Spare Tire Security
My spare tire was stolen last week so I ran a thread in the wheel/tire section which addressed solutions I'm using to prevent a reoccurrence. Thinking this might (or might not) benefit the general Tundra populace, I'm posting it here.
I bought the Toyota spare tire lock which essentially provides a specially keyed male fitting to turn the spare tire lift mechanism while blocking access using the std "hooked" end that we all got in our Tundras. While installing the lock, I noticed it was possible to reach up/over the spare and turn the lift mechanism by hand. This could, of course, defeat the lock mechanism.
To deal with this, I used a 4in piece of 3in square steel tube and secured it around the lift mechanism shaft/lock (see the gallery for pix). It doesn't entirely prevent access to the shaft, but makes it much more difficult to rotate manually. I'm going to eventually fabricate an improved steel tube to cover the entire shaft and probably weld it in. I also welded an old oil filter wrench to the lift plate to block access to the cable end (see pix).
If you look at the pix you can also see a length of cable exposed between the frame down to the lift plate. It might be possible to get a lock cutter in that space and cut the cable, so I plan to fabricate another steel tube to cover the exposed cable.
Overboard? Maybe, but I'm not particularly anxious to spend $200 and another day searching for a spare tire lock, 16x7 steel rim, and same size tire...or worse discovering the spare is gone when you really need it. PS - I also recommend wheel locks. Tis the world we live in...
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2003 Tundra 4x4 TRD Limited EC
Daystar 1in front lift, Hellwig Swaybar, Front Window Tint, Weston Wheel-Wheel Stepbar, Auto Dimming Mirror, Line-X Bed(group buy), TRD Dual Exhaust, Bridgestone 265-75R16 Dueler AT Revos, Load C
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