# Securing RS4/TT Center Caps - Update P2



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

After some illigitimate barsteward stole the center caps off the wheels on my daughters 225 i'm looking at some way of modifying the replacements so that something like a torx screwdriver for example is needed to remove them.
Any ideas anybody or has someone already done something similar??

Warren.


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

Well there weren't any replies to this and i'm not suprised as i couldn't really work out a way to secure the center caps over the weekend either, not easily anyway.
The only thing i could think of was to drill and tap a hole in the wheel between 2 of the bolt holes that would allow me to drill a hole in the center cap and secure it with a bolt, torx or secure(ish) hex head with the nipple sticking up in the middle so a standard allen key can't be used to remove it.
For me there are 2 issues here though and i would appreciate anybody elses opinion: -
1. Not sure i want to drill the wheels and compromise any safety. I really don't think an additional small hole between 2 of the bolt holes would cause a problem and if it was my car i would just do it but it's my daughters' and she does a 90 miles motorway trip twice a week plus her normal commute so i'm just not sure if you know what i mean :? 
2. I've done this type of thing in the past and they just made a hell of a mess trying to get them off anyway so they still needed replacing and damage was caused to the wheel(s)!

So in the end i just fitted replacements and marked them by engraving the plastic as in the pic below.
So fingers crossed for now as the scrotes know this is an easy money maker :x


----------



## Mark Davies (Apr 10, 2007)

I'm sure some do get stolen to go on eBay but my experience is that sadly many are taken by other TT owners to replace the ones they've had nicked, and in those circumstances your markings won't make much difference. However, every little bit helps so it certainly won't do any harm.

I'd have to agree - I don't think there is an easy solution to securing them. I know some guys just leave them off with a circular cap with the Audi rings logo put in the centre. I presume that's a bit of OEM kit from a different style of wheel. Whether it attaches without modification I'm not sure of, but it looks decent and I suspect less likley to attract thieves. Perhaps a solution if it turns out the caps keep getting taken.


----------



## greyhound (Oct 27, 2011)

i have no real thoughts on keeping the centre caps secured, but just wanted to ask where i can buy replica ones similar to what you have in the photo? i just bought some off ebay and apparantely their not the right ones and fell off straight away


----------



## 14N-TT (Aug 18, 2011)

Hi Greyhound,

Apologies if this a bit wide of the mark, but if you have replica wheels and the centre caps you've bought ARE original, they will not fit properly (as you've already found). HOWEVER, there is a mod you can do to the OEM centre caps to make them fit the replica wheels. If involves trimming back some of the plastic tabs. See below:

http://www.brianwherry.com/rs4_centercap_mod.html

Warren, sorry for hijacking your thread.


----------



## greyhound (Oct 27, 2011)

Hello 14N, no ive got original 18" alloys, and bought some replica caps, it looks like it fits but the clips dont seem to go deep enough, and part numbers were different, thanks for that link, il check my new ones out and see if they can be salvaged,


----------



## greyhound (Oct 27, 2011)

well second thought im assuming my alloys are original,


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

Mark Davies said:


> I'm sure some do get stolen to go on eBay but my experience is that sadly many are taken by other TT owners to replace the ones they've had nicked, and in those circumstances your markings won't make much difference. However, every little bit helps so it certainly won't do any harm.


This is more or less what my wife said except it went more along the lines of "i really don't know why you're bothering 'cos it won't stop them taking them" which is absolutely correct... humph 



14N-TT said:


> Warren, sorry for hijacking your thread.


Not a problem at all


----------



## Dash (Oct 5, 2008)

It might eventually. If they don't think they can sell them on there is no reason to nick them. There is also a slim chance that they do sell them on and somebody reports the seller to the police.

Perhaps as a forum we should get a hub-cap fund together and just buy up them all from ebay and return them to their owners whilst reporting the seller. VendeTTa.


----------



## Neil (May 7, 2002)

Mark Davies said:


> I know some guys just leave them off with a circular cap with the Audi rings logo put in the centre. I presume that's a bit of OEM kit from a different style of wheel.


Never seen this I don't think. got any pics?


----------



## SteveMaybury (Jan 25, 2010)

Is there any way to tell if the wheels are OEM or replicas? Thinking about it, my centre caps, currently off the car for a refurb, are not OEM - the silver rings are flat/painted, instead of being raised metallic jobbies.

Where do I look to see what wheels I've got? They too are desperately in need of a refurb as well but I'm less inclined to spend £200+ refurbishing replicas, if that makes sense...

On ths plus side, if my centre caps are less desirable to the scum of society because they're fakies, then maybe it's not an issue. :?

Edit: Warren - can we assume your daughter's tactic of deterring thieves by leaving the car as filthy as possible was not successful, then?


----------



## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi Steve, With centre cap removed you will see the Audi 4 rings logo etc.
Hoggy.


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

SteveMaybury said:


> Edit: Warren - can we assume your daughter's tactic of deterring thieves by leaving the car as filthy as possible was not successful, then?


LMFAO :lol: i'm going to show her this just to prove it's not just me who notices her car is filthy :lol: 
Every few weeks i give it a good once over, wash, wax, tyre shine, vaccum etc but it's a bit sketchey when she does it because it's cold outside, the water in the bucket gets dirty AND... heaven forbid, if she was to break one of her false finger nails there would be WW3 to contend with :roll:



SteveMaybury said:


> Is there any way to tell if the wheels are OEM or replicas? Thinking about it, my centre caps, currently off the car for a refurb, are not OEM - the silver rings are flat/painted, instead of being raised metallic jobbies.
> 
> Where do I look to see what wheels I've got?


If they are the original Audi 18" old style RS4 the centers will look like this with the caps removed (or stolen :x )


----------



## 14N-TT (Aug 18, 2011)

Steve, replica's often have 10 holes for the wheel nuts too, as they then fit both 5x 100 and 5x 112 PCD.


----------



## SteveMaybury (Jan 25, 2010)

As suspected then, mine are reps - cheers guys. BIt gutted, TBH - and now definitely rethinking whether it's worth refurbishing them. Might look out for some used OEMs once my tyres are worn out.


----------



## gclough (Jun 19, 2013)

Sorry to revive such an old thread, but my wheel caps just got nicked and I had an idea on how to secure the new ones.

My plan is to install M5 x 4mm grub screws into each of the 9 "removal" holes around the edge, which means they will need to remove the grub screw before using the removal tool. It may be enough so the crims just bugger off and get a real life... but if there are any better ideas then I'd love to hear about them. Problems I can see with my plan are:

1) If they have a small allen key, then they can simply remove the grub screw, but that takes more time and preparation
2) If they can't get them off easily, then they could try getting them off with a screwdriver... damaging the alloys and the caps in the process.
3) They could get annoyed, and just punch the grub screws in through the plastic... but that will likely damage the caps and make then less saleable.

I don't live in a terribly dodgy area, but they are just so easy to steal and then flog on eBay that the wankers that live amongst us just can't resist them I suppose. It would help destroy the 2nd hand market and thus the incentive for them to be stolen if Audi weren't selling them for such a high price... but hey, I refuse to buy my own wheel caps (or some other poor sods) from eBay to fund some criminals crack habit.

<sigh>

I'll take some photos when I do the mod, but I need to wait for the eBay parts to arrive:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/310682489538 - Grub Screws (1 bag per wheel)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261183542046 - Tap set to open up the removal holes
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/290622035765 - Cheapo engraver, to put the reg number inside

Even if the engraving does nothing when they are stolen by another Audi owner, I'm hoping they will forget about their misdeed and put their car in for service... then the garage will call me to return my caps.

Greg.

P.S. I just had my wheels refurbished in London by FA Wheels. Not the cheapest, but they did an EXCELLENT job... especially considering the first mob I used screwed them up and then abandoned the job, returning them in worse shape than when they started! http://www.fawheels.co.uk/


----------



## paul4281 (Jan 25, 2010)

I do see what you mean, but I think they would just use a small lever rather than the proper tool to get them off.

One of the guys on here has removed his & fitted small caps to the wheel centre instead.


----------



## gclough (Jun 19, 2013)

Hi Paul,

I see what you mean. The perils of living in London and parking on the street. Oh well, I guess I'll try my mod and see how I get on... do you know where I can source some small anti-personnel mines to hide inside. 

Greg.


----------



## Shootist (Mar 10, 2013)

As standard they take a few seconds to remove with a small flatblade screwdriver. So what you want to do is delay them. So my useless thoughts are either to cover them in transparent vinyl cut a cm or two bigger diameter so it makes it hard to get them off or to perhaps use hot glue to stick them in place and then you would have to use a hot air gun to melt the glue to remove.

Must admit that as they sell for £25 each on eBay it is always going to be a desirable item to steal 

Looking at that earlier image with a spline security bolt it makes me wonder if all the audi TT security bolts fitted as standard are the same key


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

I came up with a fix for this problem, not quite as neat as Greg is suggesting doing above but it seems to have stopped them getting stolen... fingers crossed now i've typed this and tempted fate! :?

Warren.


----------



## EscapeOfficer1 (Jul 19, 2010)

I've painted my wheels and caps old english white/cream which make them unresaleable - hopefully..!

Touch wood, not been nicked in 7 years...



















EO


----------



## tommy_stev (Oct 28, 2012)

I have recently had my wheel caps stolen which wound me up so much, it's prompted me to write my first post! Nonetheless, I've found the advice here really helpful for fitting some new ones, so though I'd share my experience. Upon inspecting my alloys (9 spoke, RS4s) after the wheel caps got stolen I discovered that the alloys are 19" replicas which was a bit annoying. However, I decided to buy some cheap replacements on ebay for £19.66 from a seller named autotechnic88, based in Hong Kong:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Audi-TT-Coupe ... 2a2fce3db3

Hopefully, these cheap replacements will be less attractive to thieves and not so expensive if I have to replace them again! They arrived within two weeks and whilst they're sadly not the nine pin originals, they do a job. They needed the modification described here:

http://www.brianwherry.com/rs4_centercap_mod.html

However, this was fairly easy to do. I used a hacksaw rather than the wire cutters mentioned in the article but next time (hopefully there won't be a next time) I'll buy some of the wire cutters as this would be much quicker.

As recommended above, I've engraved "STOLEN FROM .... ..." on the inside of the wheel cap. I went over this with a white tip ex pen so hopefully it will be a bit more obvious to thieves at night. I also wrote the same on the opposite side of the wheel cap with a permanent black marker pen for good measure. In addition, I've engraved my numberplate on the front of the wheel cap, in between the pins. As there are six pins there is a bit of space for this. It actually isn't too obvious unless you're looking for it and hopefully its an added safeguard against thieves.

Anyway, I'm pleased to have some centre caps back as the TT never looked right without them. I just hope they stay with me this time! Finally, I thought it was worth noting that I contacted the police about having them stolen. I really didn't expect them to do anything about it but to be fair they were really good about it. I got a visit from a police officer, a community support officer, a phone call and a letter! If anything, they said that they tend to find these things when the raid peoples houses for one thing or another so reporting such crimes can help them with charging people for handling stolen goods (another reason to put your number place on them!)


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

Well it's been a little while and all has been good and the center caps have lasted now that they're secured... until a couple of nights ago!
Wife & i sat in bed reading (been together nearly 30 years!) and heard a cracking noise from outside, got up to have a look and there is scrote prising the caps off my daughters car :twisted: 
Anyway after he'd broken the first one and had a pop at the second one he jumped onto his cycle and rode off into the night before i could do anything.
It's amazing how the 2 he had a go at were on the side of the car furthest away from and in the shadow of the security camera, they're not stupid are they.

On the plus side he didn't get away with anything saleable or useful but on the down side he did make a bit of a mess of the wheel because the cap didn't simply pop off, the price paid for securing them i guess :?










So i need one OEM center cap if anybody has a spare they want to sell, part number 8D0601165K.

Warren.


----------



## Pot Of Jam (Jun 17, 2011)

Thieving bastards! 

Take it a security light would be akward to fit? That would be my first thing, light the buggers up so all can see them.


----------



## warrenstuart (Mar 3, 2010)

Pot Of Jam said:


> Take it a security light would be akward to fit? That would be my first thing, light the buggers up so all can see them.


We have a security light but the car was parked furthest away from it and again he was crouched down at the side of the car so as to shield himself from it. Switched on fella :evil:

Warren.


----------



## LOWBOYTT (Dec 4, 2016)

gutted mate!! hopefully he will get his comeuppance


----------

