Check your nuts!

Enfield · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:18

Check your nuts ladies and gents...

Went out for a quick drive this afternoon and after a while I noticed that something just didn't feel quite right.

Going down a straight road wiggling the steering left and right slowly I could feel the rear end moving around more than it should do!

So I drove it home steadily and low and behold, the wheel nuts on the rear offside where a bit loose. No idea how they became that way as the rest of the nuts on all the other wheels where on nice and tight.

So before you go out tonight or whatever, check your nuts and while your at it check and adjust if necessary your tyre pressures too.

Dave85 · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:23

I agree with checking these things, especialy if your on low profiles as its a lot harder to tell if the pressue is off. checked mine this morning and my rears where only at 24 and fronts at 26. must be the speed bumps

Axeboy · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:24

Agreed

Its quite common. Mates GTiR was playing up, he thought something was badly wrong with the front wheels...

I drove it, and sure enough the wheel nuts were very loose, almost off.

No expensive repair, but potentially lethal.

silversurfer · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:36

The correct torque for doing up wheel nuts should be in the haynes manual too, overtight can be a pain too if you ever need to get them off in a hurry

ci_newman · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:56

silversurfer said:
The correct torque for doing up wheel nuts should be in the haynes manual too, overtight can be a pain too if you ever need to get them off in a hurry

Not if you keep a breaker bar in the boot

Firestar_3x · 31 Dec 2006 at 15:59

Overtightening wheel nuts can be bad news, use the specified torque, especially if you have light weight nuts.

FYI, my nuts are all in order

silversurfer · 31 Dec 2006 at 16:00

I once had to get a 6 foot scaffolding bar around the end of a wrench to loosen some rusted on wheel nuts

agw_01 · 31 Dec 2006 at 16:44

I check mine as a matter of course every few weeks.

What takes a few minutes of my time, could save my life.

silversurfer · 31 Dec 2006 at 16:47

A little tip I remember is if the wheel nuts are loose at all they will heat up and be warm to touch after driving through the stress I guess. Unless you have been braking a lot this should not normally be the case

agw_01 said:
I check mine as a matter of course every few weeks.

What takes a few minutes of my time, could save my life.

Didnt Rachel stevens do an advert about that

Stellios · 31 Dec 2006 at 16:51

silversurfer said:
Didnt Rachel stevens do an advert about that

THat was a differnt kind of nut

agw_01 · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:10

silversurfer said:
Didnt Rachel stevens do an advert about that

She could check my nuts whenever she wanted!

Acolyte · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:14

I checked my pressures, 20psi at the front and about 13psi at the back

Pumped to 32/30 accordingly now.

Nazbit · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:19

Acolyte said:
I checked my pressures, 20psi at the front and about 13psi at the back

Pumped to 32/30 accordingly now.

When did you last check?

The worst is when you buy a new tyre and have a garage fit it, get it home and they are always nearly double the reccomended pressures, or atleast they are with my local cowboy ranch. They just blow em up till they look like a balloon.

-westy- · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:24

My pressures are 28psi all round - checked them yesterday

I'm swapping wheels about tomorrow, so I'm checking my wheelnuts then too

silversurfer · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:36

Acolyte said:
Pumped to 32/30 accordingly now.

You can alter them according to load and speed too. I usually run at 36 all round

PMKeates · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:37

It's all dependant on vehicle. Recommend pressures by BMW for my vehicle, at standard load, are 36 front, 42 rear - and that's what I set them to, as I'm rarely at 100+ for long periods of time or carrying many passengers

FWIW 42/50 is my recommend psi for high speed/load - I was quite surprised seeing 50!!

silversurfer · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:42

50 does sound dam high, Ive never used higher then 40 on my cars even for motorway speeds at full load. Not sure my tyres are rated to that psi for starters

Acolyte · 31 Dec 2006 at 17:48

Nazbit said:
When did you last check?

The worst is when you buy a new tyre and have a garage fit it, get it home and they are always nearly double the reccomended pressures, or atleast they are with my local cowboy ranch. They just blow em up till they look like a balloon.

I bought the car with newish tyres all round but the car had been standing over winter, they looked fine when i got the car but didnt have a gauge to check.

I bought the car in october, only checked em once and that was the other day, will be checking very frequently now

Tesla · 31 Dec 2006 at 18:06

It's often a good idea to tighten the nuts with the same tool you would use to remove them in an emergency.

Rhyzz · 31 Dec 2006 at 18:10

I had 2 new front tyres put on the other day and they pumped em up to 32psi, I asked them to check the rears and they were down to 18 and 21, madness. You only realise these things when it's too late, so yes, make sure you check them