[Mayhem]

So, I think when the dealership rotated during last service, the lugs were over torqued... Had some problems removing a few.. I've got 3 off, but 1 was badly rounded. I used a lug nut removal tool to try to get it off... and it was turning however..

It isn't loosening. Looks like the outer part of the nut is turning. It hasn't loosened at the base though, it is the middle of the nut that is turning so it's not loosening...

How can I get this off?

 

[KKaWing]

Try these. Note the first link will destroy the lug... but it's rounded anyways so good luck.

http://www.irwin.com/tools/browse/screw-bolt-extractors/bolt-extractors

 

[marc89gti]

I personally would take your car back to the dealership and let fix the problem for free, since they were the last to touch your wheels. Most likely the mechanic cross threaded the nuts which might mean that your wheel studs could be damaged too.

 

[eRic]

the OE lug nuts have a 19mm cap that can be snapped off to get to the 18mm nut underneeth.

 

[Mayhem]

the OE lug nuts have a 19mm cap that can be snapped off to get to the 18mm nut underneeth.

Yeah I was told the same by a mechanic friend that I texted a photo to.

I ended up finding a solution.

The threads were fine. It was just the outer cap that was ruined. Was able to compress the cap enough to grip the nut inside, and was then able to twist it off. Pain in the ass...

Honestly I think it would have been a chore to prove it was done by whoever did the rotation. Especially after the additional damage caused by tyring to remove it... Ultimately, I solved it, so not worth the headache / time to pursue it further.

Thanks for the folks that chimed in.

I found it pretty ridiculous, how vastly dealerships varied on what they charge for the exact same OEM lugnuts. 4 different shops with prices ranging between $7 to $70 dollars.. each.

 

[MOFiST]

Another reason to rotate the wheels yourself. One less thing for them to break. After market lug nuts may be in order rather than investing in more of the same as I've heard this problem is fairly common.

 

[reddog99]

FWIW, I've found from personal experience that the biggest cause of the OEM nuts getting rounded off is due to the use of 12-point sockets with an air impact wrench (or probably any other wrench). Best to use only six-point sockets on these high torque items.

I had to replace all my own lug nuts last month and it took me three hours just to remove all the wheels.

 

[McRib 1s Back]

FWIW, I've found from personal experience that the biggest cause of the OEM nuts getting rounded off is due to the use of 12-point sockets with an air impact wrench (or probably any other wrench). Best to use only six-point sockets on these high torque items.

I had to replace all my own lug nuts last month and it me three hours just to remove all the wheels.

That's great advice. I'm doing the same thing with regard to using six point sockets now.

I had a dealer strip one on my Wrangler -- they ended up sacrificing a smaller socket to get it off, but not before scratching the wheel in a big way. :/

Curiously, I have also found that the FiST loses lug nut torque under track conditions faster than any car in memory. We had a fellow FiST driver lose a couple on track, after failing to check in just one session (where they started at spec levels)!

I've been checking mine after every session, and it always needs a fair bit of re-tightening.

 

[F1ST]

The stock lug nuts with the caps removed as 18mm are quite nice. With the caps they are a real pain. Is there a quick way to remove the caps from these? Right now I only have one de-capped from rounding.
For now I use the lug nuts that came with my winter tire package from tire rack. They are solid so I don't have to worry about rounding he soft chrome caps on the stock.

 

[BRGT350]

I hate the factory lug nuts with the cap on them. On our 2013 Escape, the dealership rotated the tires and ended up scratching all 4 wheels and rounding off most of the lug nut caps. The torque was also crazy high as I kept stalling out my impact trying to remove the lug nuts to install the winter tires. For now on, no tire rotations when the Escape goes in for service. I don't have the dealership touch the wheels on my ST. The servicing dealer for the Fiesta Movement ST damaged all 4 wheels and rounded the lug nuts on that car as well. If I need to take the ST in for any service that requires the wheels to be removed, I will install the winter set along with the matching lug nuts. I also tend to replace the factory lug nuts for a set of similar aftermarket ones if I want to keep the closed style.

 

[Chuckable]

the OE lug nuts have a 19mm cap that can be snapped off to get to the 18mm nut underneeth.

Huh? I can't picture what this means. Would you mind explaining?

 

[TapTapPull]

Huh? I can't picture what this means. Would you mind explaining?

I'm imagining it like a pen with a lid. The lid is the 19mm cap, and if you remove that, the pen is the 18mm cap. Correct?

 

[BRGT350]

I'm imagining it like a pen with a lid. The lid is the 19mm cap, and if you remove that, the pen is the 18mm cap. Correct?

Yep. Most of the time the cap comes off the lug nut over time so you have 3 that are closed 19mm and the one that is 18mm and open so you see the stud.

 

[FiSTHooligan]

If you use a small chisel an hammer. Put a grove down one side of the lug nut. Then you can peel off the cap. Had to do this all the time for people. When someone else would over tighten the lugs an spin the caps.

 

[AlanBDahl]

Anyone found a reasonably-priced replacement that looks similar? I have another set for my race wheels that look good but the seat is not as wide so I've avoided using them with the factory wheels.

 

[F1ST]

Check the seat carefully. I thought my Tire Rack lug nuts were not as wide either, but I suspect the metal covers on the stock nuts only make them look wider. There is a bit of a step where the lug taper sits in the wheel that may be the same diameter (or very close) to your replacements. I'll take a look at mine tonight and measure.

 

[AlanBDahl]

My other lugs are from The Tire Rack too and came with my OZ Ultraleggara wheels.

 

[Smokin]

My other lugs are from The Tire Rack too and came with my OZ Ultraleggara wheels.

Yep, all I've been using are the lug nuts that came from Tire Rack for my Sparco wheels. If I were those of you still using the OEM nuts, I'd order a set or two from Tire Rack.....I use my Li Ryobi impact driver but loosen them up with a long bar each time and torque them with a wrench.
I also only torque them to 80 pf and have had no trouble....

 

[jimclark]

Sloppy use of (usually air-driven) impact wrenches is epidemic in shops. I've had occasion twice to change a tire by the side of the road using only the available stock wrench, after some idiot wrenched the nuts on to insane tightness. Both times it took everything I had to break the nuts free. The kind of indiscriminant impact wrench use that does this can easily destroy a nut and/or bolt if the mechanic is sloppy. I think we all know this, and thus our habits. It's often the mundane things that prove a PITA. And BTW, I can vouch for Smokin's ability to swap wheels, move 'em around, etc. I think in a previous life he was the inspiration for locking lug nuts.

A somewhat related item of interest: someone apparently loosened and/or removed lug nuts from several Kansas Highway Patrol vehicles at a training facility.

I guess everyone should check their nuts before they drive.

 

[eRic]

Yep, all I've been using are the lug nuts that came from Tire Rack for my Sparco wheels. If I were those of you still using the OEM nuts, I'd order a set or two from Tire Rack.....I use my Li Ryobi impact driver but loosen them up with a long bar each time and torque them with a wrench.
I also only torque them to 80 pf and have had no trouble....

Why are you not tightening the lug nuts to 100 lb-ft specified in the Fiesta owner's manual and Fiesta ST supplement?