Of the posters who recommend against using antisieze, only one lists his climate - lkchris from New Mexico. To these posters I can only say, "Try maintaining cars in our climate". Weighing the pros and cons of using antisieze on lug bolts, I'd say the odds are in favor of using the compound in the rust belt.

At work I was once involved in a study of the effect of antisieze on lug nuts. We were trying to chase down an issue of cracking wheel bolts in the trucking industry. We found that judicious use of antisieze (as prescribed by softconsult) will not harm the wheel bolt. But if slathered on (especially on the seating surface of the lug nut) the wheel bolt can break when using the recommended torque values. We didn't study clamp load.

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95 E320 Cabriolet, 159K

i use a spray of wd 40 if they look a little rusty. never had a problem.

to m w

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I have always used never sieze or something similar, and I've never broken a lug bolt. And this is with years and years and many many bolts tightened on many vehicles. And pretty much always with the same torque wrench too. 80 lbs.

I'd agree with the statement about the salt and the northern climate, but with never sieze, that really shouldn't be a factor. I have to say that I blame the bolt. It must be stretching with each tightening.

I think I'll buy some new ones to keep on hand.

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DS
2010 CL550 - Heaven help me but it's beautiful
87 300D a labor of love
11 GLK 350 So far, so good
08 E350 4matic, Love it.
99 E320 too rusted, sold
87 260E Donated to Newgate School
www.Newgateschool.org - check it out.
12 Ford Escape, sold, forgotten
87 300D, sold, what a mistake
06 Passat 2.0T, PITA, sold

Las Vegas NV

.

Lug nuts have a manufacturer's recommended torque that is given for a DRY thread. Something like 80% of the torque goes to overcome friction. So, if you lubed the threads and torqued the nuts to "dry" specs, you would be overtightening the fastener to some extreme....probably past the elastic limit. One should NEVER use anti-seize on lug nuts. Anti-seize naturally reduces the friction between threads and can lead to vibration induced torque relaxation. Not a good thing. I believe most any wheel manufacturer will say the same thing. I know that Centerline states that in their assembly instructions

M-B only mentions the shoulder, and says nothing of the threads.

If they intended the threads to be dry, why not mention that too?

I suppose that we know better than the factory trained Mercedes tech who told me to never use the stuff on lug bolts, and that is what the factory taught him.

A Bolt must be torqued properly before it's optimum strength can be realized. Torqueing also maximizes the elasticity of the bolt to keep the fastener from loosening up on it's own. Over torqueing can ruin this elastic effect. When using lubricated threads, reduce torque values by the following amounts...45% when using anti-seize compound, 40% when using grease or heavy oil, 30% with graphite and 25% with white lead. Increase torque values by 5% for unplated bolts.

One can debate this 'til the cows come home. Bottom line is this: If living in an area with salt, you MUST use an anti-seize compound on the threads, or you risk not being able to get things apart in the spring. This is not theoretical, but borne out by the experience of hundreds of thousands of people over decades of experience. Torque values given for dry threads, brand-new fasteners and hubs be damned. Lawyers don't change my wheels in the spring. I don't give a rat's ass if my torque values are 35% or 40% or whatever higher than necessary because I've used anti-seize. As long as they're even and I can get them off. I know darned well that at 125ft-lbs, I'm not risking breakage of bolts or warping of the hub. I, and countless others have never had any loosen either.

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'96 C280 (gone)
'97 C36
'05 C230k

I was going to speak to the elasticity of bolts and why one should not over tighten them, because then the elasticity is ruined and the bolt could come loose, but I guess you know more than the factory.

Yep, heck some of use have to use a sledge hammer to break the wheel lose from the hub in the spring.

Those are 17MM hardend bolts, you have got to whale the living crap out of them to snap one. You are not going to hurt one with a torque wrench and a dab of never sieze.

However if one does snap on you someone in the past probably got a little crazy with an impact gun.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Lord almighty, you're persistent. 90 or 125 ft-lbs isn't going to get anywhere near the elastic deformation limit of a bolt that size. In the era before aluminum rims, bolts were routinely torqued to far higher values. The approximate recommended torque will ensure only that the soft seating face is not damaged. That is what truly seats the bolt properly on an aluminum rim, not the 'stretch' of the bolt.

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'96 C280 (gone)
'97 C36
'05 C230k

If you say so.

I guess the people at Centerline, who make aluminum rims, and don't want customers to use never-seize, are totally wrong. The factory trained technician, who has put more wheels on than anyone who has posted, is also wrong. The stretch of the bolt, known as elsaticity, does more to hold the bolt in place than the seating face, ask a machinist.

Tell you what. You put your wheels on the way you want, and the rest of us who actually want to be able to remove them in the spring with the salt they put on our roads will put them on our way. Beyond that, we must agree to disagree.
My tone in retrospect does appear argumentative and opinionated. For that I apologize. Argumentative, it was not intended to be. Opinionated it was though, but an informed one bereft of corporate lawyers.

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'96 C280 (gone)
'97 C36
'05 C230k

I think we all understand that it is the elastic force that holds the bolts or nuts tight.

The problem comes when things are a few years old. I've seen enough galling on studs and lug bolts to be alarming. Galling means that the torque applied was being used to weld the metal, and not to apply the proper elastic force to the bolt.

A friend of mine told me that in his navy days, they would torque bolts using a micrometer to directly measure the elastic stretch.

I think you're making far too big of a deal about a very small bit of anti-seize applied to the threads. I've been burned by dry threads too many times.

Anyway, they are my wheels. I can do what I like with them. Same with you.

Broke another one today. Now I know what happened. Prior to my acquisition of the car it hadn't been serviced for quite awhile. Maybe 2 years or so. I pulled the wheels to inspect the brakes and used the impact wrench to do so. I cranked and cranked and couldn't loosen the bolts. Finally resorted to a long bar. At that time there was no lubricant of any kind on the threads, dry and rusted and tight they were.

The impact wrench cracked them, I'll bet. Now, sometime later, they're breaking. I'm replacing all of them.

__________________
DS
2010 CL550 - Heaven help me but it's beautiful
87 300D a labor of love
11 GLK 350 So far, so good
08 E350 4matic, Love it.
99 E320 too rusted, sold
87 260E Donated to Newgate School
www.Newgateschool.org - check it out.
12 Ford Escape, sold, forgotten
87 300D, sold, what a mistake
06 Passat 2.0T, PITA, sold

Las Vegas NV

Impact wrenches tend to loosen fasteners without breaking them. The long hard pull on a breaker bar is what did the deed. Won't hurt to replace them.