^%^#@ tire shop

Don-Wi · Mar 19, 2010

Finally rotating the tires on my VW after owning it for a year and a little over 17,000 miles driving. I gotta say the nimrod that put those tires on it at the dealer did an outstanding job of laying on the impact wrench to tighten the bolts, as now there's a couple that don't wanna come out.

I walked away for a minute to collect myself, and I'll have to let it back on the ground just to keep the tire from spinning, and hopefully it'll break loose. I put a block in front of the tire to stop the rotation, but after 140 ft lbs. of tourque on the wrench it still slipped some... Manual says go to 88 ft. lbs...

Gotta love idiots. Atleast now if i break down on the road, I know I should be able to break the bolts loose with what I have, instead of needing an 18" breaker bar w/a 18" pipe to get them loose....

I'd call the dealer I bought the car from (ford dealer), but that wouldn't get me anywhere except madder.

Donovan from Wisconsin

Fordfarmer · Mar 19, 2010

Thank lawyers and liability lawsuits....

Anonymous-0 · Mar 19, 2010

The best tire shops use a torque wrench or at least a torque bar on an impact. I've had lug nuts way too tight in the past and also had a wheel come flying off after getting a new tire put on. They should make it law to have to use an accurate method of tightening lug nuts. It's not rocket science but a lot of places have no clue. Dave

CNKS · Mar 19, 2010

The two tire places I go to use an impact and follow with a torque wrench. Even so where ever the vehicle is serviced, when I get home I loosen the lug nuts and torque them myself. That is particularly important for aluminum wheels over disk brakes. I have had short life from brake jobs because of that. Live and learn

tjiniowa · Mar 19, 2010

When I had my tire shop we always used torque sticks on the impact. Never had a problem when used correctly. If we didn't have the proper stick, the torque wrench got used.

Anonymous-0 · Mar 19, 2010

I think we had idiots long before we ever had lawyers.

Red1 · Mar 19, 2010

The only impact wrenches I ever used were at truck stops, growing up in the late 60s and working in a small town service station...pumping gas and fixin tires....never used anything but a 4 way or universal wrench..

omahagreg · Mar 19, 2010

When my FedEx Home Delivery truck was delivered, it did not have a spare-not even a wheel. I found some mounted, but never run 19.5 tires, then proceeded to get some wheels. Because I had a rural route-driving 350 miles per day-calling for help would cost a small fortune. The lug nuts on that thing were 1 5/16"! SO, I got myself a 3/4" drive breaker bar, and then also took a 4'-3/4" cheater pipe so I could loosen them. Only had to do it once, and even with about 6' on it, I almost did not get them loose! For anyone interested, here is what the 'beast' looked like. I no longer drive for them! Greg

Goose · Mar 19, 2010

One of my pet peeves is idiots who get their jollies by hammering lug nut all to heck with an impact wrench.

My wife once had a tire on a full sized Blazer fixed at a local tire store. Several days later, I had reason to pull that wheel for something or other, and it took an 18" breaker bar with a 3 foot pipe to break the lug nuts loose. The owner of that store and I had a very interesting conversation.

BTW, that store is no longer in business. I can't imagine why.

Kruse · Mar 19, 2010

I rotated the tires on the van about a week ago. (RWD Aerostar) I get to the last tire to loosen the lug nuts and I wouldn't budge them with a spinner wrench. WT*&%@#? I got the big breaker bar and was barely able to loosen them. I couldn't figure that out because I do all the work on the van and I NEVER go over 100 ft. lbs. on this vehicle.
Then it hit me. I had a wheel bearing go out on me unexpected about a month ago and had a local shop put on a new rotor with bearings. It was about 25 miles from home and I just limped it to his shop and had him repair it. He has a good reputation around here. But if I'd had a flat out in the boonies, I couldn't have gotten it off. Maybe he just wanted repeat business to replace that rotor that could have easily warped.

Anonymous-0 · Mar 19, 2010

Just think of the feeding frenzy the lawyers would have if a wheel fell off.

dhermesc · Mar 19, 2010

I think we had idiots long before we ever had lawyers.

===================================================

I think they arrived at the same time.

ChrisinMO · Mar 19, 2010

A mechanic friend I knew when I was young once told me to never use a power tool or even ratchet to tighten a nut/bolt/whatever if it could be done by hand with a simple wrench. He told me this just after I had broken a fitting by torquing the bolt too much with a socket. That has stuck with me all these years.

Christopher

RN · Mar 19, 2010

Local tire shop uses impact wrench with a sort of lower pressure valve set for 65-80 lbs. It can be adjusted some, often they run it up to max to take off some truck lugnuts, then reset to lower pressure to put back on. Mag wheels, aluminum wheels get a long torque wrench for final snugging. RN

Don-Wi · Mar 19, 2010

Well, the tires have all been rotated now, and I hadn't even gotten to the worse wheel when I posted. When I got to the rear drivers side, 4 of 5 bolts needed the breaker bar treatment.

Had to put thew bar on the bolt, then jump on it to get a good snap, as the parking brake wasn't enough to hold the wheel from spinning with gradual force applied. Had to be a shock load.

Nothing wrong with that right?????

^%#ing morons.

I think I'm better now

Donovan from Wisconsin

Pat-CT · Mar 19, 2010

Ive always used a wobbler with an impact wrench to tighten all my lugnuts on my personal vehicle. I can see how some idiot couldnt read a wobbler or just used an extension to hammer them on

onefarmer · Mar 19, 2010

At least it didn't fall off. I had all four tires replaced on a w100 4x4 Dodge once. Family owned local tire store. After a few days it just felt wobblely driving it. When I stopped all four wheels were missing at least one lug nut and all the nuts left were loose.

fixerupper · Mar 19, 2010

IF a person knows what he's doing he can pretty well feel the torque with an impact that he's familiar with. Otherwise we use a torque wrench. Seems like most of the service stations used to use the CP 734 impacts on 1/4" or 3/8" hoses, so they couldn't do a lot of damage. Today we have 1/2" impacts available to us that can do some serious torquing.

RayP(MI) · Mar 19, 2010

I take my own torque wrench and torque them myself. That"s all that wrench is used for. Never need to change the setting. Tire dealer is very cooperative about letting me "finish" the job.

ASEguy · Mar 19, 2010

ALWAYS ask if they use Torque Stiks. If they say huh? GO somewhere else! Improper torquing of lug nuts, either in the wrong pattern or overtightening is the leading cause of warped rotors along with heat loading the rotors. Improper torquing of the lug nuts usually shows up 2-3 weeks after it was done>

barn E · Mar 19, 2010

Do your own. No complaints for 50 years. If I ever could balance them................WOW Mount and dismount before air tools and compressor. Still have 4 hand tire pumps. Still have hot patch kits. Smoke like a house afire! Aluminum wheels, 100 lbs., usually take them off with a pipe and T bar. Dave

Anonymous-0 · Mar 19, 2010

If you don't loosen off a torque wrench after use, it won't stay calibrated. Dave

DJM75 · Mar 20, 2010

Don if those are aluminum wheels make sure you retorque them after 50 miles or you may loose your wheel like posted below I have had it happen to me.

Leroy · Mar 20, 2010

Torque sticks do way over tighten them, local shop uses them and they have broken off the lugs for me trying to get those wheels off. They have ruined every lug nut for me by stretching the threads. Stay away from those torque sticks if possible.

Iowa_tire_guy · Mar 20, 2010

We keep the air guns set at a low pressure to snug the lugs down and then finish with a torque wrench. I still get calls now and then about the lugs being so tight no one can get them off and I don't really understand it but they must tighten some with use. I had my 105 lb daughter helping for a while and she would tighten the wheels. It was interesting to see big guys wanting to complain about the lugs being too tight till they saw her putting wheels on using the torque wrench.

And I used to use torque sticks but got to where I didn't trust them.

^%^#@ tire shop

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