W140 Wheel Lug Bolts Won't Budge
 

The brakes on my 1997 S500 need to be replaced, but we can't budge the lug bolts even with a 2 foot breaker bar. Can anybody offer a suggestion on how we might get them out without breaking them off in the hubs? Thanks!

Try an impact wrench.

Lots of:
 

AeroKroil

AND

Patience!


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That's an ugly situation. Once you get them out replace them all with the modern ones that don't have that crappy extended shank.

One member has reported success by using a solid spacer (like another bolt) and smacking the very end of the lug bolt -- hard -- with a sledgehammer to break it loose.

An impact wrench may simply do what you are fearful of, and you won't be able to feel it.

I don't envy you. Good luck.

Impact wrenches are known to be easier on fasteners than a hand pulled bar, which can also impart a bending load to the bolt that an impact wrench won't.

penetrating oil, an impact with a GOOD impact socket, not a cheap made in china one... Those can give you bigger problems if the socket splits...
Also you could use a breaker bar and a torque multiplier... Good socket again....

If you could give each bolt a good wack with a hammer (straight in) it might loosen them up. An impact wrench would be best.

-J

percussive maintenance recommended, corrosion probable
 

The bearing area of the lug bolt where it contacts the wheel is likely the culprit as opposed to the threads themselves. Lots of penetrating oil , whack deftly with a hammer and big punch , directly on the end of the bolts. Heat with a plumbers turbotorch on the bolt not the wheel if possible. A good impact will be helpful but in this circumstance I would expect to break at least some of the bolts. And when you do get them off by all means use some antiseize on the bolt threads and under the heads and do use a torque wrench to install the bolts again. They only need to be torqued up to spec not god awful tight. good luck Dan

If the source of stuckness is the seat of the bolt head against the wheel, I gotta wonder how a bolt will be snapped off using an impact wrench. Using a hand powered bar will place a cantilever load on the bolt head and could break it off.

An impact wrench worked on all but 1. It was a little scary as a few of them took many seconds before they broke loose. Surprisingly the last hold out only surrendered to a solid 4 foot breaker bar my friend made for use on something on an original VW beetle years ago. He couldn't remember the part he made it for but it took a lot of torque to remove it. Anyway, with the 4 foot bar it came right out.

I put 'em back with anti-seize and torqued them to spec. Fortunately they weren't the one with the extended head. New ones are on order as these are a bit rusty.

One of my friends recommended against anti-seize as he says they can allow the bolt to back out. I don't know if it's true but he claims it's illegal to use it in some states. He also says those states where it's illegal check it on trucks when they pull them over for routine inspections, and the fines are big. Does anybody know if this is true?

The WIS specifically notes NOT to use anti-seize on the threads. (Nothing about the ball seat.) I would probably clean off the anti-seize from the threads; MB had to have a reason to say no on that (though it could only be for litigious reasons). A thin swipe of grease down the threads will distribute itself nicely as you thread it in and will lessen the odds of corrosion in the future.

I'm assuming that you torqued them only to spec? :D

Your friend's "tool" was likely made for the 36mm axle nut on the VW. That was a common "cheat" if you didn't have one of the impact wrenches made for semis. Considering that such wrenches weighed more than the Beetle, most shops didn't have them. :P

I'm glad you got them out and that they weren't the extended shank ones.

bolomiester, I always use a light coat of anti-seize on the threads only and use a torque wrench to tighten lug bolts to the specified torque value for that diameter lug bolt. Have never experienced lug bolts (with anti-seize on the threads) backing out. Do not use anti-seize on the seating area of the lug bolts or the wheels. Best to clean rusty threads with a wire brush before applying the anti-seize.

Nein,Nein,Nein
 

The Obstructive Point is the Seat (Spherical Collar)of the Lug Bolt against the Wheel.That's where the AntiSeize goes!
A Wee Bit on the Threads will not hurt either.

'Remember your Head Bolts?
CLEANED(with the correct "Tap" if necessary), DRY Bolt holes in the Block.
A "LIGHT' coating of assembly lube(Oil) on the NEW Head Bolt Threads and spherical collars(Seats)of the New Bolts.
'Torque to Specs.

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I suggest using anti-sieze on the threads only.
Some car makers warn against using it, but I have personally snapped off too many wheel fasteners to not use it. Salt used in winter can really make a fastener without anti-sieze stick up.

The problem with using anti-sieze on any fastener is that the quoted torque spec is almost always for dry threads. The result is that the lubricating action causes over-tightening.