Check Your Lug Wrenches

[rgitz]

I had a mildly unsettling experience yesterday. My twelve year old and I where 5 miles out in the desert and I got a flat on my 2007 Toyota Tacoma. I cranked down the spare, jacked up the truck a bit and to my dismay abruptly discovered the OEM lug wrench (I bought this rice burner new) did not fit the OEM lugs on the OEM wheels.

We had one and a half quarts of water and one hat and started walking. I left a 20 gauge shotgun & 200 rounds of ammo in the truck with the same number of clays. Yes, I thought about bringing the gun, but it was 100 degrees even outside and we didn't need to lug along another 6.5 lbs of weight.

It took us 2 hours to walk out, got the boy into a motel room to cool down, I then spent $110.00 for a service truck to go back up there with me to change the tire.

I mention this story to get all you guys and gals with new or new used vehicles to go check that the damn lug wrenches fit your lugs. All I can think about this is normally we go a lot further back in the boonies and this story cold have turned out a lot of different ways if we would have yesterday.

I will be talking to my Toyota representative tomorrow.

 

[3rd Gen Neal]

Excuse my ignorance but do you not get a cell signal out where you were?

 

[rgitz]

I didn't try my cell. Who was I going to call & what was I going to tell them? I didn't have map coordinates and I was on one of numberous unmarked "forest roads".

The service truck guy asked me a similiar question. I told him I wasn't brought up to call 9-11, fact is my generation didn't have a 9-11, we just took care of problems as their shadows fell across our paths.

 

[m1gunner]

Odds ar eeven if the wrench had fit, you would have been unable to break the nuts loose without a cheater bar.

All the manufacturers and tire stores run the nuts up with the air guns, and they are generally way overtorqued.

On all my tires (30 some including trailers and such), the lug nuts are removed by me when I buy the vehicle, then reinstalled and torqued by hand. That way when I have a flat, that puny wrench in the trunk will loosten the nuts.

On the 3/4 ton truck, there is a breaker bar and cheater bar in the toolbox, those nuts take a bunch of torque.

 

[M28]

Who was I going to call......

Earlier this summer my daughter and two of her friends were in the deepest darkest forest along the Idaho/Montana border on a backpacking expedition. When they returned to her van at the trailhead a tire was flat.....and she had no spare.....because she never plans ahead for adverse conditions.

They had to hike five miles just to get cell phone coverage, and faced a much longer hike to civilization. She does have towing coverage on her auto insurance policy and she was able to contact a provider and guide them to her location, a four hour one way trip. The entire episode was covered by her insurance carrier.

As an aside, my Pop taught me to do a dry run on a tire change when a new or used vehicle came into the fold just to make sure all the parts jived. That being said, I never had a problem with a new vehicle with all OEM equipment. What a hassle.

Brian~

 

[Black_Sheep]

Been stranded a few times so I've learned the hard way too. I carry a "real" jack and 4-bar lug wrench in the truck because most OEM stuff leaves a lot to be desired. I even check the spare tire once in a while to be sure it's properly inflated...

 

[smith revolver cop]

Been stranded a few times so I've learned the hard way too. I carry a "real" jack and 4-bar lug wrench in the truck because most OEM stuff leaves a lot to be desired. I even check the spare tire once in a while to be sure it's properly inflated...

+1. I also carry an old "4-way" lug wrench. Best thing is, it not only fits the lugs on the car, but (since it has different sizes) it also fits the lugs on my trailer if I happen to be pulling it.

 

[K.38]

Never would have thought to check to see the lug wrenches would fit.

Thanks for the heads up I'm going to check to make sure our Tacoma and Jeep have the correct wrench.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

You hit a pet peeve of mine. My mechanic used an air gun to put the lugs on my tires and one dat I had to caange a flat with the garbage they give you in the suburban. To make a long story short, I had to call a tire service and pay $80 to have someone come change my tire.
I now carry in my suburban at all times a four wayr lug wrench, a hydrauic 5 ton jack and a cheater bar. A $30 investment at most, but the tools they pack in the cars these days do not allow you to safely change a tire.
I also carry a jumper pack and a complete set of tools (and that's for street driving-when I go on highway trips it's more).

 

[DJINCO]

I add a high lift jack, air compressor and a plug kit.

 

[mkk41]

Better off carrying a long handle 1/2in drive ratchet or breaker bar and correct size deep 6pt socket. Even a cheap one from Harbor Freight (or a used one from a local flea market or yard sale) is better than most factory lug wrenches.

Always make sure you or your mechanic coats the lugs with Never-Sieze too.

 

[Amici]

All the manufacturers and tire stores run the nuts up with the air guns, and they are generally way overtorqued.

On all my tires (30 some including trailers and such), the lug nuts are removed by me when I buy the vehicle, then reinstalled and torqued by hand. That way when I have a flat, that puny wrench in the trunk will loosten [sic] the nuts.

Absolutely. I always loosen and retighten the nuts if some shop has worked on our vehicles. The only exception is a certain tire shop I prefer - I've watched them use a torque wrench to remount my wheels.

 

[oldogy]

If the lug wrench truely did not fit the lugs I would present the rep with the towing bill.
oldogy

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I prefer a 4 way lug wrench to the single socket/jack handles that are usually OEM. And ditto on checking the torque of the lug nuts.

 

[gregintenn]

I can't imagine how that happened.

 

[Spotteddog]

FWIW.
Torque wrench installation AFTER putting anti seize on the threads.
Won't matter whether your lug wrench fits or not, if you ring off the studs trying to crack them loose? (especially after the mouth breather @ the tire store spools them on with an Ingersol-Rand set on 3 megatons?) Tough to get those wheels to stay on when off roading, with only two or three studs intact!

 

[2Loud4You]

Do you people not know the trick to break lug nuts loose? Stand on the lug wrench with 1 foot while balancing yourself against the vehicle. A few bounces should break it free. As for the OP whose lug wrench didn't fit, I'd be hitting the Toyota dealership up for that bill.

 

[cincinnatijim]

There's another way you can end up with the wrong lug wrench. One of my hunting buddies completely cleaned out his Chevy pickup and his Ford Sedan. He then returned the jacks and lug wrenches to the vehicles, but put them in the wrong vehicles. A few days later we went dove hunting and when we returned to the pickup he had a flat. Nothing to worry about until he tried to use the lug wrench. It wouldn't fit and then he realized what he had done. He did, however, have a 10" crescent wrench. We used readily available rocks as hammers and eventually removed all the lug nuts. The crescent wrench was in pretty sad shape by this time. We managed to get all of the lug nuts back on but had some doubt as to whether they were tight enough. We eventually got back to a paved road but never got over 20 mph, being afraid the wheel would come off. We made it home hours late. My wife and her sister had been crying thinking we had a serious problem. I don't recall how things were at his place but she did use the word "stupid" a few times. This was in the early 60s, no cell phones.

 

[scooter123]

I've bent those 4 way wrenches into an S shape, frankly the steel they are made with is junk. This was way back in the 70's when I was working as a gas station attendant. Had a VW bus come in for new tires and back then VW used a special bolt with a tapered seat to mount the wheels, not the normal stud and nut. Those damn thing had a tendancy to work tight and could be a bear to break loose. After the air wrench failed, bending the 4 way, and snapping a 1/2 inch Craftsman breaker bar, I called in the heavy artillery. A friend of my brother serviced heavy trucks and brought in his 1 inch air wrench and a socket.

Every vehicle I own is equipped with a 1/2 inch breaker bar, a floor jack, and a 6 point impact deep well socket that fits the lug nuts. I also keep a 4 lbs. dead blow hammer in the vehicle to break free a wheel that has "frozen" to the hub. I also carry a tool kit that has everything in it to service any item that a roadside repair might require when I am on a trip. When the newest car you own is 23 years old, you learn to be prepared.

I also insist on torquing my lug nuts myself at any tire shop. My brother once came home with a new set of tires and went to check the torque on the lugs and nothing he had would break them loose. Called me for help and I went over with my 1/2 inch and 3/4 inch torque wrenches. That tire shop had torqued every single lug nut to 275 ft.lbs.. You should have heard the manager scream when my brother went back and insisted they replace every wheel stud on the car. Turned out the "mechanic" was in a hurry and hadn't bothered with getting the torque stick, he had just reefed the lugs down with the air wrench until it "grunted". Doing something like that today will warp the rotors but it can also over stress the wheel studs on any passenger car.

 

[Jeb Stonewall]

Might be over kill but I make sure all my vehicles have 4-way in them.
And my wife has a floor jack in her Explorer also.
The junk they put in cars now days are nothing but safety hazards.
(Screw jack with a 4" square base to jack up a SUV is a joke)