Broke a Wheel Stud. Fix?
 

I was removing my wheels today in order to get them ready for drop-off tomorrow, as i have new work vs-xx wheels coming. As I was removing the lug nuts from the front right wheel I push too hard and the lug nut came out with half of the stud. So now i only have 4 use-able studs on that wheel.

I did a couple searches but everything was about the rear wheels which seems to be a big PITA, but nothing about the front wheels. So I have two questions.

1. Is it safe to drive to a nearby tire shop on 4 lug nuts? Lug nuts are work rs if that makes a difference.

2. Can i fix this myself (i dont have access to many tools)? Or do i need to bring this to a place like discount tire?

thanks guys,
bryan

You're so f-ing lucky that you broke it on the front.

It might be easier to buy a new hub. If one stud broke, what condition are the others in? A new hub is about $80 at Advance Auto and comes with a new wheel bearing. If you really want a headache you can remove your hub and any good tire shop should be able to remove the remains of the old stud and/or replace the other studs.

+1 on being lucky you did it on the front.

To answer your other question, it is safe to drive ... just not aggressively, of course.

How is it more of a headache to replace the stud than the whole hub? You have to do the EXACT same amout of work to replace the hub! Dumb comment. Unless your bearings are bad there is noreason to buy the whole hub. You can just buy a 4 dollar stud and have it put on Hell buy all 5 for 20 and still have beer money. IF you are doing the labor yourself/ Either way you go as far as parts you replace, a shop will charge you the same labor..(or i would anyways.) I need to go look and see,..I seem to remember there being room to replace the stud on the car. I'll go look.

It's more of a headache to replace the stud because you would have to take the hub somewhere to have the the stud removed. With a new hub you can order it online, have it shipped to your door, and install it yourself = less work and less time.

If you can remove and install the stud yourself, then of course it would be better than installing a new hub. The studs are pressed in, correct? I doubt many people have a press in their garage.

No need for a press. I just used my vice when I had to replace a rear stud.

Thank god it's the front and not the rear.

I have never needed a press to put in a new stud. Of course the only FD stud I have done is the rear, did I mention thank god it's the front?

You can knock them out witha good hard blow from a good solid hammer. You can pull them in with a ratchet and whell lug nut. Or a good blow from the backside like you did for removal. It can most definetly be done without a press. Just FYI for those that don't want to pay a shop to do it.

And yes the rear is a bit more work.

Dave

Not on an FD, but I have replaced several cars' broken studs this exact same way.
:icon_tup:
This is perfect advice.

Now, what makes the rears so much more of a nightmare? The Old Ones seem to speak in hushed tones.....

Well the rears are more of a pain just due to what you have to remove to get there. The rear axles are usually the bugger that is siezed in or just very corroded making life hard. But if you keep things lubed up on regular intervals after that it is not that bad after. But that is the headache usually.

I used to due studs the way I mentioned,..Then i gotsmart and got a press soo i could brag about it to my friends;)..nah, They are very handy tools to have.

slide a piece of metal tube over the broke nut then, it will hold it together whist try and get it off worked for me. search on my posts i did a write up on it

I have the lug nut off, I need to replace the stud itself.

If I recall that the studs are press in. You should be able to heat up the area around the stud and if there is some poking out use a clamp or something to press it out. (the hammer trick never worked for me but give it a try) From there simply install the brand new one which can be bought from any auto parts store. You can drive with a broken wheel stud, just don't go nuts. Wheel and t ire places see this all the time and if you don't want to do it yourself the fix is relatively cheap.

The rears are a nightmare because you can damage the wheel bearing when taking the hub off.

fyi DamonB had a write up of that. Not sure if it was front or rear. Its either in the Suspension archives or the 3rd gen section somewhere.

If you just want to pay the shop to do the work, it is safe to drive on 4 lug nuts. Just don't drive like a maniac on the way there.

To replace the front studs I believe you remove the caliper and brake disc, thread on a sacrificial lug nuts and pound the stud out with hammer. Then put the new stud in, then put lots of washers on the stud and then tighten a lug nut onto the stud to press the stud in.

To replace the rear studs you need to remove the entire upright, press out the hub, then you can press out the studs and press in new ones, then reassemble (most likely with a new wheel bearing because the one in normally destroyed while pressing out the hub).

For the record, a good way to help 'free' any pressed-in component is to drill a hole thru it. This actually causes the pin/stud/whatever to shrink about .0001 to
.0002, which is sometimes enough to really make a difference.

just had to go through this, make sure the new studs you install are torqued down hard and secured to the spindle before you put everything back on. its not fun trying to remove a loose wheel stud with the wheel on :/