Wheel Studs Sheered Off Driving

Recently got new wheels and tires. I think the shop who installed my tires over-torqued the bolts.

We did some desert camping these past 2 weeks over about 200 off road miles. On the way back home yesterday the studs sheered off on the highway for one of the back wheels, by the time we pulled over the wheel was only being held on by one lug. Got super lucky... Ended up getting stranded 2 hours from then nearest city with a store.

When I put in the new studs on the side of the road I noticed there was a small plate behind the hub that aligned with the bolts (after removing the drum). Does this plate need to sit flush / tight with the hub? I set the studs into position by using a temporary bolt. I could not get it tight enough for the little plate to be flush with the hub. There is maybe 1cm gap, is this correct?

Also, if I re torque the other wheels will they be fine or is the damage already done ?

 

Nice save!

If the same shop touched all four tires, I would swap the studs. Once metal yields beyond the elastic region, it is done. It will never have the same elastic strength again.

I would not touch the other wheels until you have studs in hand as they might shear when loosensing.

Hopefully you can get the shop to reimburse you for some of the loss and expense?

 

^same

I’d definitely replace them all. Not worth chancing it.

 

Are those rims wheels hub centric? Toyota has an odd hub size, so if they are not the correct hub size a spacer is suppose to be used. That can cause additional stress on the lugs if there is no support from the hub/rim interface

 

I'd get a beam style torque wrench to find out how much torque it takes to loosen the nuts. If its stupid high, they owe you new hardware.

 

Take the pictures with you to the shop that did the wheels there is no earthly reason a wheel stud should break unless something is wrong with the install.

 

https://parts.toyota.com/images/parts/toyotaOEM/fullsize/a1_412093C.jpg

Are you talking about item 42441? It's listed as an "oil deflector". Item 42443 is gasket.

 

Not only do the wheels need to be hub centric but the correct lug nuts should be used with aftermarket wheels also. Toyota studs barely stick out with oem wheels hence Toyota using mag style lug nuts. With your aftermarket wheels the lug nuts being used should be acorn with the extended shoulder.

 

They owe you new studs installed by another shop. I wouldn’t trust them to put air in the tires.

 

Studs and lugs provide “clamping force” the lug should grab eight to ten threads to be safe...which is not the case here.

 

Thanks everyone for the responses! Wheels are indeed hub-centric, owner has a Tacoma too.

Lesson learned on going to sketchy tire places.The tire place sold me the lugs too. I plan on replacing the remaining studs now. Ill try to get a photo later today of the plate I am referring to when I swap out the studs. I totally forgot to take it while replacing them stuck on the highway.

 

Here’s the difference extended shoulder makes using a wheel spacer as an example.

 

A rim can't be hub centric. The rim is part of a wheel. The part you are referring is the center hole or center bore. Collectively all of the parts are called a wheel.

A non hub centric wheel will not cause the lug nuts to shear off. Those studs look like they sheared because of two reasons. 1 wrong lug nuts were used. I would be willing to best that with those wheels that they maybe got 3 or 4 threads on the standard acorn nuts. If the wheels would accept them, an ET lug nut would be the better choice. This would give more thread on the nut. 2. They were probably over torqued. As a result of #1, knowing they didn't have a lot of thread, they probably torqued the life out of them, which led to them popping off down the road.

 

What style lug do they take? Conical or flat?
If it's conical they are lug centric; the bore size doesn't matter...hub rings don't matter.

Besides proper thread engagement, another possibility for shearing is, you have interference issues relating to the above. If you have conical lugs and a 106.1 hub bore, you have a hub and lug centric wheel. Basically, what can happen is, the bolt circle center does not coincide with the hub bore center. This results in an interference fit of the lugs and lug seats.

 

Tonered nailed it. Elastic limit, and the dynamic forces when driving. All studs are now suspect.