Stuck wheel bolt horror story
04-16-2002, 06:49 AM
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Stuck wheel bolt horror story
FWIW, always ensure that your wheel bolts are greased before installation and that they are properly torqued to 120nm. You have NO idea how difficult those bolts can be to remove if they decide to revolt.
It took a whole bunch of people hours and hours to get my 2 stuck bolts off the hub, and eventually the solution called for drilling them out to a point where the 'head' came off, removing the wheel and then lubing and vise-gripping the offending studs out of the hub.
No damage (thank God!) to the hub, but the wheel needs a painting for sure - one of the tried and failed solutions was to weld another bolt to the now-rounded head of the offending bolt, but even that didn't work!
If it ever happens to you, the eventual solution was a 1/2" cobalt drill bit + a good quality workshop drill + about a half gallon of sweat - those bolts are VERY hard, and we went through 5 or 6 regular drill bits before using the cobalt one (which really worked great).
It took a whole bunch of people hours and hours to get my 2 stuck bolts off the hub, and eventually the solution called for drilling them out to a point where the 'head' came off, removing the wheel and then lubing and vise-gripping the offending studs out of the hub.
No damage (thank God!) to the hub, but the wheel needs a painting for sure - one of the tried and failed solutions was to weld another bolt to the now-rounded head of the offending bolt, but even that didn't work!
If it ever happens to you, the eventual solution was a 1/2" cobalt drill bit + a good quality workshop drill + about a half gallon of sweat - those bolts are VERY hard, and we went through 5 or 6 regular drill bits before using the cobalt one (which really worked great).
04-16-2002, 07:18 AM
#4
Gone through this on a 500SL in the past. Do you have O.E. wheels?
I had 3 of the bolts seized when I did this car and it was a total bitch. I ended up going through 4 cobalt bits and a long shank diamond cut die grinder bit. The reason: the bolt material reacted with the chrome on the wheel.
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04-16-2002, 07:52 AM
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Give this man a prize!!! Some of you know I was in the tire biz for a few years, can't tell >>
<center><img src="http://www.oso3.nws.noaa.gov/asos/images/Permatex.gif"></center><p>you how many times we were drilling/tapping/
extracting/etc.... And sometimes it was very ugly! High end wheels destroyed, etc.. When you have to resort to the air chisel, all bets are off. If you're not already using Anti-seize on your lug bolts, it would be an excellent investment to make. Some of the best insurance out there. When I was working on Sprint cars, we used it on just about everything. Lots of Aluminum and dissimilar metals, being introduced. It doesn't take a whole bunch of it, but it does wonders in keeping things "moveable" when needed.
I use Permatex, but any brand will do. You DON'T have to smear the stuff all over, a little bit goes a long way. Make sure to clean the bolts, studs, nuts, etc.. that you're going to apply it to first. It may save your bacon.
extracting/etc.... And sometimes it was very ugly! High end wheels destroyed, etc.. When you have to resort to the air chisel, all bets are off. If you're not already using Anti-seize on your lug bolts, it would be an excellent investment to make. Some of the best insurance out there. When I was working on Sprint cars, we used it on just about everything. Lots of Aluminum and dissimilar metals, being introduced. It doesn't take a whole bunch of it, but it does wonders in keeping things "moveable" when needed.
I use Permatex, but any brand will do. You DON'T have to smear the stuff all over, a little bit goes a long way. Make sure to clean the bolts, studs, nuts, etc.. that you're going to apply it to first. It may save your bacon.
