For ease of removal, I would use air tools or a long breaker bar.

However, for putting the lug nuts back on I only use the supplied wrench that comes with the spare in the trunk. My reasoning is if I am ever stranded, I want to be able to remove it with that same wrench.

 

I use a torque wrench set to 80 ft lb. I think my torque wrench is about 2ft long.

 

Do a google search for torque stick. Pic is generic of a set but can be found individually. I bought one that does 75ft/lbs.

 

Best is to use a torque wrench in an alternating side pattern. Do not let anyone crank the lug bolts down to astronomical torque numbers with an unregulated impact wrench.

 

Agreed. I admit I dial my 1/2" impact to its lowest setting which is less than 80 lbs and then use the torque wrench as described.

 

The last time someone used an impact wrench to tighten lug nuts on a car I had, we Had Words afterward. Then I had him try to undo them with the car's wrench. He didn't do that any more.

I don't use a torque wrench, but I do always tighten by hand with the Gorilla Wrench I keep in the car. Get it tight in the air, lower it to the ground, put another big grunt on it, call it good. Go back and tighten again after driving 50 miles or so.

 

I always use my impact wrench when taking lug nuts off and putting them back on. The trick is to know your equipment. I don't sit there with the impact wrench endlessly pounding away until it takes a gorilla to get it off.

As far as getting them off out on the road when you don't have an impact wrench... that's what feet and legs are for. Put the supplied wrench on the lug or nut... place it so the handle is parallel to the ground... put your foot on the wrench and push. The lug nut or bolt will come off.

The worst one I ever had was an '89 Caddy with lug nuts that were so tight that my impact wrench couldn't break them lose. I eventually had to remove the almost 4 foot handle on my pump jack and use it to extend my 2 foot breaker bar and then pull for all I was worth. I was certain I was going to snap the stud off... that's how tight they were, but even they broke lose, albeit with a loud crack! Yes... I have snapped off studs in the past doing things like that.

I'll probably offend the sensitivities of some here with my next comment... I always use white grease on my lug nuts/bolts when putting them on. I have never had one loosen on their own as a result. :thumbsup:

 

i'm a greaser, nearly 40 years now

but only on the far end of the thread though. Torque wrench to 110nm ( eurotrash SI Units to you). If you want to replicate the torque with a Gorilla bar ( i have an extending handle 1/2" drive wrench), use the torque wrench, but try and twig how far past hand tight you go before torqued up. So if the t/w clicks off at 90degrees past hand tight, then do the same with your gorilla bar, and you won't be far wrong.

do them 1,3,5,2,4, starting at the topmost. or do one skip one, it's the same.

 

I was taught a star pattern for lug nuts.

 

I just had 4 new Michelins mounted by Discount Tire and paid $140 for the high tech wheel balancing, as my 560 is very sensitive to balance issues. Last time they did this with my +1 wheels the balance was perfect. Much to my surprise when I picked up the car they handed me one of the lug bolts in two pieces; they said the bolt was cross-threaded and their claims department would make it right. I had my Dayton wire spoke wheels on it so the lug bolts have chrome washers; and it has a three-piece lug bolt containing two ball bearings that is way to complex to describe here in words. Indeed the bolt was cross-threaded and I assumed their insurance would pay for it. Several weeks later and six phone calls and messages later, the claims department said they were not paying anything for it, since the cross threading occurs when the wheels are put on the car, not when taken off. So catch this logic, Discount takes responsibility only for wheel removal, you are shit out of luck if they damage your car when mounting!

The manager agreed to refund my wheel balancing fee; a new lug bolt cost me $35 from Dayton after days trying to figure out the right size. I was able to re-tap the wheel mount threads on the car. I am still trying to find a competent tire shop with integrity.

Oh, BTW, air impact for both removal and mounting, using the lowest setting on mount and finishing with 80 foot pounds accurate torque wrench every second nut.

 

Never ever again will I let some knuckle dragging know it all (nothing) change the tyres with my car at the shop. The second last time I had new tyres mounted I checked the lug bolts 30 km or so later and every single bolt could be tightened. Last time at a different tyre shop they used a rattle gun and I used every ounce of strength in my boots to break the seal on every single bolt so now I only take the wheels and do the mounting myself. Neanderthal does not even come close to describing the level of intelligence or lack of when it comes to tyre changing professionals. :frown



John

 

I use the air impact wrench very seldom and never used it for mounting the wheels. Just don’t want to cross-thread the bolts. As far as tire shops are concerned, most of the guys working there aren’t the sharpest knife in the drawer and I try to minimize them handling anything of mine. So I usually just bring them the wheels and watch them like a hawk.

 

Harbor Freight has Torque Wrenches - usually $10.

 

Agreed on the tourque wrench. The bolts need to 'stretch' to keep them from loosening so proper tourque is key. Go back after a spell, maybe 100 miles or so, and check them again. Get a decent tourque wrench to have on hand if you expect to expand your work on your car.

 

see "my cousin vinny"

for an industry definition of correct torque.

and if i could work the internet properly, I'd provide you a clip here.:frown

 

for an industry definition of correct torque.

and if i could work the internet properly, I'd provide you a clip here.:frown

 

Yes, most of us understand how to get dead-on balls accurate torque.

 

oh, i think I could stand a refresher course



My Big 1/2" drive torque wrench cost £15 15 years ago.My 1/4" torque wrench ( which looks as though it might have come from the same factory) cost £35.99 just over a year ago. When are you chaps going to open a harbour freight near me:crying

 

I torque my wheels and my spark plugs on my car with a torque wrench.

Everything else I use Nobby's School Of Experience torque specs.

It ranges from 1 to 3 grunts and expands to a really long ahhhhhhhhhuug.

Last step is a 6 foot assist handle.

 

I tighten the bolts by hand , drop the car and always use a torque wrench. I’m always amazed how little effort it takes to tighten to 80 ft lbs but trust the factory. Down side of really cranking them down is the possibility of warping your rotors

 

Never, ever use an air impact wrench or breaker bar to install lug nuts. Only ever use a torque wrench.

 

I know people think they know more then the designers (my favorite was the guy who told me you should always tighten them as hard as you can with a 3 ft breaker bar--came to about 300 ft-lbs) but best thing is to torque the wheels to the spec in a star pattern. Never whale on it with an impact gun.

 

Lug Nut Torque

The lug bolts are designed to stretch a bit. The torque spec establishes the amount they are supposed to stretch. Of course 75 is as good as 80, the numbers do not have to be precise. But they need to be reasonably accurate. You should calibrate your torque wrench from time to time. Play it safe. If you find someone has over-torqued your lugs, don't let them touch your car again. Grease monkeys often just dial their air tools up to a high value and start working. I put a sticker on my torque wrench that says roughly what the calibration adjustment should be. It isn't hard to figure out with a bent coat hanger and a kettle ball or weight from a set of weights.

The nuts and bolts MUST NOT BE LUBRICATED. (I made that mistake once and nearly killed my wife. Now she is my ex, so maybe that would not have been so bad.)

The threads on the nuts and bolts must be clean and free of corrosion. After a complaint from a mechanic, I had to spend most of an afternoon wire brushing the nuts and bolts on my 2000 S500. His complaint was annoying, but he was right. They can't be torqued with any ball park accuracy if they are not clean. I remember working on an old Maserati long ago. Another mechanic was awed by the fact that the lug nuts were brass or bronze. I'm sure there are good reasons NOT to do that. But the idea seems good. Minor corrosion won't affect the torque. You really want the lug bolts to stretch accurately.

A star pattern is required when tightening. You must go around twice, at least. The weight of the car may not be on the tire while you are tightening it. That is, the wheel must be completely free to tighten against the rotor or other plate. Otherwise the torque is invalid.

 

The weight of the car may not be on the tire while you are tightening it. That is, the wheel must be completely free to tighten against the rotor or other plate. Otherwise the torque is invalid.

Never knew this. I always hand tighten to approximately 40 ft/lb and then lower car and to do the final torque in two steps (60 ft/lb then 81 ft/lb).

Now I know why Costco used a foot wheel chock to torque the lug nuts down with tires up in the air :thumbsup:

 

Again, follow the manufacturer's recommendations. For example, Porsche says lubricate the sliding bearing surfaces of the lug bolts but not the threads. The owner's manual is your friend.

 

There is no one size fits all procedure for torquing bolts, there are just too many variables. I find nothing inherently wrong with following manufacturers recommendations but they're not necessarily optimal regardless of conditions either. All bolts/studs stretch when put under sufficient load, the idea is to achieve the proper amount of stretch, but using a torque wrench alone does not necessarily mean you achieved the proper amount of stretch. Some say lubricate, others say don't lubricate... the fact is that as the torque increases so too does the resistance to tightening and overly resistant threads will result in an under torqued condition and therefore less bolt stretch, every time.

By the same token... threads with reduced resistance (due to lubrication) will stretch too much for a given torque reading, and weaken the bolt. Engineers, filled with the knowledge required to calculate the optimal bolt stretch do their best to compensate for these variables by making the specs contingent upon nominal thread resistance. Try as you may, it is not likely that simply using a torque wrench will produce the sought after bolt stretch for any number of reasons including the fact that as the actual torque applied to the bolt increases, so too does the resistance due to friction increase. In most applications these variables are tolerable but in some applications the thread/seating surface friction variables are too great to be ignored. In those cases, often times the torque spec will be given at a much lower value (and therefore less dependent on the friction variables), to be followed by a specific number of degrees additional rotation. Here is an example of the type of gauge used to indicate additional degrees of rotation after the initial lowered torque spec has been achieved. https://www.amazon.com/OTC-4554-Drive-Torque-Angle/dp/B003UMRXSW

Having said all of that... in over 40 years of using an impact wrench to install my rims I have never broken a bolt or lug nut nor have I over tightened to the point of creating a problem. Apparently when it comes to lug nuts, close enough is good enough. :thumbsup: