Bummer - removed tire 1 wk after tire store put it on... snapped off the threads on one of the wheel

Bummer. Last week I had to get a tire replaced on my '93 Accord (alignment
caused premature wear) and, today, as I loosened the lugnuts to do some
other maintenance, one of them felt like it was binding. What was I to do?
Honda uses domed lugnuts so I couldn't squirt any sort of lube there. I went
ahead and loosened the nut. Got about 4 rounds off or so and then it
sheared. Great! I bought the car used a year ago, and I don't know what
the PO did with it, but since I've had it I have had the tires off numerous
times, redid the brakes, etc... always tightened the nuts to specs per the
manual. Well, all 4 of the threads on this wheel are lighter in appearance
where the nut meets the threads. I wonder if someone was just in a hurry
close to closing time and overtorqued it. They make a big deal about only
tightening it to specs, use some dippy torque sticks on their airwrenches,
but most of the time I just bring them a tire loose and have them replace it
on the rim so that I don't have them messing with it...

I dread what I will have to do since, when I was doing the brakes (front of
car) a while ago, on the other side I HAD to take the rotor off to have it
turned, I had a TERRIBLE time getting the bolts loose. This side didn't
need to have the rotor turned, so I left it on. That means that I will
have another terrible time getting this side loose.

Anyway, what are the odds that
(a) They will take any responsibility for the problem.
(b) That is actually happened as a result of their actions?

Maybe I can compromise and get them to loosen all of the bolts on the rotor
using their airwrenches and then I can just tighten them close enough to
spec so that I can drive it home and loosen them back myself.

How difficult is it for a machine shop to press in another stud? As a
general rule, should I go ahead and put in all 4 new? What do the shops
charge?

Thanks!
KWW

 

Depends on the shop. Probably not too likely.

Maybe. Your hypothesis is as good as any - that all the studs on that wheel
were overtorqued and weakened at some point in the past. In that case,
whatever the last shop did was the final straw that caused them to break,
but possibly not the source of the original damage.

This might be your best course of action. If you present it to them
carefully and they don't have 1,000 cars lined up waiting, they might go for
it.

If, as you say, there are signs of stretching on the other lugs as well, you
probably should replace them all. It will be easier to drive out the
unbroken ones anyway.

They should just pull in by tightening down the lug nuts (use a spacer or
hang the wheel on it so you don't run out of space in the nut). I don't
think you need a machine shop to do it.

 

Thanks for the feedback! I will have to try it. I guess if I put
neverseize on it or something... but given that the driver's side naturally
wants to unscrew as it rotates, I short of don't want to do too much to
lubricate that side.
KWW

 

Anti-sieze compound is the way to go. I have been using Permatex
(same can) for 20+ years and I put it on anything I screw together on
my cars. Always works great - especially on lug nuts and spark plugs.

 

Heh, I've had the same small can of Never Seez (IIRC) for about 30. It's
like Brylcream - a little dab'll do ya.

http://www.anti-seizecompounds.com/

 

Just bear in mind that when you "lubricate" fasteners that have a "dry"
torque spec, it is easy to over torque. That being said, I also am a
fan of lubing wheel studs but in the forty plus years that I've been
fiddlin' with cars, I just use cup grease...

 

This is a common occurrence at any tire place. A lot of places use an
air gun and do not care if the bolt is on properly or not and also do
not torque the bolts to the proper specs of each manufaturer. I used
to take my cars to this one tire place, and after having them strip 2
for 2 of my cars I haven't gone back to them since for tires. Luckily
I loosen the bolts and re-torque them to specs after I get the car
back, in case I should find that this occurs. This way the shop can't
make up any excuses that you took the car somewhere else.

Nick

 

Finally stopped by the tire place and they wouldn't take "NO" for an answer
in claiming that they are responsible and want to send it down the street to
get a new lug put in. With +140k miles on the car I thought it unreasonable
to blame them for the bolt snapping... it may have been weakened before
then... but they had overtightened it or cross threaded it, that is for
certain. Nice!