Breaking lug studs (Rear)

sur_real1

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So, this is really starting to chap my hide! 2 wheel studs broke off on the driver and passenger side a couple months back. So on the drivers side, I had all 5 replaced and only 2 on the passenger side. AND now this morning, another passenger side stud broke off! WTH!

So, here is what I am running:

17x10.5" wheels wrapped in GSD3's.
LFP 3/8" hubcentric wheel spacers with special lug nuts. The lug nuts are designed to squeeze through the wheel and inside of the spacer so it is grabbing plenty of tread.

I am at my witts end!:bash:

Questions I have for the group:

1) What torque is everyone setting their lug nuts too?
2) Has anyone else experienced this problem?
3) What are the chances of a set of all brand new lug studs breaking off after they are all replaced?

This is really pissing me off and I'm about to junk the whole car over this issue!

Help appreciated.

Thanks.
 

ReallyRedCobra

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I had 1 wheel stud break off when I put on my new rims, but it turns out i didnt tighten the nut enough, or at least thats what I think. Also if you have that little washer that they put on you might want to take that off. Maybe its creating some weird off balance with the wheel. Personally I would never torque the lugnuts. I have a 4 way that i use and I get it pretty tight with that. Thats really all you need.
 

srl135

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I am nearly 100% positive that our cars do not have that weird washer, but that must be removed before putting spacers OR aftermarket wheels on. The correct torque for your car is 100 ft-lbs, and a side note is when you guys swap wheels, if you dont know, initially torque them down and then torque them again after a 10-15 min drive around. The wheels form fit more than you would think and lugs come loose, also make sure to torque your wheel lock lugs as well.

::eek:n soapbox:: DONT USE THE LFP LUGNUTS! They stripped faster than a college girl at a frat party! They sucked big time and i had to reuse my stock lugs for their strength and my peace of mind. ::eek:ff soapbox::

but seriously, they did not torque to the proper specs and i quit trying after like 2 of them in a row both stripped out under the torque wrench. When i swapped new wheels on, I had to get new studs pressed in on the rears to accomodate the 10.5" wide wheels that needed the 3/8" LFP spacer (which is a very good spacer, so im not hating on all LFP products) and this was necessary regardless of the wheels because when i torqued down the stock lug with the new wheel, it stripped the stud due to lack of usable thread.

I dont know why your studs are breaking, but my advice is to find some stronger ones such as Moroso or even Ford Racing (I went with 3" studs from a ford performance shop), and have them professionaly installed (aka pressed in) and get yourself some good lugnuts from Discount Tire. Are you running a 10.5" on all 4 corners?? If so man, thats a little overkill for the fronts. The odds of studs breaking are not good, that is not something you hear of all that often, especially when they are new ones. My impression is that you got cheap studs or they were poorly installed and gave way to the rolling forces provided by the wheels.

Good luck and I hope this helps you out cause I understand how frustrating it can be...my wheels had to sit in my garage staring at me while more and more mods became necessary to put them on.
 

sur_real1

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So, I am not having any trouble getting the LFP lugnuts to take thread or stay on the car. I have been monitoring the torque on the lug nuts every week. I have noticed that they do not like to stay tight. As far as what kind of lugs are breaking, it is the stock ones that are breaking. Originally, it would appear that they were overtightened. But with only one breaking off this time and the others staying torqued, I don't understand how that could have happened.

Is there a link to these longer studs? And, I am only using 10.5 in the rear, lol. Why the devil would I attempt to use them all the way around, the car is already a pig. :)

Thanks for the advise.
 

srl135

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that is the mystique to mechanical failure. Sometimes an identical part will fail sooner than others under the exact conditions, could have been a microscopic flaw of some sort that just grew faster to failure than others that were fine, i dont know.

here are some studs that are the same size i just put in:

http://store.summitracing.com/partd...6180&N=700+400105+4294863804+115&autoview=sku

but i got mine from Tommy Vaugn Ford, just called and said i needed longer wheel studs and they set me up and would be at least worth a phone call

http://www.fordracingparts.com/wheretobuy/wdpersonalization.asp?id=83

but im serious about those lugnuts man, get some better ones from DT, they are a lot stronger as well
 

SnkBtn99

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Holy hell .... I can honestly say I have never heard of studs breaking like this. I beat the piss out of my car on and off the track with strock and aftermarket wheels and have never had an issue for nearly 9 years.
 

sur_real1

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Well, as of today, I have broken 9 out of 10 of my lug studs. I think I am at a cross road of keeping the deep dish wheels or just bucking up and getting the longer studs. Thanks for the help and advise guys.
 

Un4GivN

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Torque specs for most American cars is 100 ft-lbs. As for having your studs professionally installed, there's no real need for that. Pull them through the hole with the lug nut and an impact. Are you breaking the studs when removing or installing the lug nuts? If it's when you're installing them, you're probably over-torquing them. If it's when removing them, try putting anti-sieze on your studs when you put them back on. As previously stated, re-tq the wheels after a short drive.
 

sur_real1

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It seems like there is a lot of back and forth here as to which studs fit right or not. Does anyone know which studs I wouldn't have to drill things out to get to work?

Thanks.
 

Double"O"

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It seems like there is a lot of back and forth here as to which studs fit right or not. Does anyone know which studs I wouldn't have to drill things out to get to work?

Thanks.

yeah...OEM replacments

moroso and ARP both require a tiny tiny bit of drilling on the rear...i did not however have to drill on the fronts at all

also some good lugnuts for long studs are Gorilla lug nuts

summit and Jegs carry them
 
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99cob

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I would get the longer studs for the 10.5 rims! put some anti-sieze...torque em down to 100ft. lbs. and ur good to go!
 

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