Wheel bolt broken at hub

[SuperHangOn]

I noticed one of the wheel bolts has had its head snapped off at the head on my new shed purchase. About 1-2mm of the remaining stud protrudes from the hub. What would be the best way of getting it out? I have been spraying it with WD40 the last few days to soften it up in preparation for battle!

FWIW the monkey fitted a nasty tyre of the wrong size while he was at it! 2 tyres are pre-historic and I have 3 different sizes & 4 different makes!

cheers

[Jimmytno1]

With the wheel off is there enough of the bolt left to get some pliers/mole grips on it? If not you may be able to turn the bolt out with a hammer and punch/chisel. With the head of the bolt being missing the thread shouldn't be tight, unless of course it is seized in there in which case you may need to drill it out! Good luck with it any way!

[Defcon5]

Get some proper penatrating fluid, someone recently posted about some from Halfords that was good.

Heat and extreme cold will be your friends here

[freecar]

If you can remove the hub and mount on the table of a pillar drill I'd grind it flat then drill and tap the hole again, it'll remove it no problems. If you can't put it on a pillar drill I'd try flatting the top punching then drilling a smaller hole and using stud extractors.

I'd only really trust a pillar drill to completely drill a bolt out.

[Nick3point2]

Free off any corrosion (gentle frequent taps with a hammer will do it) then get some mole grips on it should do.

Or, weld a new head onto it and remove it.

[MoralHazard]

SuperHangOn said:

I noticed one of the wheel bolts has had its head snapped off at the head on my new shed purchase.

This is a very difficult task. There are three approaches.

1) Live with it.

2) New hub.

3) Get the old stud out.


If you choose to get the old stud out, there are several ways to try. Whichever way you try, saturate it in release oil first.

a) try to use some strong grips on the remaining edge. Pipe wrench is best, but there may not be enough of the the stud sticking out. Otherwise, mole wrench/vice grips and whatnot. Try belting the stud with a hammer a few times first, as it will be reluctant.

b) If (a) fails, cut a slot with a hack saw in the remaining piece of stud. Then take the stud out with an impact screw driver.

c) If (b) fails, then you could try a stud remover. I've never had much joy with those, but you never know. You have to get the centre hole dead in the centre, which is tricky.

d) If (c) fails, then you could try to drill the thing out. It can be done, but these wheel bolts are made of tough steel. And you have to be very careful to get the first hole dead centre.

e) You could open the hole out to a bigger size, and try a wider bolt. I've done this on big valves, but never on cars.

f) Once or twice, I've had some luck by chiseling the stud out by clipping a notch in the stud and turning it out in a rotary manner.

I'd only give you a 50/50 chance of getting it out with one of the methods above, because wheel nuts fit very tightly.

Good luck....

[Mr2Mike]

I've read the OP's post twice and I'm still not sure if the car uses bolts or studs to attach the road wheels (both terms have been used)? This makes a big difference, since a stud is only a press fit into the hub anyway, and can be driven out with a punch and a hammer and replaces fairly easily (though the hub may have to be removed from the upright to do so).

If it is a bolt, and it has been sheared off simply through excessive force rather than corrosion, then screw extractors stand an excellent chance of working (preferably the splined type rather than tapered spiral).

If it has been sheared due to corrosion seizing it, then a suitable nut placed over the remains and welded on often works very well; the combination of lots of heat and a nice new hex to grip maximises the chances of removal.