tight. Then before unscrewing the bolt all the way, take off your breaker and tap the socket with a hammer again, mash the nut as much as you like to get it off. Socket should stay intact and then undo by hand once you have the socket off. And repeat. This is all that VX will do if you take it to them. My VX dealer said no they would not do mine as they have broken too many tools in the past. I did mine by myself in 10 mins...was easy once i got the shielding off each one. have a crack at it and see what happens.

It's possible to get them off without even doing this - if you hit an 18mm socket on to the whole thing (collar and all) the collar squashes enough to be able to turn the nut anyway. Did all 4 on my car when I stupidly left the locking key on the nut as I drove away  :-[

screwfix also do locking nut removers at around £18 if i remember correctly   

Likewise I have one sat in my garage that I'm never likely to need, it yours for the cost of postage if its the right one :y

I lost the little plastic box with mine in, and by coincidence my next door neighbour has a Vectra Estate, which had the same key as mine so I borrowed his.
So find a friendly Vx owner, and borrow his. :y