Well this sucks..RTAB horror..

[321eurotuner]

So i was driving home today and I kept hearing this weird knocking noise in the passenger rear wheel. Kept trying to think of what it could be? Knew it most likely had to do with the RTAB. Im currently waiting for the RTAB's to come in so I could replace them. Mine were well beyond shot...I get home and jack the car up, pray, and inspect...what do I see? 1 of the 3 bolts that holds the RTAB in place had snapped in half :facepalm: WTF?!?

So...has anyone ever seen this before? Now I need a long drill bit/"easy-out" to get this thing out to even replace my RTAB's. Wish me some serious luck :buttrock

[M3amazesme]

This is not all that uncommon. Basically to prevent this from happening again you should pick up the RTAB pocket reinforcements.

[jayjaya29]

A broken bolt is probably better than the whole pocket ripping loose.

[321eurotuner]

Interesting..thanks!! I did some searching, but wasnt quite sure what exactly to search for besides, "RTAB failure, or RTAB sheared bolt?" I have seen the enforcement plates, and I will for sure look into those now. Guessing the drill/easy out is still my only option to help me. Guessing for you all who have seen this mess, its a PITA!

[99MPower]

AKG RTAB reinforcement pockets....

get them done yesterday..

[Andryuha]

Good luck. Those are almost impossible to remove. One of the bolts snapped on my car too and I could not get the damn thing out. I took it to a BMW shop and they spent about 5 hours working on it.

To all those, suggesting reinforcement plates - how are they going to prevent BOLTS from breaking? The plates are installed to prevent pockets from ripping out. His pockets are secure.....

[99MPower]

Good luck. Those are almost impossible to remove. One of the bolts snapped on my car too and I could not get the damn thing out. I took it to a BMW shop and they spent about 5 hours working on it.

To all those, suggesting reinforcement plates - how are they going to prevent BOLTS from breaking? The plates are installed to prevent pockets from ripping out. His pockets are secure.....

1) weld a smaller bolt ONTO the broken bolt and remove...

2) pockets are NEVER SECURE, unless u have welded in the reinforcement plates

[321eurotuner]

[QUOTE=99MPower;22381459]1) weld a smaller bolt ONTO the broken bolt and remove...


yea, this is going to be fun..the bolt is spec'd at 57 ft/lbs torque...how am i going to use an extractor on something like this lol. FML.

[MasterKwan]

spec'd at 57 ft/lbs torque

Without a head, the current torque is basically zero so, this doesn't matter. The only thing keeping it from unscrewing is that you have nothing to hold onto and any corrision that might have built up on the threads (which is why I anti-seize my suspension bolts). My guess is, a hammer head did an alignment, didn't use a torque wrench, damaged the bolt and now you have to pay the price. A properly torqued bolt like this won't snap.



1) weld a smaller bolt ONTO the broken bolt and remove...


Is a good plan or using a dremel tool to put a slice in the bolt so you can use a screwdriver.

[ethereal45]

This happened to me when I turned the socket wrench the wrong way and sheared off the bolt.

I had a more experienced mechanic friend drill through the the bolt using a left handed drill bit, which bit into the broken bolt and broke it loose ever so slightly. He then used an "Easy-Out" and got the bolt out. It took about 15 minutes. Hopefully this will work for you. If it doesn't, well, then you're in deep trouble.

[bmdubbayoo]

if you can get a dremel in there cut a slit across the sheared bolt end and then you can use a flathead to remove it...

[YAOGinanM3]

So i was driving home today and I kept hearing this weird knocking noise in the passenger rear wheel. Kept trying to think of what it could be? Knew it most likely had to do with the RTAB. Im currently waiting for the RTAB's to come in so I could replace them. Mine were well beyond shot...I get home and jack the car up, pray, and inspect...what do I see? 1 of the 3 bolts that holds the RTAB in place had snapped in half :facepalm: WTF?!?

So...has anyone ever seen this before? Now I need a long drill bit/"easy-out" to get this thing out to even replace my RTAB's. Wish me some serious luck :buttrock


This may be damage caused by a broken RTAB and not replacing it in time causing the cassette to move around on the bolts causing wear. Have a look and see of there are any witness marks on the cassette holes. If so this may have been a cause of the bolt failure. Inspect the other bolts before you order a replacement you may have other bolts with fretting wear.

It should not be too hard to get the broken bolt out unless you have a lot of corrosion. While you are waiting for your new bolts to arrive you can install the RTAB pocket reinforcements. No harm in doing this inexpensive upgrade and IMO it's an upgrade any e36 M3 should have that gets driven hard and who doesn't drive their M3 hard?

Drill and easy out not a problem!

HTH!


Good luck. Those are almost impossible to remove. One of the bolts snapped on my car too and I could not get the damn thing out. I took it to a BMW shop and they spent about 5 hours working on it.

To all those, suggesting reinforcement plates - how are they going to prevent BOLTS from breaking? The plates are installed to prevent pockets from ripping out. His pockets are secure.....


Bad mechanic, it doesn't take that long to extract a single well exposed bolt. Drill and easy out is all it should take.

Reinforcement plates don't prevent the bolts from failing. Replacing the RTABs when they start to show cracks instead of waiting for total failure and continuing to driving on the broken bushings breaks things if you keep going.

HTH!

[321eurotuner]

Without a head, the current torque is basically zero so, this doesn't matter. The only thing keeping it from unscrewing is that you have nothing to hold onto and any corrision that might have built up on the threads (which is why I anti-seize my suspension bolts). My guess is, a hammer head did an alignment, didn't use a torque wrench, damaged the bolt and now you have to pay the price. A properly torqued bolt like this won't snap.


I learned that about the torque spec :) thanks! i shouldnt have any corrosion or rust because thank god i have a florida car!! what you said about getting an alignment done...i just had an alignment done but im almost positive that the noise was happening before i had it performed...should i be looking to go to tire kingdom to rip someone's head off?!? lol :devillook

[MasterKwan]

but im almost positive that the noise was happening before i had it performed...

They have to move the rtab pocket around to set the rear toe so, either they didn't notice the broken bolt or they didn't really do an alignment. The noise might not be this broken bolt too. I think with only 2 bolts it would still be pretty secure. Have you looked up at your shock towers? Make sure the RSM's have torn loose?

When I get alignments, I always go back and re-torque. They're either too tight (most common) or loose (happened a couple times). I have yet to see an alignment shop use a torque wrench. Most of the time, they don't take the wheels off so, they can't fit one in there if they needed to.

[321eurotuner]

got the SOB out! soaked it with some pb blaster for a few mins and went at it with a 1/8 drill bit and an extractor. came out nice and easy...im so glad there wasnt any rust or corrosion to make this a huge PITA. thanks for all the advice guys. rtabs being installed along with new bolts ;)