Bad aluminum wheel exp

[Uniquedreamz]

I had to go to Edmonton yesterday afternoon (about 45 min north) on the way back I took a service road so I could race a buddy in his 3.4l Camero. After he gave up I went back to the main hwy and headed home. About 10 miles from home my steering wheel got a slight shimmy, then it got more noticable so I pulled over to investigate. Nothing out of the norm so I kept going. Again it got a little worse so I slowed down to 80k for the rest of the trip. When I got back into town it was VERY noticable so i stopped and checked the front end ...again. Nothing, so being only a few blocks from home I figured I'd get home and call my mech bud. Turned to the left off main drag onto my steet an BOOMBA BABY!!!!! the passenger front side drops, I see smoke coming out of the wheel well so i hammed the brakes. I got out and my front pass wheel was sticking out about 6" from the wheel well on the fender moulding holding the rotor and drive shaft (and the front of the car) about 2" off the ground. I looked back in the intersection and saw 3 of my 5 lugs and bolts (sheared off in the lugs) laying on the road. The tire shop just rotated my tires like 2 weeks ago, and yes I went back after a couple days and they hand torqued the lugs again.

Bottom line is, when you're using an "aftermarket" rim especially on a w-body (due to the excess in brake heat) for the extra 20-25 buck it'll cost at the time it is VERY VERY VERY highly recomended that you have all the wheel studs replaced. Anything over and above factory torque setting and you too could have as much fun as I did last night. According to GM and the tire/wheel specialist at Kal-tire these studs only have a span life of 6-12 months MAX if factory torque is exceeded as they were not made from the best grade of materials. The wheel bolts weren't that bad and the rim is fine after a touch of grinding in one hole to clean it up, but it did a real good job on that front fender. The door won't open now and the whole panel is shifted up and back with a bad hump about 4" ahead of the door crease.

Thought I better share this as I see a lot of guys going to upgraded rims.

[GnatGoSplat]

You should never go above factory torque recommendation.

 

I had this happen on the 88 Cutlass with aftermarket wheels, but that was mainly because aftermarkets are lugcentric so you have to retorque them after so many miles and I failed to do that. I hadn't realized the extra maintenance lugcentric requires over hubcentric.

[GP1138]

Hey, at least you didn't fingertighten the three lugnuts you had on your right front, and drive off down the highway. I had brake problems already, and it just seemed like that was why my steering wheel was so shaky. Needless to say you can still see where my rotor scraped the ground for about a 1/8th mile. This was in the middle of winter, and my car was so low on gas that the fuel all ran to the right side of the car, and I stalled and couldn't get it restarted. If I hadn't had my old cell phone and thought to collect-call my house, I'd have been stuck.

 

So yeah, proper torque is important. Being a 2.8 owner, I guess I still have to learn what torque is all about...

[midnight rider]

I had tires put on my 65 mustang and discovered after 3 miles or so that the guy who owned it before me put the wrong wheel studs in it. When the tire sop torque it, the studs stripped and they didn't notice it. after driving for a couple of miles I did. I eneded up pulling the hubs and having new studs welded in place beacuse they had fucked the holes up so bad.