pani_k

iTrader: (1)

After today's episode, it really has left me wondering, why cars have a spare wheel, jack and a wrench, if you need to generate the kind of torque required needed to move an articulated lorry in order to crack alloy wheel bolts loose!

My brother somehow managed to catch an island coming home last night which caused him a double blowout on one side. So with two spare wheels, my tool box, a jack and 4 way wrench, we left and went to fit two spare wheels to his car (MK6 Fiesta). He couldn't get any of the bolts to budge so asked me to do them. The front wheel came off quick enough although did have to put a lot of effort into it. The back wheel, 3 bolts cracked quite easily but the 4th I spent 15 minutes trying to undo! 15 minutes of ripping my hands to shreds, wrench slipping and rounding off the bolt, in the end I got a 19mm long socket out my tool kit, hammered it on, and used a 5/8" rachet after much grunting and swearing, it finally cracked.

It really got me wondering, if you didn't have a lot of strength, how the fuck could you crack wheel nuts with a 4 way at the roadside? No wonder people call out the RAC or AA to change a wheel if you can't get the bolts off! The only sensible way is by using a long wrench but how many people carry one of them in the boot?

Cars with alloy wheels should come with an impact gun as standard!

botters

iTrader: (2)

they undo easily if they are not overtightened!

CrOwSoN15

As above, people shouldn't over tighten!

Longdog3004

I keep extendable socket bar in my 4i makes life easier...

Glenn_

iTrader: (1)

Torque wrench????

I never tighten locking wheel bolts up either I just give them a little nip up.

paceo

iTrader: (5)

i always have a breaker bar and socket in my motor just incase!

Sonic Boom

iTrader: (11)

When my mate worked for the AA he would be called out to around 5 a week where people couldn't undo the nuts/bolts to change a spare wheel.
Rich

mcst

Shit tyre places will buzz alloys up tight when they shouldn't. Whoever previously had mine off had one on far too tight and i had to spray them for a while and still needed my longest bar and a big swing to get all of them undone. The other side were little more than finger tight!

To the op undoing stuff with your ratchet is a fast route to shagging up the ratchet.

Whenever I have the wheels off at home I always clean the threads and spray a bit of gt85 on the studs and nuts.

Brendan

iTrader: (1)

Is it me just me that uses a smidgen of copper-ease and only torques them up to what it says in my Hayes manual..... and yes I do carry a separate long torque wrench in the boot, I also put an extendable bar in the back of my wife's car too.

Steel bolts and alloy wheels don't mix well, same for the disks. I have had too use pullers to get wheels off on several occasions now, or the old rubber mallet! Most ladies I know wouldn't have the strength, especially if it is a big wheel. The 255/35/18s on the back of my BMW are not light!

caprizetec170

if ya think thats bad try undoing over tightened stupid extended merc wheel studs once spent a day drilling them out after snapping the heads off 3 of them

Psycho Warren

iTrader: (5)

Copper grease stops that. I always skim a small amount of grease on the contact face on the alloy. No mallets needed, wheel just drops off.

pani_k

iTrader: (1)

I must admit I did think that they were all done too tightly and I know I shouldn't have used a rachet but the 4 way wrench was shagged. I guess people must think to do wheel nuts up as much as humanly possible in case a wheel falls off!

But it wouldn't surprise me if a lot of the call outs for the breakdown companies are simply for people who cannot get their wheels off due to bolts being on stupidly tight.

RichieST

iTrader: (2)

You will be surprised at how little torque is supposed to be applied to a wheel nut. Over torqueing is just as dangerous as under-torqueing, there was a member on here a little while ago that lost a wheel on track due to sheared studs from jumping up and down on a wheel brace!

Brendan

iTrader: (1)

Yes as ever warren you are right! and I now do this too!

Also am now convinced the mythical neanderthal Ned and Guy the Talking Gorilla both work for a certain well known company. After having to apply more than 240nM of torque to remove one of the nuts on my BMW wheels! F'ing muppets!

Psycho Warren

iTrader: (5)

I personally think a wheel change should be part of the test. Yes people doing nuts up too tight is an issue but beyond that too many people cant change a wheel for shit, even with the right tools!!

The kind of people who havent a clue how to change a wheel are usually dippy bints and faggot boys who wont get hands dirty that make shit drivers and are the kind of people who blow thier engine because it ran out of oil as they never bothered to check etc. Ie menaces on the road!!

GVK.

One of the blokes I used to do track days with used to stretch his wheel bolts, I couldn't figure it out until I saw him with a long breaker bar hanging off it (He's a big bloke).

Advised him to get a torque wrench, he never had an issue again.

costina

iTrader: (1)

And how to do basic stuff tyre checks oil water etc.

The amount of daft bints driving with flat tyres Ive seen is just plan silly.
My wife went out with a friend in her car windows were misting up she didn't even know the heater blowers could clear the screen

dojj

iTrader: (3)

didn't danny's escos loose a wheel at a track day? possibly ford fair, a few years ago because it fell off?

Iain Mac

I know it is easy to be wise after the event but, whenever I bring a car home after a wheels-off job somewhere, I make sure I can remove the wheels nuts while I have access to all the tools I might need then do them up again using only the wheelwrench that lives in the boot.