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[Jusme]

Totally agree Chris. Gun set to 'max' to undo nuts, then just reversed to "SLAM" them back on.  But I can imagine at many of the tyre shops I have visited saying to the spotty gorilla, 'could you torque those to 110nm please', getting a reply along the lines of.. 'WASSAT' ?? 

[chrisgixer]

Totally agree Chris. Gun set to 'max' to undo nuts, then just reversed to "SLAM" them back on.  But I can imagine at many of the tyre shops I have visited saying to the spotty gorilla, 'could you torque those to 110nm please', getting a reply along the lines of.. 'WASSAT' ?? 

Don't use them.

[mrgreen]

we had an Audi in the shop a few months back which we had to weld bolts onto every security nut to get them off and even then they took 1 1/2 hours of pain to get them off, i swear by a bit of copper grease or high heat aluminium grease on the hubs and studs, makes my life easier next time the car comes in, this is just pure idiots with ratchet guns and more often than not the last workshop they were at would be the dealers charging them €120 an hour. I know most dealers are the same but VW gets my Goat!!! rip off bastards don't buy one (rant over!)

[robson]

I thought that the torque figure was for dry studs.If lubricated wont they tighten passed the recommended figure

[mrgreen]

I thought that the torque figure was for dry studs.If lubricated wont they tighten passed the recommended figure

it's recommended to oil studs with thin oil but this won't effect the torque value, the problem with over torqueing is you stretch the stud losing the tensile spring in it.

[kcl]

Overtightening also stretches the bolt holes on steel rims as the cone of the bolt goes "deeper" in the hole...

It is very easy to overtighten wheel nuts/bolts and lots of people are, for no reason at all, afraid of bolts coming loose. But how often have you really seen or experienced a passanger car to loosen wheel bolts so that the wheel is in danger to come off? "Never", I assume, is the most common answer.

A wheel under any passanger car is more than secured to stay on with three to five bolts/studs while only one would be enough in sense of strength. And when tightening bolts to 110 Nm or similar figures they are quite tight. These figures are only made to make sure after making sure that the bolts will stay put. More important than exact torque figure is that all bolts are equally tight. And I'm sure some 60 Nm will do as well; if the thread is clean and in condition it will keep tight.

So, in a nutshell, do not overtighten wheel bolts and if you do not have a torque wrench just tighten them by hand: equally tight and when the wheel is "settled" on its place just a quarter of a turn tighter and you have reached close to 100 Nm more or less which is more than enough. Some car manufacturers specify only 80 Nm.

[robson]

Should alloy and steel wheels have the  same torque value. I have heard that overtightening alloys can cause damage.

[kcl]

Should alloy and steel wheels have the  same torque value. I have heard that overtightening alloys can cause damage.

Value is the same. Overtightening will damage alloys too, they tend to crack rather than yield as steel ones.