Lug removal

Hello,

My father in law is in a bad situation with a lug on the front left side of the car. The lug is rusted that the head part of the lug is has broken off. There is no way to remove this lug using the traditional method. Also the car has rims so the left over part of the lug is imbedded where it is not accesible but can be seen. Does anyone have a solution since I have run out of options.

Sorry but that doesnt quiet make sense..

The lug broke off but then you said,
"There is no way to remove this lug using the traditional method" if the lug broke then it should be off....

Are your trying to say that the head of the lug is stripped off and you cant turn/remove it?

Or are you saying that the bolt(stud) broke off in the hub?

Sorry but that doesnt quiet make sense..
The lug broke off but then you said,
"There is no way to remove this lug using the traditional method" if the lug broke then it should be off....

Are your trying to say that the head of the lug is stripped off and you cant turn/remove it?

Or are you saying that the bolt(stud) broke off in the hub?
Half of the lug has broken off. The other half is lodged in the rim. Hope that makes sense.

Here is an image of the lug although not a perfect image.

http://www.cruz-network.net/Photo_010207_001.jpg

well your right thats not a good picture, but it does help ...

lets get a few technical terms right to help with the understanding ...
stud - the threaded bolt that is pressed into the hub
lugnut - the nut that threads on the stud to hold the rim to the hub

ok now if i'm seeing what I think i'm seeing it looks like the lugnut has broken off and has been pounded on by a chissel to try to remove it. if I'm correct your going to have to chissel off the lugnut to remove the rim ... or pound sockets on the lugnut until you get one to remove it. the socket thing works best if you can get one on there, if not you might want to look into using an air chissel to break off the lugnut ... if you do this your most likely going to damage the rim ... going to have to replace the stud ... and will need a new lugnut, it can be done as i've done it before, try the socket thing first! or if you don't have access to an air impact put the rest of the lugnuts on the car and take it to a tire shop, it will cost you if they decide they can take it off, but sometimes its easier to pay them then buy tools, its your choice and it will not be real cheap.

I think I see it correctly that the nut has half of it worn off.

So Like gmack said chissel it off,
or they do sell a nut plitter that would work if you can get it onto the nut.
It just screws in and cuts the nut in two.

After that you will need to replace the stud bolt.
It is pressed out or with a small punch.

To reinstall the new stud just put it through the hub.
Put on enough washers so not to bottom out the threads,
then tighten it and it'll pull the stud into the hub.

They also make a tool for this but if you dont have one or the money this will work.

Another solution is to drill out the stud. It's going to take a while, start small with a pilot hole and work your way up, and make sure your bits are sharp. I did one on my 95, took an hour or so and didn't damage the wheel at all. Also, use a corded drill for this as you will have to stop to recharge batteries often if you use a cordless drill.

Another solution is to drill out the stud. It's going to take a while, start small with a pilot hole and work your way up, and make sure your bits are sharp. I did one on my 95, took an hour or so and didn't damage the wheel at all. Also, use a corded drill for this as you will have to stop to recharge batteries often if you use a cordless drill.
Beat me to it. This is by far the safest way to remove the lug and stud as worn down as this one with out damaging the rim.

I didnt suggest drilling because most dont want to spend 2hrs drilling and spending a bunch of money on breaking bits off. Not the easiest thing to learn :grinno:

And the rim looks chewed up around the stud/lug nut anyway. :sorry:

,........... Just my :2cents:

Hello,

My father in law is in a bad situation with a lug on the front left side of the car. The lug is rusted that the head part of the lug is has broken off. There is no way to remove this lug using the traditional method. Also the car has rims so the left over part of the lug is imbedded where it is not accesible but can be seen. Does anyone have a solution since I have run out of options.
From the picture you posted your father in law made the same mistake i did, use a chisel to remove the lug nut. Next time -as i have learned the hard way- use a socket that fits tight/forced on the bolt and remove.

I did the samething as your father in law. Now, you can still take off the lug nut but now you have to remove the other side wall of the lug nut. Use a chisel just not a wood chisel, you can get one at an auto parts store. I was able to cut in half off of the lug nut on my car. It'll be a tight fit to beak the other side wall, so just move the car/wheel so you can break off the other side wall. Then as someone already mentioned, put a smaller socket in there and remove. I used a smaller socket i had to bang with a hammer to fit on the messed up lug nut but once it was on, i was able to remove the lug nut.

I had pictures of the lug nut that i took off and it looked just like the one you shown in the pic. Just be patient and use a chisel then use a smaller socket then remove.


Heres what i did to mine. And questions just let me know. And with persistance, a chissel, and smaller socket hammered on, i was able to remove this lug nut, with minimal scarps to my rims. Tip, use tape next to the area you are using the chissel on this will help to not scrap your rims. Good luck.
http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k170/ferocity_2006/apictures045.jpg

the poster stated that the lug nug was rusted tight so I doubt that pressing an under size socket over it will get it off. Most people have drill bits as opposed to chisels this is one of the reasons why I suggested the drill-out method.

Another thing is to drill the stud partway (in diameter) and force a socket on and break the stud, but I don't know if thats going to work in this situation. When I drilled mine the lug was round, and I had the GT wheels on at the time. If I had the snows on it would have been easy with a chisel or a nutcracker to split the nut.

the poster stated that the lug nug was rusted tight so I doubt that pressing an under size socket over it will get it off. Most people have drill bits as opposed to chisels this is one of the reasons why I suggested the drill-out method.

I think he can still remove the socket, i struggle on mine but i was able to remove it. The pick i posted was a lock key, lug nut. So the outer of the nut was round only way to remove it was when i forced a smaller socket onto the lug nut and applied heavy pressure and was able to remove the lug nut. But i first had to chip away the lug nut wall barior.