A Curious thing. (1 Viewer)

[Crash_AB]

Ok,
I finished the install of a 2.5" belton lift in my 60 late last night - drives great, looks great, quite happy with it.

Now, getting home from work, I took the truck out for another test drive [any excuse to drive it, really] + gave it a bath.

When I went to park it where it spent the day, one of the wheels fell off. No noise, no rattle, just went to make the turn and the front corner dropped.

Now, I know you're thinking "idiot didn't tighten his lug nuts." but the truth of the matter is the wheel was torqued to 90 ft.lbs - absolutely certain of this. I went around the truck and hand torqued each and every one before it rolled out of the garage. I might have driven it 20 kms since the install.

Here's where it gets interesting. I found all the lug nuts within 50 ft of the truck, so they all came off at roughly the same time. I found all 6. I've never had a loose lug nut, let alone all 6 come off at the same time.

Damage was very minor - I was almost stopped when the wheel decided to part ways [thank god]- the dust shroud is buggered and the rotor took a ding, but it spins freely and without noise. The threads on the wheel studs and the bolts are all fine, The bolt holes in the rim are a little ground out and the rim lost a small weight. I simply jacked it up and bolted the wheel back on, checked all the other nuts [all still at 90] and drove around a bit with my head out the window listening for noise coming from the rotor.

Frankly, I'm baffled.

The only thing I can think of is someone loosened the nuts. I can't think of anyone who would be so unbelievably stupid to do such a dangerous and terrible thing. My neighbour suggested it could have been someone trying to steal the wheels and got scared off, but it was parked on a busy street and the wheels are old, tired, non-descript rubber on rusty white steel rims.


I'm very thankful that this happened at low speed on a quiet street as opposed to a fast busy road, but I still cant figure it out for the life of me. Anyone have some thoughts on this?

 

[takeitforgranite]

Thank god you weren't going over 20mph....

That's all I can think of, too... you don't have anyone out to get you, do you?

 

[RockDoc]

Any chance you had mud or loose rust or ice between the rim and the rotor when you torqued it?

I had the nuts back off one of my wheels about 5000 km into a 7000 km trip, after about 4 straight hours on the road the day it happened. Luckily it started to vibe and I pulled over to figure out what it was, as this was on the freeway through Seattle! Tightened 'em back up, checked all the others and went back on my way. Makes a guy think (and check every once in a while to make sure his nuts are secure).

 

[inkpot]

Howdy! I would say the chances of that happening by itself are virtually ZERO! My son busted tires for 6 years and he never has heard of anything like that, not even close. You have a friend with a lousy sense of humor, or an enemy with a very dangerous sense of humor. Don't tell anyone that it happened, and offer everyone a ride on the freeway! See who backs out real fast. Good Luck, and keep an eye on your backside. BTDT John

 

[zuluzeugma]

Your wheels might be old, but are your tires brand new?

 

[cfdlighthouse]

Howdy! I would say the chances of that happening by itself are virtually ZERO! My son busted tires for 6 years and he never has heard of anything like that, not even close. You have a friend with a lousy sense of humor, or an enemy with a very dangerous sense of humor. Don't tell anyone that it happened, and offer everyone a ride on the freeway! See who backs out real fast. Good Luck, and keep an eye on your backside. BTDT John

x2!!!

glad everything is okay

 

[cruiser88]

Some asshat loosened your lugnuts.


:whoops:I had the passenger front come off going over 60


Just needed a new rotor and studs...thats all


bastards

 

[High Desert]

Possible when you torqued them down that the wheel was not on flush. I have tightened them by hand while on jacks then dropped it to torque, the wheel can be in a "bind", not flush against the hub but will feel like it is tightened down. roll around a while and it wobbles loose..really pretty common around garages..
here in central oregon where people put studs on every winter you see it pretty often, specially with the do-it-them-self folks.

I had some one steal three lug nuts off each wheel several years ago. I had new lug nuts, the same day the nuts "got gone" a raft guide i was working with quit and took off out of town in his rust bucket 60 hmmm I still figure he spun off my lugs..he was a low life..

 

[Tvaldriz]

Some asshat loosened your lugnuts.


bastards

Some "greenie" scoring points with his hippie girlfriend.

Moto equivalent of spiking a redwood.

Glad you an the Cruiser are ok.

 

[cbmontgo]

Man, that is dangerous. It was most certainly a person, and probably an al-Queda informant.

 

[jgordon]

Is your torque wrench up to spec?

 

[dwillmo]

I agree with High Desert. If the rim was in a bind somehow, or not seated properly, you could have torqued the nuts and then when you drove it, the wheel finally seated and all the nuts were then slightly loose. They will come off quickly, and possibly all close together. I lost the outer wheel off a big truck drive axle, at 70 mph, because some idiot mechanic accidentally switched hubs during a brake job. That wheel came off all at once losing all lug nuts almost simultaneously because not one pulled through the rim. I thought that wheel would never stop too--rolled halfway up a huge hill up in Oklahoma. Thank God it didn't roll through somebody's car.