My nuts are in pretty rough shape and I am not paying 3-4 hundred for a replacement set. Can a cone based nut work just as well or are there structural issue with that setup... wouldn't want to find out the hard way...

 

There are some aftermarket sets on amazon for less than $50, with positive reviews - if you want to try that route
I have no experiences with them, maybe someone here does

But you definitely need to get the correct fit

 

Yeah, you need the correct style. Mainly to be certain there is the proper surface contact to keep them from coming off on their own. There are tons fo cheap ones out there, even counterfeit ones that claim to be real. I myself will only go OEM because I off-road and I have seen what cheap ones can do - threads ripped right out from the nuts when too much lateral stress was put on a tire. But if you have a mall crawler, go with the cheap ones. Other than the finish not lasting long, they will probably be okay.

 

I need to replace a few of these as well and i'm not really comfortable with no name brand parts for anything that keeps a car off the ground.

I did find Lucky8 sells a set by Allmakes/Britpart for not much money. Has anyone tried these?

 

I'll check them out.... thanx