Lug bolt removal question
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Lug bolt removal question
My girlfriend has a friend selling what looks like a clean 99 C280 Sport that needs a little here and there, but one thing it needs to be driveable is some new lug studs on the rear driver side I think he said. Said one or two are broken and causing that wheel to lean in a little and rub the fender (he has lowered the car it looks like). While I'm not 100% certain that is the actual full cause of the issue, he says it needs some lug studs for sure. I have changed a couple on a car of mine in the past, an SC300 if I recall correctly. Are these easy to hammer out and get out of the rear hub/brake setup so I can install new ones, or does it take removing some components and tearing the rear apart to get them out?
#2
The wheel is held on by lug bolts that screw into the hub flange, unless the PO put some kind of aftermarket stud on it. Are you saying the bolts broke, or the threads going into the flange are stripped? If the bolts are broken and stuck in the hub, if you take off the wheel and rotor there might be enough of the bolt sticking out to get a bolt extractor on it and remove the broken bolt. Spray a rust penetrant, such as PowerBlaster on the broken bolt where it enters the hub and let it sit for a bit, maybe overnight, before trying the bolt extractor.
If the threads on the hub are badly stripped the hub needs to be replaced. You could try a thread insert on the hub, such as HeliCoil, to get the wheel on and the car home but this is NOT anything but an emergency repair.
If the threads on the hub are badly stripped the hub needs to be replaced. You could try a thread insert on the hub, such as HeliCoil, to get the wheel on and the car home but this is NOT anything but an emergency repair.
#3
Senior Member
Definitely does not come from factory with studs. I converted my VW to studs but when I did, I used Loctite Red. You may be able to hammer them out with some type of pick, I wouldn't know for sure.