help! wheel rusted in place.

[pimping]

hello.

i have a mk2 mondeo and i am trying to change a wheel but it's rusted on. squirted it with wd40 and tapped the join between the disc brake and wheel with a chisel and hammer (i know, i know) but nothing seems to be working. i have a crowbar which is about a foot long and am looking for a long steel tubular thingy for more leverage but can't find one.

anybody know of anything i can do as there is a wealth of knowledge on here!

cheers in advance.

[Piersman2]

Hit the tyre with a heavy hammer from the inside to shock the wheel loose.

[Major Fallout]

Put the nuts back on, but not tight. Then go for a little drive.

[S1_RS]

Make sure the car is stable and then kick the top of the wheel as hard as you can, then the bottom. It may take a few proper kicks but it will loosen. Proper kicks mind, no point tickling it.

[GTIR]

Remove the wheel nuts.

[Biker's Nemesis]

doogz said:

Plank of wood, place it along the inside of the tyre/rim.

Hit with hammer. Hard. Wood will stop you mashing the rim/bursting the tyre.

There's one of the correct answers right there.^^^^^^^^^

[Risotto]

I think it's something to do with the two different types of metal (wheel and hub) reacting with eachother.

You could try a rubber mallet on the inner wheel rim. It does sometimes take quite a bit of force to free a stuck alloy.

Make sure you put some copper grease or similar on the hub face when you put the wheel back on!

[Petrolhead_Rich]

Major Fallout said:

Put the nuts back on, but not tight. Then go for a little drive.

This ^^^^^

Only need to be slightly slack, reverse down drive and bang on the brakes, then drive back up, bang on the brakes, jack car up, remove nuts and wheel will fall off

[pimping]

off out now to belt the blighter with a hammer and said chock of wood. back in a sec!

[Biker's Nemesis]

pimping said:

off out now to belt the blighter with a hammer and said chock of wood. back in a sec!

Don't muck about, hit the bugger as hard as you can.

[MarsellusWallace]

Make sure the car is jacked up securely,then kick the top of the wheel hard with your heel.turn the wheel a little then kick again.Repeat until it comes off(always works for me)

[Pickled Piper]

As above, kicking and/ or lowering on the jack with the wheel nuts removed always works for me.

Remember to coat the mating surfaces with a copper based lubricant to avoid the issue in the future.

pp

[williamp]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

Major Fallout said:

Put the nuts back on, but not tight. Then go for a little drive.

This ^^^^^

Only need to be slightly slack, reverse down drive and bang on the brakes, then drive back up, bang on the brakes, jack car up, remove nuts and wheel will fall off

This would be my perferred option. Dont hit it directly with a hammer, only with a rubber mallet. Either way, its a bit like hard work...

I would do the above- but dont go far and dont go fast. Back and forward, plenty of sharp breaking

[john_p]

I consider tyre fitters to be the experts at this, and have only ever observed two approaches:

1. lie under the car and kick the hell out of it with big boots on
2. stand with back to the wheel and kick the hell out of it with big boots on

I'm sure you can see the common theme here.

Edited by john_p on Wednesday 5th January 14:31

[Petrolhead_Rich]

Kicking method is fine until one of the following happens (speaking from experience):
1) wheel falls off and hits you in the shin
2) slip and fall
3) slip and kick car bodywork
4) stub toe on car bodywork
5) car falls off jack

Having bought many old wrecks over the years for peanuts to rally round fields, rusted wheels and brakes are a common problem and easily solved by driving a couple of meters with the wheel nuts slackened, hammers, wood, kicking etc will end in damage, injury or just have no effect!

[Ozzie Osmond]

This is one of those rare cases where the "big hammer" is genuinely appropriate. As above, it's best used with a large block of wood. And as above, a light smear of copper grease to prevent future corrosion.

Please do not lie under a jacked car and try to kick the wheel off....

[pimping]

been out and tried it but hammer not big enough. got a full compliment of tools at work so it will have to wait. yeah the coppper grease is a top bit of advice.

cheers all as usual ph solves!

[lost in espace]

Place jack sideways on opposite wheel, long bit of wood from jack to stuck wheel. Open up jack and the wheel will come off, or spear your garage door on its way out.

[edc]

Lower down slowly on jack. Weight of car should dislodge stuck wheel.

[The Black Flash]

Ozzie Osmond said:

This is one of the many everyday situations one of those rare cases where the "big hammer" is genuinely appropriate. As above, it's best used with a large block of wood. And as above, a light smear of copper grease to prevent future corrosion.

EFA

OP - I've always gone for the "slacken the nuts and drive forwards and backwards a bit" approach, myself. It'll be loose no time.