So if you hear a noise, get out and check immediately (1 Viewer)

[Romer]

Yesterday went to the Rising Sun Annual Blow Off Work Run. Had a great time did a lot of bouncing in the 40. The run ended late and we drove the hour from the mountains back home. Get off the highway and when I get about a mile to my house I strat hearing a noise that seems to quite down when I give it gas, but still there when I go to Nuetral I am thinking drive train and not engine and its 11:30 at night so I thought I would just limp home and look at it after work the next day. Get 3 blocks from my house and BAMMM! My rear tire falls off and the rig smacks to the ground.

Looks like the lugs came loose and 5 bolts had sheared off. Rachel took her new 4runner on the run and was behind me. We went home and I got some tools. Jacked up the rig and after finding my tire in a neighbors lawn down the street, put it on with one lug nut. I carefully rolled it the 3 blocks to my house not daring to put it in the garage because I would have to go up the driveway. Jacked it up and put a jack stand under it.

Bashed in some of the rear body panel as well.

Finally, here is the tech question. I will need to go and replace the 6 lugs. Are these standard sized lugs? Going to Pep boys or Autozone and buying the standard size be OK?

Moral of the story - When you hear a noise, stop and check it out no matter how late or close to home you are. Glad it didn't happen on the highway. Spent 50 minutes of the hour drive going 65.

 

[John Smith]

Aluminum or steel rims? This seems to happen very often to people, I have steel rims and while they are supposed to be better about backing off lug nuts than aluminum I check them often.

Yes you can buy the correct stud at any autoparts chain store. Bring a spare lugnut to make sure the parts tard gets you the right ones from in back.

 

[Yoda]

Years ago, I heard a noise while backing up my trailer at a camp site. Everyone in camp heard it. We looked and couldn't find anything.
Towed my 3000 lb trailer home 120 miles over 2 mountain passes. Then, while trying to back the rig into my driveway, the rag joint SHEARS OFF!! Steering wheel just free spinning.
After changing my shorts, I backed it in by turning the box shaft by hand.
Cruiser has U-joints in the column now.

 

[74fj40]

they should make locking washers for lug nuts because this does seem to be happening alot lately. if they are aluminum, do you torque them every 25 mi then 50 mi then 100mi ect?

 

[treerootCO]

glad it happened when it did I guess. Make sure you have the right lug nuts on there.

Wheel nuts and bolts have many different seats (where the nut touches the wheel). The 3 most common are acorn seat (conical), ball seat (radius), and mag shank seat.

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=102&currentpage=107

 

[ken_79-fj40]

They are standard metric 12mm x 1.5 studs. The 40's use a slightly shorter stud than 60's. I 'm not positive on the length so I would pull one first. Of course you will have to drain the diff, pull the center block, pull the c-clip and slide the axle out. They are pretty easy to change, just bang out the old ones and bang the new ones in with a hammer. If you have aluminum wheels check the lug holes to make sure the wheel isn't cashed too. I lost a wheel on the back of my old tacoma one day at about 50. No warning. I rolled to the side of the road and stopped no problem, but the police officer coming the other way almost got tagged by a 33x12.50 right before it hit a stone wall and sailed about 50 feet in the air. Took a while to find it in the field it landed in. I no longer trust my non-mechanically inclined friends when I ask them if the lugs are torqued.

 

[IDave]

I have seen where the wrong lug nuts have resulted in this problem. The rims have a "cup" at the lug hole, and the nut must have a corresponding convex bottom to fit into the cup. If they don't fit that cup, are flat, the nuts work loose, resulting in just what you experienced. Or, maybe they are correct but were never torqued properly, but I think that less likely. Or, perhaps someone loosened them, like what happened to Mike.

 

[wesintl]

Your going to have to pull the aussie and get the shaft out to put those studs on. DOH. At least it happened when it did. I guess you won't be taking the 40 anymore.

 

[FJBen]

Wow thats scary! Good thing it was almost at home. Thats about the time we got to Greeley after the wonderful road construction stopped us...

 

[nuclearlemon]

damn....makes me glad i crank the crap out of mine. i usually replace mine every 10 years or when i think about it...i just buy mine at drive train or truck parts specialists...nothing special about them.

 

[72cruiser]

do you have spacers on the 40?

same thing happened to a guy in my club while he was runnin some aluminum spacers...
he was goin a little faster though...d'oh


malphrus

 

[bad_religion_au]

hmm mine get done up every time before i drive it (says something about how often i pull it apart)

 

[PabloCruise]

Your going to have to pull the aussie and get the shaft out to put those studs on. DOH. At least it happened when it did. I guess you won't be taking the 40 anymore.

Negative.

I broke one last year (or two years ago?)...

Just pull the drum, and you can rotate your flange to a sweet spot to get the new studs started.

Get them all in, clean drum and flange surfaces, reinstall drum and wheel. Torque lugs to seat the new studs.

And then check them every 5 minutes for a re-torque!!! (85-90 ft-lbs)

Do you install your lug nuts w/ a torque wrench Ken?

Glad you are o-k!

 

[honk]

M12 - 1.5 is the size I'm changing TO on both of my 40s. The stock lugbolts are some 1/4" shorter than that. I've got both an old and a new in my hand right now and there's no question about it. The new ones are Dorman part # 610-265, and I think that a changeover is a good idea for anyone using non steel wheels.
Even with the correct lugnuts for some alloy wheels I have the stock lug studs only allow for about 3 threads or less. Almost all alloy wheels are thicker than steel wheels - they have to be for strength. Spacers would only make the problem worse.

If you can use a press rather than a hammer it'll be a lot quieter and less work.

 

[wesintl]

Negative.

I broke one last year (or two years ago?)...

Just pull the drum, and you can rotate your flange to a sweet spot to get the new studs started.

Get them all in, clean drum and flange surfaces, reinstall drum and wheel. Torque lugs to seat the new studs.

And then check them every 5 minutes for a re-torque!!! (85-90 ft-lbs)

Do you install your lug nuts w/ a torque wrench Ken?

Glad you are o-k!

I guess that works for the short ones on 40's. IIRC I couldn't do that trick on the longer studs when I replaced one on the 70 last fall but then again I prolly can't remember that either.

 

[Ullr]

How bad is the body damage? You have a good looking '40.

 

[Romer]

How bad is the body damage? You have a good looking '40.

The back part of the panel, above the tire is bent in on itself. I'll have to see how bad it looks when I bend it back.

 

[CruisinTiger]

do you have spacers on the 40?

same thing happened to a guy in my club while he was runnin some aluminum spacers...
he was goin a little faster though...d'oh


malphrus

Yeah we were comin home from the Mustard grounds, not very hard wheelin. My girlfriend and I were drivin behind JP and were about 2 miles from home...he was goin about 50 mph and it was almost dusk then..WHAM...his back driver tire came off and I swirved and missed his tire which bounced up hire than my 60..and this is a 33 swamper..so there was definately some momentum behind it. Luckily he's got mad drivin skills and kept her from tippin over. Plus I don't think his gf would of liked him tippin over seein how she was in the passenger seat. Sheered off the bolts from the spacer on the wheel....crazy s*** man.

 

[Isotel]

I sheered off 4 of the 6 just driving around town.. Aluminum Wheel, not Tourqed correctly.. Luckly i felt the out of round and stopped to see what the issue was before they all went..

Romer, PM me where you find the studs at, i need some for my now Spare Shaft, lol

 

[t-o]

M12 - 1.5 is the size I'm changing TO on both of my 40s. The stock lugbolts are some 1/4" shorter than that.

isn't M12 the diameter (12 mm) and 1.5 the thread pitch (1 per 1.5mm)? if length is included it would be M12x1.5x40 where 40 is length in mm.

Tim