Broken Front Wheel Lug (help)

[mjb457]

Ok My PT GT after state inspection...I have it home cleaning it up... I go to remove right front tire ( 4 wheel disc brakes) & I could not budge lug .... finally it came off but snapped (damm) apparently the mechanic crossed threaded it. Now the question is how difficult is it to change one out?? Thanks for tips...I bought a new stud & lug at my local Nappa store... MJB

[quicksilverdon]

They are pressed it. I haven't done it, but i'm told get a punch and knock old one out, then put new in and use nuts to "pull" it in.
Call a tire place - may be worth it to have them do it.

[CREWZIN]

Agree with QSD. If it JUST happened, call the place that did the inspection and tell them what happened. You can drive with 4 bolts, no problem.

[Busted_PT]

As long as there is access from the rear to insert the lug in the hole. I have seen some vehicles where the hub had to be pulled to get enough room.

[randyincctx]

Originally Posted by mjb457

apparently the mechanic crossed threaded it.

Take your receipt,and your 'evidence' back to the shop/mechanic who put it on,because it's 100% his/their fault.....Like you said,he crossthreaded it & probably over-torqued it too!
I gaurantee it took more the 100ft/lbs(MFG torque spec.s) to tighten a cross-threaded lug nut.....He new he f'd-up,probably not expecting you to remove it till you were stranded w/flat tire!

[njsteve1]

Its not hard if you find the notch:

Breaking wheel studs when changing a tire is incredibly frustrating. It can make your vehicle unsafe, as there are less lug nuts holding the wheel in place. Fixing the problem is very easy, and very cheap. With about an hour of time, you can change the wheel stud an be on your way.
In order to change the wheel stud, you will need:
A new lug nut
A new wheel stud
A hammer
A breaker bar
3 trigs
Socket set
Disc brake spreader
Scrap wood
Jack
String

1.) You will need to start by pulling the emergency brake and placing your trigs behind the three wheels that you aren't working on.
2.) Remove the lug nuts on the tire. They are 19mm.
3.) Jack up the car until you can easily slide the tire off, without rubbing the tire on the ground.
4.) Find the bolts that attach the caliper to the wheel assembly. There are two, and take an 18mm socket. You may need to use a breaker bar to get the bolts off, especially if they have never been removed before.
5.) Tie the caliper to a part of the car that will keep it out of the way. DO NOT LET THE CALIPER HANG BY THE BRAKE LINE. This could cause a break in the line, and would need to be repaired immediately for safety.
6.) Remove the rotor. If it has not been removed before, you may need to bang on it with the hammer to loosen it off the wheel hub. Make sure you place the scrap wood on the rotor in order to keep from damaging the rotor.
7.) Put the car in neutral so that you can rotate the wheel hub.
8.) Line the broken stub up with the notch that allows the studs to be removed. The notch is found on the back side of the hub, towards the front of the car. Place the car back in park.
9.) Using the hammer and the scrap wood, bang out the broken stud. Once it is loosened, it should be easy to pull out by hand. Take care to hit it as little as possible in order to keep from knocking the wheel bearings out of place.
10.) Insert the new stud as far as you can with your hand. This may take a little work, and you may need to flatten a side of the head in order to get it to fit into the notch.
11.) Put the rotor back on the wheel.
12.) Using a lug nut, finishing pulling the stud into the hole by tightening the lug onto the stud. Remove the lug nut.
13.) Reinstall the caliper. You may need to spread the discs in order to get it to fit around the rotor.
14.) Reinstall the tire. Tighten the lugs by hand.
15.) Lower the jack. Retighten the lugs by hand.
16.) Remove the trigs.

[rckstein]

Originally Posted by randyincctx

Take your receipt,and your 'evidence' back to the shop/mechanic who put it on,because it's 100% his/their fault.....Like you said,he crossthreaded it & probably over-torqued it too!
I gaurantee it took more the 100ft/lbs(MFG torque spec.s) to tighten a cross-threaded lug nut.....He new he f'd-up,probably not expecting you to remove it till you were stranded w/flat tire!

This is why I hate shops that use air wrenches, even though I know that all shops do to save time! It's fine to use an air wrench to take off the lugs, but not to put them back on. After every visit to a shop where they have had the lugs off, after I get home and the wheels/hubs have had a chance to cool off, I always check them again myself. One shop had cross-threaded a lug, I had to pay another shop to cut off the lug and replace it. But then the new lug would not mount into the existing hole because when the first tech corss-threaded the lug, it spun the stud thereby reducing the ridges that lock in the lug. Had I been stuck somewhere on the road, there would have been no way that I would have been able to get that lug off! In the end, the hub had to be replaced, I presented the bill to the first shop and got reimbursed. Another shop, on several different visits to them, broke (3) studs, (2) on one hub and (1) on another. I demanded hub replacement and they did it! Needless to say, I don't use either of those shops anymore!

[Slowrider]

How To Fix Stripped Lug Nuts On Your Wheels - YouTube

[InfernoGT]

When I first picked up my cruiser, some of the studs were rusty and stretched. I didn't want to deal with them breaking down the road so I replaced all 20. Yes, that's right, ALL 20 But it was worth it.

[quicksilverdon]

Originally Posted by rckstein

This is why I hate shops that use air wrenches, even though I know that all shops do to save time! It's fine to use an air wrench to take off the lugs, but not to put them back on. After every visit to a shop where they have had the lugs off, after I get home and the wheels/hubs have had a chance to cool off, I always check them again myself. One shop had cross-threaded a lug, I had to pay another shop to cut off the lug and replace it. But then the new lug would not mount into the existing hole because when the first tech corss-threaded the lug, it spun the stud thereby reducing the ridges that lock in the lug. Had I been stuck somewhere on the road, there would have been no way that I would have been able to get that lug off! In the end, the hub had to be replaced, I presented the bill to the first shop and got reimbursed. Another shop, on several different visits to them, broke (3) studs, (2) on one hub and (1) on another. I demanded hub replacement and they did it! Needless to say, I don't use either of those shops anymore!

Air wrench itself isn't the problem. They can be set not to over-torque - the problem is the grease monkeys often put the lug nut into the air wrench and then spin it on - WRONG! The nut has to be put on by hand, the more threads the better, then the air wrench can be used, followed, lastly with a torque wrench.