Not so true...rotors can become skewed causing premature wear, premature brake pad wear, brake pad fade under critical load ( panic stop ) causing increased stopping distance.. Things that are not apparent to the average driver. The wheel can become bent slightly, instead of a + - run out of .002 - .005 inch you can bend the wheel to run out .025 and up . causing a poor ride, premature tire wear, causing alignment problems .

It is simple to avoid this with a 2 minute torque sequence.. Its simple to do. People who avoid this, will pay for it in some way..

As far as all those thousands of people who don't, they are the ones who need tires, brakes, rotors and alignments more often then those of us who take the correct steps to maintain.

My car has 100,000 miles it has had the original set of brake pads, that lasted 70,000 miles and the present set. it had the original rotors which are still perfect, in a box, that I replaced at 15,000 miles . Only because I wanted bugger rotors. they have 80,000 miles and they look better now then when they were new. I've had one alignment in 18 years. I've never had an issue with tire wear. Sold my original Run flats, and wagons with 30K on them for 800 dollars. Bought CCW with Michelin pilots ran them for 12 years and put 60,000 miles on them and sold them for 2200 dollars, with no uneven wear.

People who know what is the right way, and still don't do it, are just lazy or stubborn. there is no effort, so why not do it..

It people who use street logic ( millions of people get their wheels put on at a shop where they gun them on. ) those same people go back to those shops for tires, rotors, alignments. I've never had to rely on a shop for anything but a single alignment.

Bill aka ET

 

Race teams use calibrated torque guns... they use precise and calibrated laser thermal temperature gauges to test the track temperature to adjust the tire pressure . AS the track heats up the tire pressure is lowered to maintain the proper tire pressure when Hot.. 2 psi can give the car, 2 extra laps, and add a few laps to the fuel economy and give better stability in the corners. 2 psi can mean the difference between winning and losing. No body wings it at the professional level at the track .

Bill aka ET

 

threads are tested to failure, using non destructive imaging and destructive imaging. they are cycle tested . they are tested to flex, not fracture over time. much like a leaf spring that flexes millions of times over its life. But push that stretch past its torque spec and it will start to fracture the root. the fact that most tires only come off once or twice a year for most people is the reason that more significant damage does not occur.

 

I said what I had to say and I will not t say any more because this is a dead subject that always ends with someone getting pp hurt and I don't feel like arguing points like brake and tire life that have to many other variables than wheel torque.

 

No need to argue, this is a discussion.... my point was that if so many other factors effect tires, brakes, and rotors, for the one or two times your wheels are removed a years, why not torque them.. its one less thing that contributes to poor maintenance issues. as I said , stubborn or lazy... there is no other logical reason not to do it. it takes two minutes and I defy anyone to say that torqueing to spec will have a negative effect on anything.

No arguments, anyone can do what ever they want to their car.. its has no effect on me.
I'm just offering good sound procedural advice. That's what I've been doing here for the last 16 years. Offering logic, facts, options, etc.. never holding a gun to anyone's head. Being informed is a good thing... having alternative points of view.. is also a good thing. People can make up their own mind if something is note worthy, or just hype.

Bill aka ET

 

It seems to me that when someone is met with logic and facts, they get their panties in a bunch. Everyone has a right to their opinion. When members don't have options or different points of view, they cant make educated decisions..

Those without viable facts to support their claims, they always seem to get their panties in a bunch. When someone offers facts to support their claims, those with empty claims feel its an argument.

 

Now, I have to ask. A month or so ago, in another thread about the age of tires, you castigated me for selling my original 4,000 mile Z06 tires to a dealer when I bought new ones. Thoroughly chastened , I began to feel bad about my decision but not enough to return the four hundred dollars I received for them.

Today, as a self professed expert who never posts about anything you are not an expert on (your words!), we learn you sold somebody a twelve year old set of tires with 60,000 miles on them. While I have tremendous respect for your mechanical knowledge and opinions, please tell me I need not be concerned about your sincerity. Or, is this a classic case of what is good for the goose is not necessarily good for the gander!

 

The guy begged me to sell him my wheels.. He knew their age and promised to replace them.. which he did. I was too sick and in the hospital at that time.. Tire age was not on my mind for 3 or four years. I don't have to explain myself.. but everyone who knows me knows that in 2013 I was given two years to live with advanced stage cancer..

Its always nice to see people try to dissect what I say in an effort to somehow discredit me.. IM here on Very borrowed time. trying to keep my sanity. So thanks for the kind words...

Bill aka ET

At the moment I am in remission taking poisons in a clinical trial program which has been physically devastating but on the other hand IM still alive.

 

I've been a tirerack installer since 2002, and have torqued over 40,000 lug nuts ALWAYS by hand with a good torque wrench. By using a torque wrench, you can feel what's going on which you cannot do with a impact, or the stupid torque sticks. I do use my IR cordless impact to remove, and run them back on close to final torque. I can usually get within a 1/4 turn of where it needs to be to finish with the torque wrench. I don't use anti-slease ever on studs. If they have a lot of drag from corrosion, I might use a little WD-40 to free them up a bit. I also always final torque all 4 wheels in the same sequence every time, so I won't forget one. I start at the LR, LF, RF, and when I get to the RR even while talking to someone, I know I got them all.

 

When I started this Thread and asked a simple question (or at least I thought it was simple) regarding torquing lug nuts, I did not think the Thread would get into psycho analytical personality evaluations on those that post replies. WOW!
Anyway, yesterday I ordered a torque wrench for tightening my lug nuts at the 100 lb measurement suggested by many. Thank you all for your suggestions.

 

IM happy that your ordered a torque wrench.. I hope my input along with others was instrumental in this decision.. There is no reason not to do this simple task properly, those who say its no big deal, not necessary, etc.. that's ok with me.. as long as I can offer my expert opinion and allow the members to make up their own mind.

Many of those same people will say its ok to use regular fuel in their high compression engine on a regular basis because its says you can use regular in the event that premium is not available. Same with using Dino oil that says 15,000 miles.. and they will run 15,000 miles even if it takes 3 years to get there. they don't have a clue that this engine runs hotter by design and requires a specific heat additive to the synthetic oil. Its a spec that was given to this engine design in a Y body frame. Too many people think this is their grandfathers Buick, and use 1960's thinking to say, its not necessary. my grandfather was a mechanic for 40 years and that's the way he did it.

that type of thinking was the main reason that it was common knowledge to get ride of a car before it hit 60,000 miles. With so many C5's and LSX motors runni8ng strong at 200,000 , 300,000 and 400,000 with no internal issues when properly maintained, its obvious that 1960 thinking no loner applies.

Bill aka ET

 

it is pretty funny this turned into 4 pages of comments on lug nuts

 

Somehow I doubt it is done yet.

 

it must be of some interest since 1900 people have viewed this thread. Lots of people are interested in good information and do not want to post in open forum. The reason I know this is I get Pm's all the time from people who do not want to post in open forum..

Torqueing is something anyone can do... Many enthusiast want to be pro active with their car and just need a little direction and confidence.

Bill aka ET

 

4 Pages??? We are just getting started!

 

Imagine how long it would go on if Brad Penn made lug nuts ...
_

 

I am one of the few racers on the forum.
No question--torque to spec or lose a wheel and worse.
On the street it's the same.
Good luck and keep them tight.

 

I am curious, how do you set an impact wrench to 100 lbs? Are you referring to 100 lb-ft torque or 100 lb/in2 air pressure?

Not trying to be a dick as I have had a case where I needed 350 ft-lbs torque which my impact gun can generate (max rating is 450 ft-lb) but no clear way to ensure I put 350 to the fastener.

 

In applications where weight is of great importance, such as aircraft, torque values are critical. The engineer will choose materials and fasteners that just meet the strength requirements, but no more. If a fastener is under-torqued the assembly will not have the required strength. If it is over-torqued the fastener is closer to its failure point and again the structure will not have the required strength. With road-going cars, engineers have the luxury of building in extra weight and strength. They have always done this with wheel studs, realizing that over-torqueing is a fact of life. (I don't know, but am guessing that even race car designers give away a little weight here to allow for 12-second pit stops.)
Having said all that, I am OCD about doing it correctly myself.

 

GM always put in a 10 % safety consideration, but since the advent of lean manufacturing, parts are not as rugged as they once where.. years a go you could go to a bearing manufacture and get a bearing with a load value that excided the design by 50 to 60 percent. Now the whole focus on the budget and lean manufacturing, designers are directed to build a design around a plus 10 % max design to failure ratio. in other words if you have a load that requires an 800 lb rating, you can only put in a 880 lb bearing... in years past you could get an off the shelf bearing with a load value of 1200 lbs for the application. This is just a n example..