Background,

If you've read any of my other reviews, you may recall the midlife crisis car saga.  Well, two years ago, I did a bunch of brake work, including a new set of front disk rotors.  These came with right hand threaded studs, but on old Chrysler vehicles, they used left hand threads on the left side of the car (lefty tighty, righty loosey).  This would been very confusing, so I put right hand studs (righty tighty, lefty loosey) in the rear axle as well, thus requiring a new set of lug nuts.  I bought a complete set of Dorman lug nuts from Rock Auto.

They didn't even last a year before they were starting to flake, and they hadn't seen any rain, let alone snow.  Then I got a sliver in my finger and that was the straw that broke the camel's back.  I looked at a few different suppliers, some were two piece design, and others  left me skeptical that they would be any better.

That's when I found these McGard lug nuts that were guaranteed for life not to peel, flake, rust, or otherwise deform, even under the abuse of an air impact tool. 

About the product

These come in packages of 4, which is a clever quantity.  Most cars take either 4 or 5 lug nuts per wheel.  And you can purchase a security lug nut that takes a special adapter much like a key, also in sets of 4.  I decided against the security lug nuts, and went with 5 packages of these, at ~$9 per pack.  These lug nuts are for 1/2-20 right hand threaded studs, and are 1.5 inches long, and are closed on one end.  They appear to be machined out of a single piece, and provide a decorative finish when installed on "fancy" wheels. 

Since the manufacturer guarantees these for life, I have to believe that they are made from a fairly hard steel, with a  high quality chrome finish that appears more durable than the finish found on the Dorman offering.  These have a convex cone seat which I think is generally found on steel wheels; you'll need to make sure that you have the proper style for your wheel.

How well do they work?

These were easy to install.  I used an air impact wrench with the lowest torque setting to thread them on, then used a torque wrench to tighen them to the manufacturers recommended value (65 ft-lbs for my vehicle).  They were dimensionally accurate, and the sockets fit very well.  There was no sign deformation after the first install, but I woudn't expect any degradation so soon after installation.  I usually have the wheels on an off 2 - 3 times a year, depending on what projects I have going on.  I'll update the review in a year, especially if the let me down for some reason.

Recommendation

I'm happy with the quality, oh, and did I mention that they are made in the USA?  With a lifetime guarantee, and with the easy life they will see, I don't expect to have any problems with them.  I'm giving these a 4 out of 5 stars only because I don't have a long experience with them.  In a year, if they still look as good, I'll bump it up to a 5 starts.  In the meantime, I happy to recommend these to my friends and Epnions Readers.

Midlife Crisis Car Reviews:

Buffs better than a flapper. Great Dremel polishing accessory

Very informative primer from someone who shows and judges cars
   
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Give your wheels a lift for a change

Non-contact temperature measurement, with low impact on wallet

Recommended: Yes