I guess you should check your lug nut torque

[A_User55555]

I had my tires rotated today at Mavis discount tire. I was watching the tech and saw he used a cordless impact to tighten the lug nuts.

I assumed he set the torque setting on the impact to something reasonable like 100ft pounds. The shop had torque wrenches and a whole poster about lug nut torque specs. So I figured they know what they're doing (I was wrong )

He finished and I went about my way. I still wanted to re-check the torque myself since I bought a new torque wrench recently.

So I park the car and get my cheap $10 breaker ready to loosen the lug nuts. I've used this breaker bar on a friend's car and could remove lug nuts fairly easily.



So I start to loosen one of the lug nuts on my car and HOLY **** they were tight. Last time, a single moderate push loosened up a 110ft lb lug nut on my friend's car.

This time, the lug nut would not budge. I put all my weight on it, Nothing. I tried some scrap PVC pipe over the breaker bar to give me more leverage. STILL not enough. My breaker bar was bending and I thought I would break it.

As a last resort, I tried standing on the breaker bar. I weigh ~160lbs and after bouncing firmly, the lug nuts barely broke loose.

I retorqued them with my torque wrench to 100ft lbs (Factory Specs). For fun, I tried loosening the nut I just torqued with my breaker bar, With a moderate push, the nut broke loose.


I should have been more vocal about having the lug nuts torqued properly. Now every time I have my car serviced, I'm re-torquing the wheels myself.

 

[spasm3]

They use the torque wrench to make sure they are not loose. They do not make sure they are torqued to the right amount. They know that they are not looser than the torque wrench setting.

I do the same either in the parking lot, or immediately at home. That way if i can't get one loose or it snaps, i go back over there right away.

 

[madeej11]

I would return in person to Mavis and air my experience to the manager and ask him why the literature on the walls concerning lug nut torque values are not applied on customers vehicles.

 

[Rand]

I would be concerned about damage to the studs.

not much you can really do about it but I might not take my car there again.

 

[ripcord]

I learned this the hard way once when I went to do a brake job on my wife's truck. I had over torqued the lug nuts and they were ran that way for at least a year. After breaking one of the lug nuts half way off with nothing left to grip, I ended up having to cut the lug off with an angle grinder and ruining the aluminum rim in the process

 

[A_User55555]

I would return in person to Mavis and air my experience to the manager and ask him why the literature on the walls concerning lug nut torque values are not applied on customers vehicles.

I wasn't going to bother since its not like they'd change their ways. However, I just found out something.

I went to Mavis because I thought they did free tire rotations. Last time in January, my rotation was free. This time, the manager said that that was seasonal and charged me $15.

I just checked their website and found out they do still have free tire rotations.

https://www.mavistire.com/coupons/Rotation_Coupon_print.pdf

I'm gonna complain to corporate.

 

[A_User55555]

I would be concerned about damage to the studs.

not much you can really do about it but I might not take my car there again.

I had new front wheel bearings installed a few weeks ago, So hopefully those studs could still tolerate it.

However, The rear bearings are original. In fact the nuts on the rear were the hardest to remove

 

[madeej11]

I had new front wheel bearings installed a few weeks ago, So hopefully those studs could still tolerate it.

However, The rear bearings are original. In fact the nuts on the rear were the hardest to remove

How far did you roll with that crazy amount of torque on the. wheels? Seems to me you corrected it quite soon after, no?

 

[oldhp]

Stretching the studs or warping the hubs is a problem. Go voice your opinion and what you had to do to loosen the lug nuts. My tire guys "gently" snug up the lug nuts, let the car/truck down only enough to hold the wheels from spinning, then finish hand torquing them, then let it down and take it off the lift.

 

[A_User55555]

How far did you roll with that crazy amount of torque on the. wheels? Seems to me you corrected it quite soon after, no?

I'd say around 40-60 miles

 

[madeej11]

I'd say around 40-60 miles

Probably okay then, good luck!

 

[Lubener]

I would be concerned about damage to the studs.

not much you can really do about it but I might not take my car there again.

Not the studs but the holes on the wheels.

 

[demarpaint]

Mavis Tire, say no more. I'm sorry to say around here they're hacks.

 

[Donald]

When I have been to Mavis they use torque sticks.

I agree they are hacks.

Send an email to the corp. headquarters.

 

[SevenBizzos]

Had the opposite happen. A wheel fell off after service. Now I keep a torque bar in all vehicles. Always fully tighten them as soon as I leave the shop. Often times while I'm in still the parking lot. That is not happening again.

 

[opus1]

This is one of the many reasons I like Discount Tire. Not only do they use torque sticks, but they follow up with a torque wrench to be sure.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I had a shop do this to a previous vehicle. One of the wheels was ruined from it. I couldn't get it to stay tight after that; the lugnuts kept backing off. Ended up buying a junkyard wheel.

 

[Amkeer]

Another reason why I rotate my own tires.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Wow, I just had a similar experience. I did a front brake job on my neighbor's 2011 Camry with 58K miles.
It has new rubber from Wheel Works, a Firestone company in CA.
The lug nut torque spec is 76 pound feet. With the long Mac 1/2" breaker bar, I had to lean on that sucker with all my shoulder weight and strength.
200 pound feet? More? Dunno for sure. Wheel Works generally does top quality work.

 

[WylieCoyote]

I trust no-one. I re-torque mine as soon as I get it home.