How can lug nuts come loose?

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slantysix

SlantySix
Joined
Mar 12, 2009
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Location
Hamilton Ontario Canada
Where mounted on the car for over two months, now they came loose? Torqued to spec's, could someone be after my rims? Any other ideas?
One day good next day loose....
 
steel or aluminum? Did you use a torque wrench?How loose are we talking?Usually steel need no retorqueing but it's not a bad idea to check them. Aluminum it's a requirement to retorque after a few days or a week. This is on a new install though. If yours have been on for a while and have been retorqued previously I would keep an eye on them.
 
1. all , 1 , how many of 4 .
2. bent wheels ?
3. stud stretch , studs not seated ?
4. wheels tight against center hub ?
 
Wasn't there a factory aluminum rim back in the 60s that was recalled because of lug nuts loosening?
 
rusty wheel studs? kept happening on my truck. torqued and also tight as you know what. 3-4 times it happened over the course of a year. thought someone was trying to get the tires at night, but finally figured out it was the rusty studs. cleaned then real well and no issues since.
 
Was on my wife's 2006 dodge caravan with aluminum. Put on almost two months ago, check them every three weeks. Van's 4 years old and the rims are factory. Planning to see my buddy who has his own shop, might just change the studs and lug nuts to new. Dealer mechanics and their air guns like to make them as tight as possible and over time I think the studs might be stretched. I remove them with a air gun, but put them on with a torque wrench. Dealer changed my snows to summer last. Before that never had a problem. The dealer has also broken a couple of studs. Have since learned mopar uses crapy wheel studs on the caravans and is a common problem. Only the front driver side and it was a little low on air. Up here guys like to put blocks under the frame of the car and let the air out of the tires and then just unbolt them....picking up some lock nuts aswell...better to be safe than sorry...vehicals just aren't made the same anymore
 
The aluminum wheels rest on a steel register, against a steel rotor or drum. Without getting into metalurgy what happens when you put steel and aluminum together?

The layer of corrosion on the hub face of the wheel? That needs to come off. When you torque the wheel that layer of corrosion acts like a sponge and will keep the wheel from properly seating. And the newer ChryCo wheels seem to be glutton for it.

Goodyear, Michelin, Firestone, pick your tire company, actually has training videos on this. Believe it or not, there's actually a Fed mandated class on this for OTR tires and another for pass car/light truck (ask me how I know...my certificate's around here somewhere. I had to take the class when Bridgestone bought out the tire shop I used to work for. I had to watch the training video when I first went to work there.)

Get the layer of corrosion off with something gentle. Brown cookie on a die grinder, nylon rust buster wheel on a drill, whatever, then torque to spec. Clean your rotor and/or drum face as good as you can also. There's actually a tool made for air impacts that wraps around the wheel studs to clean around those, too, but a nylon rust buster wheel will do a good job.

Oh, and don't lube your stud threads. That's a dry torque rating. Anti-sieze, penetrating oil, etc, will affect the torque, too. Your best bet is a thread chaser or die down the stud thread to clean it up before you tighten the wheel nuts.
 
The aluminum wheels rest on a steel register, against a steel rotor or drum. Without getting into metalurgy what happens when you put steel and aluminum together?

The layer of corrosion on the hub face of the wheel? That needs to come off. When you torque the wheel that layer of corrosion acts like a sponge and will keep the wheel from properly seating. And the newer ChryCo wheels seem to be glutton for it.

Goodyear, Michelin, Firestone, pick your tire company, actually has training videos on this. Believe it or not, there's actually a Fed mandated class on this for OTR tires and another for pass car/light truck (ask me how I know...my certificate's around here somewhere. I had to take the class when Bridgestone bought out the tire shop I used to work for. I had to watch the training video when I first went to work there.)

Get the layer of corrosion off with something gentle. Brown cookie on a die grinder, nylon rust buster wheel on a drill, whatever, then torque to spec. Clean your rotor and/or drum face as good as you can also. There's actually a tool made for air impacts that wraps around the wheel studs to clean around those, too, but a nylon rust buster wheel will do a good job.

Oh, and don't lube your stud threads. That's a dry torque rating. Anti-sieze, penetrating oil, etc, will affect the torque, too. Your best bet is a thread chaser or die down the stud thread to clean it up before you tighten the wheel nuts.

I seen this many times .Once you clean them up the wheel will stay tight.
 
..our mechanic makes us come back after 100kms - 60 miles to have re torqued..
i almost lost an aluminum rim off my mg and years ago..my dad had a rear wheel pass him on the highway..

On my kids bikes, I was 'blueing" everything because even a torqued nut would rattle off..
 
I would make sure that your brakes aren't dragging or you wheel brg is not going out, that could happen from the wheel / hub getting to hot and then cooling and getting hot again.
 
Check everything out, had a couple streched studs. Replaced all the studs and new lug nuts at my buddies shop. Cleaned the rims and discs where they meet. Cost me a coffee and a batch of home made cookies and cost price for the parts. They say know a excellent and honest handy man and mechanic and you'll do fine. I know both for over 25 years. If anyone is looking for performance work or just a great machanic in Hamilton Ontario let me know and I'll hook you up. He fixes, races and knows the modern stuff aswell as the old stuff (mopar and non mopar). Oh yeah also installed some lock nuts aswell..lol...
 
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