how much to torque wheels?

[delguini]

So i just put my summer tires on and i was wondering at what pressure should i torque the nuts at? I remember with my prelude it used to be at 80lbs. while doing it yesterday, 80lbs didn't seem all that tight so i did it at 90lbs... does that sound right or should i torque them a little tighter?

Thanks
Joey

 

[joneb4evr]

I always thought all wheels needed to be torqued at 100ft/lbs. Then again after a day of driving.

 

[BlackCherry06]

Steel wheels get 100, aluminum get 85.

 

[ProtegePower]

are stockers aluminum or steel?

 

[BlackCherry06]

If you're referring to the wheels in your sig pic, they're aluminum.

 

[ProtegePower]

thanks

 

[aMaff]

Steel wheels get 100, aluminum get 85.

Wtf? That's new. The owners manual says what to torque them to. I usually stay within 70 and 80 lb/ft. Go too much higher than that and you risk stretching the lug studs, hurting the threads, and generally making it liable to have one shear off next time you take 'em off

 

[joneb4evr]

D'oh. I'll have to look at my manual. I just tighten them until I can't tighten no more. Hmm, that's about 500 lb/ft. NOT GOOD!

 

[aMaff]

LOL yeah, that may be a little much.

 

[MTV]

I don't have an air gun so I just spin them till I can't anymore.

 

[aMaff]

Me neither. Torque wrenches are your friend. You can get cheap ones for <$50 that will do the job of tightening wheels just fine. Air guns are the most inaccurate things anyway...

 

[P-Funk!]

Because you need to be able to remove them using that dinky lug wrench in the back... ;0

 

[i12drivemyMP5]

Tight enough for the wheel to stay on & loose enough to not break the wheel stud. Oh, you mean people really use torque specs & torque wrenches to put their wheels on the car other than for race applications? (THAT WASN'T REALLY A QUESTION) I've never used torque specs or wrenches on any wheels on any car/truck I've ever had, never broke a stud off (at least not by accident), & never lost a wheel while driving. Just lucky I guess.......Uhhhh, yeah, that dinky oem lug wrench doesn't even fit in the lug holes of my rims so I carry the nice 2' long 1/2" drive breakover bar with a 6 pt socket instead.

 

[BlackCherry06]

My owner's manual states:
Nut tightening torque
Nm (kgfm, ftlbf)
88―118 (9―12, 65―87)

You've got some serious wheel stud issues if 85 ft-lbs strips or damages them.

 

[aMaff]

Yeah, if you're reasonable with it, even going to 90 *probably* won't hurt anything. It's not like doing this 1 time is going to break them, but if you're like a lot of us that do work on cars and have the wheels off every other week, over time you'll start to do some damage to them if you're not careful with things.

 

[joneb4evr]

Tight enough for the wheel to stay on & loose enough to not break the wheel stud. Oh, you mean people really use torque specs & torque wrenches to put their wheels on the car other than for race applications? (THAT WASN'T REALLY A QUESTION) I've never used torque specs or wrenches on any wheels on any car/truck I've ever had, never broke a stud off (at least not by accident), & never lost a wheel while driving. Just lucky I guess.......Uhhhh, yeah, that dinky oem lug wrench doesn't even fit in the lug holes of my rims so I carry the nice 2' long 1/2" drive breakover bar with a 6 pt socket instead.

Knock on wood

 

[Sveivo]

70-90 ft-lbs

 

[bazooka joe]

80...over 7 yrs, no issues!

 

[BlackCherry06]

A nut siezed on my roommate's '99 Explorer and the wheel stud held firm until I finally jumped up and down on the breaker bar. You're pretty strong if you can break a wheel stud by hand, (unless it's been compromised by previous stress or rust) and you're applying a LOT more than 85 ft/lbs if you break one.

Just as important as torque is the pattern you use to tighten them. Carmakers are skimping on materials everywhere they can and it takes only a small mistake to warp a brake rotor these days. Overtightening, AND using a bad pattern can warp one. A torque wrench is a great investment if you're doing your own wheel work.

 

[delguini]

Me neither. Torque wrenches are your friend. You can get cheap ones for <$50 that will do the job of tightening wheels just fine. Air guns are the most inaccurate things anyway...

picked one up at 25$ from walmart in Plattsburgh