How difficult is it to change wheels on a car? (rant)

[Kamil]

How difficult is it to change the wheels on a car?

Apparently very difficult for the specialty tire place I went to today.

I loaded my car with four mounted winter wheels and tires. I got the needed hub-centric rings too.
Each tire was appropriately marked LF, LR, RF, RR.

I got to the shop,
I drove my car inside to where the lift is,
I took the wheels out of my car,
I put them next to the corresponding corner of the car,
I gave them the rings,
I even removed the center covers of my all-season wheels,

.... all these guys, there was two (TWO!!!) of them, had to do was remove the four wheels and mount the winter rims on the car.
I even put the all-seasons back in the car myself.

Well, they got the three wheels off, but one of the lug bolts on the FR was evidently stuck; frozen if you will. The air gun was not able to move it. I became concerned.
The other guy came up to the first guy offering assistance... and then promptly walked away, only to come back with a big 1/2" drive wrench. Can you see where this is going?

Before I had a chance to scream, the guy had the big-o wrench on the lug bolt and was already standing on it, doing sort of a jump/tilt/kick thing.
Well, it worked, the wrench moved. Success!!!

Yea, right... the wrench did move, the bolt did not.
"It can't be removed" he said.

At that point, I was done talking to the two idiots and went to the manager.
It took me about six minutes to explain to this Ali G wanna manager what has happened... I kid you not, he could not grasp what I was explaining to him.
He went to the car, supposedly looked at the bolt. Then he asked me which bolt it was.
"It's the round one." I answered, pointing it out to him.

"Ah man, oh we can't fix that, you need a special tool, and we don't have it."

This is not worth my typing now... he basically suggested that I would need to weld something onto that bolt to get it out, or other option was to melt the bolt. He said he can't do it, emphasizing a need for a special tool that he did not have, and offering no other solution.

This is a specialty tire store. Tell me... how does a place like that stay in business?

[632 Regal]

most of these places are total jokes, you gotta figue who would want a career of bending over and losening/tightening 4 or 5 bolts all day long? I would seriously become brain dead.

now...

Why didnt you change them out yourself? If you did that kind of simple maintenance the bolt wouldnt have been torqued to 5000 foot pounds in the first place. I'm not badgering you but I can change all 4 out in less than 20 minutes doing a careful job, no air tools and torquing the all to 80 lbs. I do cheat and lift at the front jack point so I can change both at the same time.

If you weld something to the bolt you have the chance of them ruining the rim from heat, I would try to get the "special" tool first and then go to more invasive techniques. Supposed to get my snows in tomorrow and go and have them swapped onto my stocker rims...hope I have a better time than you did!

[Kamil]

Jeff,
I don't have the time, I don't have a garage, heck I don't even have a driveway.
It's also twenty fukin degrees outside.

Changing wheels is simple and cheap, and I did not think it would hurt if I let someone else do it... I figured it wasn't difficult to F it up.... I know, I know, u want something done right, do it yourself.

[winfred]

i get ****ed lugs out with my air chisel, but theres a number of tools on the market that are cheep that are designed to remove them

[winfred]

some of these douches could **** up a wet dream


Changing wheels is simple and cheap, and I did not think it would hurt if I let someone else do it... I figured it wasn't difficult to F it up.... I know, I know, u want something done right, do it yourself.

[bimmerd00d]

Odd, usually it's NTB that's full of incompetent morons, Discount is actually pretty reputable here in Texas. I know quite a few people who work at the ones around town, and they have always treated me well, and take great care of my car.

[Kalevera]

Winfred - how do you attack a ****ed lug with an air chisel? from the side and then replace the hub when you knock the head off of that puppy?

[632 Regal]

you dont want a really sharp chisel or youll cut the **** outta it, but then you can also use a dull one to unscrew it. Heating it can work good if you can get a good bite on it but youll usually heat the aluminum on the wheel too much and the whatever slips off and your at game one.

[MBXB]

Sears has a set of rounded bolt head extractors; basically a conical reverse spiral that fits over the rounded bolt and bites harder and tighter as you torque it.
The set I have has the smaller sizes but I know the complete set looked like it had the right size for a lug nut. Take a good lug nut with you and if it fits over the good one, it'll bite on the rounded head. I'd also soak that head with PB Blaster or Aero Kroil. Couldn't hurt.

[Robin-535im]

First off - sorry to hear about the losers at the tire place. I'm lucky enough to have a garage now after a decade of living in apartments so I get to tinker all I want.

option 1) go to Autozone and ask about what they have to help get the bolt off. They may have a tool like Winfred is talking about.

option 2) go to Autozone and buy a heavy duty 1/2" drive socket a wee bit too small for the nut, and hammer that bastard onto the bolt. Then use a breaker bar to get it off.

option 3) Call Ryan and see how he got that bolt off. Or was it a tire on a rim? Anyway, he can probably rig you up something with jack and a wall and a gun... :) :) :)

HTH

Robin

[Kalevera]

Jeff - thanks for the info, as always. I'd be afraid of ruining the wheel with any kind of air chisel...guess I just don't know the tool very well.

How was your snows mounting experience?!?

[winfred]

i get a notch started in the lug and then angle over to apply force in the correct direction to loosen, i've done enough of them i generally don't hurt anything but the lug, that and i have a bad ass snapon air hammer that could digest regular air hammers and fart em out


Winfred - how do you attack a ****ed lug with an air chisel? from the side and then replace the hub when you knock the head off of that puppy?

[callen]

Discount screwed me...once too many times... scratches, dings......really really bad....now I buy my tires from Tire Rack and take loose wheels to small indy tire shop to mount and balance......have seriously thought of buying machines to do myself...

[Tiger]

Kamil! Did you get the bolt off yet? Can you send a pic of the bolt? I got the tool...

[Mitch90535im]

I've been lucky enough to have always lived in small towns and have developed great long-term relationships with a few top notch mom and pop stores.

Thanks again guys for the overheating help. It's been a few days now and everything is A-OK. (The new water pump arrived yesterday, guess I'll just save it. Got a good thermostat, fan clutch, and water pump for a few miles down the road.)

Happy Holidays