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Lug Nut / Stud Torque

anndel

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Most Toyotas I've worked on is 76 lb-ft torque, including Tacos. The one exception is our 1993 Toyota pickup which is torques to 80 lb-ft of torque.
 
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belvedere

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Since others have shared stories, I will, too. My dad told me about the used '68 Barracuda that he bought while in college (early 70s). (Fans of old Mopars will know that the driver's side on pre-71 cars had LH threads on the wheel studs.) Dad had to change a flat tire on the side of the road one time, and after twisting off 2 wheel studs, discovered that there was a mix of LH and RH studs on the same wheel! He said that he found more than one cobble job from the previous owner of that car.
 

yellowbox

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Since others have shared stories, I will, too. My dad told me about the used '68 Barracuda that he bought while in college (early 70s). (Fans of old Mopars will know that the driver's side on pre-71 cars had LH threads on the wheel studs.) Dad had to change a flat tire on the side of the road one time, and after twisting off 2 wheel studs, discovered that there was a mix of LH and RH studs on the same wheel! He said that he found more than one cobble job from the previous owner of that car.
I remember those, always wondered what genius at chyrsler/dodge thought it made a difference
 

Rinspeed

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I remember those, always wondered what genius at chyrsler/dodge thought it made a difference






Probably the same idiot engineer that thought it was a good idea to put a sheet meal cap over a lug nut.
 
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turnthewrench 2.0

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The thing is that it's pretty easy to torque those things. Takes just a few minutes. It's doing the job right. Why wouldn't someone do it? That's what I've never understood. Even if you're working in a flat rate shop, torqueing lug nuts isn't all that time-consuming.

Do the job right. It's good for the customer and, in the end, good for you, too.

+++1
 

M635_Guy

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Battery impact and a torque stick = loose wheel , they will be undertorqued
I only had a torque stick because my impact didn't have a mode that stopped when the lug was tight-but-not-tightened, and then I'd finish with a torque wrench. (since then, I've gotten impacts that stop when the fastener is seated, so now it's just regular sockets on an impact with a "stop" mode, then finish with a torque wrench.

I'd rather be a little over than a little under, but the torque spec exists for a reason. Mainly I think it's to troll internet know-it-alls to show themselves by crowing they know better, but ultimately it is serving the purpose of being correct and taking the guesswork out of it.
 
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F-22

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This is not recommended per manufacturer direction. Back in the day, I did this too, but no longer. I have experience as to why, accidentally getting this **** on a stud and it loosening.
Personally, I tighten my log nuts enough so that it's not the rust that's holding them on :)

If you use a certain torque to tighten them, they need a certain torque to untighten, and that is the same whether or not the threads are dry or lubed (just the internal force changes).

As it was said, they don't do that from the factory or at the service cause it's messy and takes time. Many service techicians/mechanics don't really know why or why not something is done, they usually follow the manual, so through over a century of cars there are countless myths regarding the technical stuff... Some things are just accepted cause they work, most people don't ask themselves why.
 
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engineer2

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Seating with a hammer is key.
They were so bad I had to hammer the socket on the worst 2 lugnuts, then take them to the workbench to pound the lug nut out. Their mom later told me the van had just had a brake job done.

The theory behind the LH Mopar studs was that they were less likely to work loose if they were under-torqued.
 
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Lucid Moments

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Yes! I detest the idea invoked when a brake job is referred to as a "pad slap", especially in the salt belt. Pad slap seems to imply that you simply throw in new pads and neglect the rest of a complete brake job: clean hub/rotor mating surfaces, all lubed areas cleaned and re-lubed, fluid exchanged, etc..

In line with your mention of run out, just a few years ago I started using a clamp-on dial gauge to check run out during routine brake jobs. I've read that brake pulsation/warp sometime develops after new rotors with excessive run out are used for several thousand miles. The initial run out might be from rusty/dirty hub surfaces or again, present in new rotors out of the box . Sometimes you can change the position (index) of the rotor on the hub to achieve acceptable standards.

For the very occasional DIYer, the Harbor Freight clamp on dial gauge works just fine.
For you and in your area I agree. But down here rust just isn't an issue and pad slaps are the rule rather than the exception. You only change the rotors when they are worn down to (or near) the service limits.
 
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cherrybomb

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I don't remember, but were those Chrysler products with the left hand wheel threads did they have "L"imbossed in the end of the thread or no?It's a ***** getting old
 

richfinn

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_brian_

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I never bought the warped rotor theory either. Most are hats sandwiched between the wheel and hub. Your not pulling it ,your sqeezing it.
I do not at all either. If you look at manufacturers, those that provide "install directions", it will often include a break in procedure, or bedding procedure. They state clearly that is to help bed the pads with the rotors and cause "warped" rotors, which is caused by uneven brake material that attaches to the rotor. Now, I guess I an trusting their statement, but it sure makes a ton of sense to me than the rotor actually warping.
One thing about using Anti seize on lug nuts is if the lug nut covers the end of the lug, you won't get water on the end and rust can't form because the threads are sealed. In the days of steel wheels, the nuts were more exposed and would rust more. Also, if the wheels are not steel you can get galling between the wheel and the fastener, and it will be like they are welded together. I have had to use a breaker bar, with a cheater pipe and a torque multiplier to get the lugs off of an Audi.
It is my understanding that you should never use anti-seize because it messes with the torque. If you look at Permatex, and their data sheets for their anti seize products, they state in all caps to not use the product on lug nuts or lug bolts. They do not state why, just a very clear "do not so this" warning. If you are applying to caps, I would not see this issue, just on the bolt-nut joint, or the bolt-hub joint.

I will also admit that I used to do this, apply anti seize. I no longer do. I never had any issues, until ironically, I started to use a torque wrench. What happened falls in line with my assumption, because the lug nuts, torqued properly, started to come loose. I increased the torque used by approx 20 ft-lb and never came loose again. I have since not used it and clean it off of all I do, and also never since had this issue.
 

F-22

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I will also admit that I used to do this, apply anti seize. I no longer do. I never had any issues, until ironically, I started to use a torque wrench. What happened falls in line with my assumption, because the lug nuts, torqued properly, started to come loose. I increased the torque used by approx 20 ft-lb and never came loose again. I have since not used it and clean it off of all I do, and also never since had this issue.
I won't say it didn't happen, but this is very odd. If you tighten until you have 90ft-lb resistance, then you'll have the same (even a bit more) resistance against untightening. Whether dry or lubed. Lube does decrease friction, but by tightening to a torque value you're essentially tightening until you reach the same friction every time, that's what a torque wrench measures. The "problem" is that when lubed, that friction means you're pulling on the stud with the nut with about 20-30% more force (so you'd normally even need to decrease the torque to not overtighten the stud).


I have never experienced my lug nuts untightening and I swap wheels on multiple vehicles every winter.
 
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_brian_

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I won't say it didn't happen, but this is very odd. If you tighten until you have 90ft-lb resistance, then you'll have the same (even a bit more) resistance against untightening. Whether dry or lubed. Lube does decrease friction, but by tightening to a torque value you're essentially tightening until you reach the same friction every time, that's what a torque wrench measures. The "problem" is that when lubed, that friction means you're pulling on the stud with the nut with about 20-30% more force (so you'd normally even need to decrease the torque to not overtighten the stud).


I have never experienced my lug nuts untightening and I swap wheels on multiple vehicles every winter.
That is the one and only time that has ever happened to me. Otherwise, never had any issues with them loosening. I would say in all the years, 60% of the wheels I have put on a car have been without use of torque wrench or torque sticks. Either by hand with breaker bar or using an impact. I will note though... I think before I do things, so I know better to not use a 3/4 or 1 inch drive impact, and not to go all out with a powerful 1/2 drive impact.

In the time this happened, I was able to confirm the torque of all that had not loosened were at 90 foot pounds as per spec. They were all tightened at the same time, one after one, so the chances of there being an issue of variance is low. They also removed quite easily, but I always find fasteners assembled with anti seize loosen far easier, so I cannot really make a solid observation from that.
 

bubinga

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_brian_

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I wish they made that 18.5 in a regular deep impact socket.
Unless my Tekton deep I'm using right now is slightly oversize,
I dont think Tekton does anything like that. I know that CTA, Grey Pneumatic, ARES and a few others have the 1/2 sizes, but at least here in the US (non tool trucker user), they are still somewhat rare. Even the sets are somewhat mismatched, most of them including some duplicate sizes. I would love to see a full set, flip socket, regular size on one side and the respective 1/2 size on the other. I understand though... professionals tend to like their tools consolidated, one tool to cover two common uses.
 

richfinn

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I wish they made that 18.5 in a regular deep impact socket.
Unless my Tekton deep I'm using right now is slightly oversize,
I like having both sizes in one socket to be honest, as usually I'm dealing with a mixture of swollen lugs and missing caps, it works really well 👍

There's a brand called CTA that might sell something similar in the USA I believe
 

bubinga

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I dont think Tekton does anything like that. I know that CTA, Grey Pneumatic, ARES and a few others have the 1/2 sizes, but at least here in the US (non tool trucker user), they are still somewhat rare. Even the sets are somewhat mismatched, most of them including some duplicate sizes. I would love to see a full set, flip socket, regular size on one side and the respective 1/2 size on the other. I understand though... professionals tend to like their tools consolidated, one tool to cover two common uses.
No, that would be a good idea 💡
 
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