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[Jimbob]

Had a pair of new tyres on the mum bus in the week.

During REMOVAL! one of the wheel bolts sheared off.

Ive managed to remove the broken bit, which was seized in.

I now cant get a bolt to thread in.

Also, annoyingly wanted to MOT it next week and a missing bolt is a faulure I beleive.

Options.
1, silicone sealant the remaining external bit in the hole to get me through the MOT as time is awkward at the moment. (a very short term 'fix')

2, tap and die set to try and clean up the thread so a bolt will go in, trouble is I dont have the right size (M12 x 1.5 I think) or get garage to do this?

3, New wheel bearing, hub and brake disks and pads while im at it.


Any better plans or advice?

[Kevin Wood]

Take it to an engineering shop and have them run a tap through it.

Or, if the thread is knackered rather than dirty, new hub.

[b4ndit]

go and see my mate at AA Automotive and tell him i sent you and he will run a tap through it for you his name is Jim

[Nick W]

Carefully running an M12x1.5 down any remaining thread is your best bet. If that doesn't work then a new is top of the list.

M12x1.5 is common on cars(wheel threads and fuel fittings mainly), but isn't the favoured metric thread which are either 1.75 or 1.25 so you will probably have to order one.

[Jimbob]

Cheers all, AA Automotive sounds like it could be a plan, Convienient local recommendation

[BazaJT]

It is dangerous to drive with less wheel bolts/nuts than manufacturer intended and I believe if caught you can get nicked for doing so?

[Andy B]

I'd expect a lot of small garages to have the correct tap. When my lad was trying to be a clever clogs & run a wheel bolt IN using my windy gun he managed to cross thread one ..... as I said he would  ..... and a local garage lent me a tap

the M12x1.5 sounds about right ....... you can always take a bolt with you to match up 

[Andy H]

1. I wouldn't rely on silicone to keep the bolt head in place - chances are it will get flung out and through someones windscreen (& taking a vehicle for an MOT & deliberately trying to hide a serious fault is probably a criminal offence )

2. I try not to use a tap in an existing thread until I can be sure it won't destroy the old thread by cutting a new one. I would be sat by the wheel hub with a rat-tail file carefully filing away the core of the old bolt until I was able to pick out the remains of the threads.

3. a new / second hand hub should be the last resort but might be the quickest way of getting going again.

[Andy B]

.... I would be sat by the wheel hub with a rat-tail file carefully filing away the core of the old bolt until I was able to pick out the remains of the threads.
 ......

the remnants of the old bolt is out, Jim will be OK if he uses a 1st/taper tap 

[05omegav6]

It is dangerous to drive with less wheel bolts/nuts than manufacturer intended and I believe if caught you can get nicked for doing so?

Not advised, but can be done in an emergency...

[Jimbob]

For the record, not looking to bodge, want it fixing properly, preferably on Monday.
Time extremely short currently as back and too hospital daily with my eldest, along side usual work and family commitments

Glue idea purely to get an MOT while I fix, and REALLY not a route I want.

Ive been left up the creek and trying to make the best of it.

Im sure the thread just needs a light cleaning up, my tap set has m10x1.5 or m12x1.75, so close, but so far!

Amazed how it happened, as I know it was put in correctly, to the correct torque, and removed with a bar, not gun.

[Broomies Mate]

Pull up to MOT station, stick some parcel tape over the hole.  Fix at your earliest convenience. 

[Andy H]

If you are just looking to clean up the thread then you can grind a series of slots in a spare bolt (so that it looks like a proper tap) - using lots of lubricant (eg plusgas) work it in and out of the bolt hole and use it to clean the crud out of the threads.

[05omegav6]

Is it front or rear? Rear hubs are a sealed unit, held on with four bolts iirc... Fronts should just be the flange and possibly a new hub nut...

[Jimbob]

Tis the front