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Thread: Wheel stud torque rant

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Brooklyn, NY
    Posts
    294
    My Cars
    1995 840Ci, 2013 X5

    Wheel stud torque rant

    If I got a judge who was also a shade tree mechanic, I could have gotten away with justifiable homicide. I took my car to a shop about 6 months ago for new tires. Today, I discovered their trail of carnage. My left front brake was squeaking, so I went to take the wheel off and apply some goop. My jack pad was missing. In fact, most of the fasteners for the rocker panel were missing. Apparently the goons jacked the car behind the wheel well and popped everything off. No need to tell me! Ok, fine. I tried to break free the wheel studs. No luck. Got an extension for my breaker bar. Got 3 of 5, rounded off 2. Now I'm boiling. Went back to the shop, where to his credit, the owner said he'd make things right. Or not. They could only get off one stud. So I brought the car home and I attached a picture of what followed. Yes, that stud head is almost perfectly round. Why yes, that is a broken Cobalt drill bit lodged in the shank. So when the torque spec is 88 foot pounds for a wheel stud, don't put the wheel on with a f*@+ing impact gun rated for 250 foot pounds! Ok. I feel better now.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Mt. Dora, Florida
    Posts
    2,844
    My Cars
    CSi#18, Tesla S85
    I had the something similar happen to me once. We had new tires and rims mounted, then on a trip on the interstate the next weekend we had a flat. Holy S*&%! After I found braker bar, then STOOD on it to loosen the wheel bolt, it finally came off. All of this in the Florida summer heat and humidity. Livid to say the least. I think they torques them to about 8000 ft/lbs.
    Anyway...a trip back to the shop (where I personally knew the owner) they profusely apologized and made everything right.
    CSi #18 - Car & Driver Magazine 1994 actual test car
    -- Hellrot/Black-Gray (1 of 1 NA CSi color combination)
    BMWCCA E31 Chapter International Clubs Liaison
    North America Representative, 8er.or Board of Directors




  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Space Coast, FL
    Posts
    133
    My Cars
    1993 850Ci
    I've had the old super torqued bolts too, total laziness with an airgun.

    But also a brake caliper put back on rotated 360 degrees (the hose totally twisted) and a couple of wheel bolts sheared off. They didn't mention it and clearly hoped I wouldn't notice. When I pointed it out the boss pointed to a 5 series out front and said 'that's my car, I've got a sheared bolt too - it's absolutely fine to drive' - rigghttt..

    This is why I do 99% of things myself now.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    Stamford, CT
    Posts
    840
    My Cars
    1991 BMW 850i
    Had over tightened lugs on my both Lexus and BMW last year. Was able to get the lugs off the 8, but the lexus was just to damn tight. Had to take it back to where I got the tires the year before. It may have started to become an issue over there, because for the first time I saw them use a torque wrench (I've used them forever and never noticed a torque wrench before).
    My Cars - 1991 BMW 850i - mine for fun, 1993 Saab 900c - mine for fun, 2008 Lexus is250 - my daily driver, 2003 Dodge Durango - my wife's, 1994 Acura Legend - gave it to kid

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    La Costa, California
    Posts
    1,836
    My Cars
    1994 850CSi #125
    "I will tighten my own bolts with my own torque wrench, thank you very much.... it's not that I don't trust you.... it's just that I don't trust you."
    Taylor in Carlsbad

    P=(p x v3 x Cd x A)/2

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Deutschland
    Posts
    279
    My Cars
    1998 BMW 740i
    Quote Originally Posted by CDO5OO1A View Post
    Yep, happens ALL THE TIME.

    I take a rim, one at a time, to a tire guy who I watch mount the tire and balance on the machine.

    Learned this the hard way on a Ford Explorer years ago. After new tires on front, brakes pulsed like warped rotors. WELL 'cause they were, after the tire shop used an impact wrench to re-tighten the lug nuts. Ruined the stock aluminum rims too.
    This is exactly what I do as well, especially after I had a tire shop ruin a set of refurbished 18" Racing Dynamics RGRs.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    SF Bay Area
    Posts
    3,778
    My Cars
    Supercharged 850ci
    This happened to me on a V8 Quattro, I actually had to jump on the extension, the bolt finally came off with an explosion and sparks flying... no kidding.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    orange, ca
    Posts
    2,507
    My Cars
    '91 e31
    Since we're sharing and all...
    Alfa Romeo GTV-6 - finally got a 6-foot cheater bar (no joke) and was hanging from it when I felt a tear in the fabric of space and time. I woke up on the ground with several pieces of shrapnel in the garage that used to be a Craftsman (the good kind) socket that had literally exploded.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Toronto
    Posts
    124
    My Cars
    1997 BMW 840Ci
    You're lucky you got it out. In my case I could not drill it, ended up having to put in a new hub.

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