Rotating Tires/ can't get rear tires off

Are you using a "star" lug nut wrench? That would give you more leverage. Another option would be to take the car to a Discount Tire (if they are in your area). They will rotate your tires for free. If you didn't want them to do the rotation, I am sure they would use their impact wrench to loosen the nuts for you.

 

I would use something better than WD 40. And you need to get it behind the wheel, not just the bolt heads.
I like Kroil. If you can't get that I've used Tri-flow.

Then try a bigger tire wrench. I have a handle thing with gears that makes it easy to unbolt any bolt on a wheel ( or shear it off!)
It has a post that goes over one bolt to hold it in place, and is geared so you turn with a 3 to 1 leverage on the bolt you want to remove. Found it on the web somewhere with my elecric tire jack.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(filiberti @ Aug 30 2006, 04:32 PM) [snapback]311775[/snapback]</div>

Sounds like somebody went Mongo on you. About your only recourse is to get a good, stout tire wrench with the correct size socket on it, then really horse it. I've always had four-way tire irons for exactly this reason. If you use the right socket, you can haul up on the right end and step down on the left end - it takes a little coordination not to fall on your kiester when it suddenly breaks loose, but I've only had a very few fail to break loose when I do that. If it still refuses, and if you really don't want to pay someone to use an impact wrench on it, you can get a 1/2-inch drive breaker bar and an appropriately sized socket, and if necessary (don't listen, OSHA) use a cheater pipe on it. (Insert standard disclaimers here.) I'm one of those oddballs who will stop and help someone change a tire on the side of the road, and I put myself through college working as a mechanic, so I've removed hundreds and hundreds of tires, most of them with a four-way.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ttaylor @ Aug 30 2006, 04:46 PM) [snapback]311784[/snapback]</div>

Not to be argumentative, but Discount Tires used to only rotate your tires for free if you bought the tires from them (at least that's how it was a bit over a year ago - it's possible they've changed since then). Otherwise, it's in the neighborhood of $7 per tire. Sometimes they have coupons in the paper or online, though.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(filiberti @ Aug 30 2006, 12:32 PM) [snapback]311775[/snapback]</div>

Hi Tom

You mean you can't loosen the wheel lug bolts? Remember unscrewing is counter clockwise or opposite the way the clock turns. To get more leverage try getting the wrench as nearly level as you can and pointing to the left. Then hold the front of the wrench up by the bolt with your right hand and press down on the very end of the wrench as far from the bolt as possible with your left hand with your elbow locked straight and arm pointed straight down. Now lean toward the front of the car and basically sit on your left arm as it presses on the wrench. If that is not enough, get a piece of pipe and put it over your wrench to make it longer and do the same thing. There are wrenches called "breaker bars" which are made for just this purpose. Once you have the wheels off, use a torque wrench to reinstall them. Mine is set at 60 inch pounds so they won't be too tight. Many recommend a tighter setting. If you rotate them regularly they won't set hard in place with rust.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Allannde @ Aug 30 2006, 03:02 PM) [snapback]311802[/snapback]</div>

I don't know how this stacks up, procedure-wise, but I just put the standard lug wrench (that comes with the car) so the handle is roughly parallel to the ground the then stamp my foot down on the end. Sometimes it takes a couple of kicks, but I've never had that not work to break them free. And I've never used lubricants for this purpose.

Cheater bars work, too (but why would OSHA care?)

just make sure the emergency brakes are set and the wheels are chocked before you do this. You don't want to start the car rolling!

 

thread a single lug on, just 2-3 threads. then get the biggest hammer you can find and a block of wood. put the block of wood against the tire and rim from the inside of the tire/rim, and hammer away. threading the single lug nut on will keep the tire from flying.

not uncommon, they do stick.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(filiberti @ Aug 30 2006, 06:14 PM) [snapback]311807[/snapback]</div>

Make sure its up on jackstands and not a jack if you try this.

Audi's had the same problem in the 2001 time frame. The suggestion then was to put the bolts back on but leave them about 1 turn loose (Audi uses wheel bolts rather than lug nuts). Then lower the car and drive it forward and/or backwards a few feet. You want the nuts tight enough so when the wheel comes loose, it can't hit the treads on the wheel studs. But they need to be loose enough so a wheel can move a little bit.

Be very careful with WD-40, Kroil, etc. If any of it gets into the brakes and gets on the linings it is generally recommended to replace them and use a strong degreaser on the brake drums.

- Tom

 

Put the nuts back on but only to finger tight. Now back them of one turn. Drive the car a few yards in circles both ways and the wheels should break loose.
Now jack the car up and see if you can get the wheel off.

 

OR...

Use your jack sideways (NO MERLOT! ) between the wheels with a spacer like a 2X or 4X4 and pop (Didn't want to say jack them off) them off.

 

To prevent this in the future, use "waterproof grease" and apply an extremely thin coating to the mating surfaces, especially the ones where the aluminum touches the steel. I apply it with a finger and wipe all of it off - it's still coated, there's just not enough to flow or run anywhere. It helps keep moisture out, and that helps reduce the corrosion that makes the wheel stick to the hub.

I used my foot to break the wheels loose before I started using the grease. Face away from the car and kick backward so you don't injure yourself. Kick one side of the tire then the other.

The wheels are "hub centric", which means the wheel is held in place by the hub, which partially extends into the wheel. This is usually a tight fit and subject to corrosion.

 

Oh - my mistake. The solution when they stick to the drum or rotor is to just kick the hell out of one side of the tire (with the car safely supported, of course). That'll usually knock them loose.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Orf @ Aug 30 2006, 06:17 PM) [snapback]311836[/snapback]</div>

Orf,
This is a great idea! I dont' care to admit how many times I have hammered away at a rear wheel to break that DXXX brake drum seal. Thanks again, I'll remember this one. Once again Prius Chat to the rescue!

 

Speaking of lug nut wrenches, the one that came with the prius is a joke. The arm is barely 12 inches long, and with the angle that it is at, it's really more like a 9 or 10 inch lever arm. You might as well try to take the lug nuts off with your fingers.

I had a flat in a hotel parking lot when I was on vacation and I couldn't get any of the lug nuts off. I ended up calling AAA and the tow truck driver got them loose in seconds with a cross bar lug wrench.

Do yourself a favor, get a better lug nut wrench and keep it with your Prius.

 

filiberti, did you lube the backside o fthe wheels when you reinstalled them?

Marlin, if you 'seat' the Prius lug nut tool fully and then stand on it with your fingers holding the top inside of the wheel well, you can apply more torque with it.

 

Re: Rotating Tires/ can't get rear tires off

I've got the same problem... I don't know about the fronts, but when I attempted to take the rear off to put the winter wheels/tires on, I removed all the lug nuts, and the wheel wouldn't come off.

I tried a block of wood on the inside of the rim, and hitting it with a dead-blow hammer, but to no avail. It's like they're welded to the hub! I don't want to damage the alloy wheels.

Is there any risk of me damaging the alloy wheels by hammering on a block of wood on the inside outer rim?

Many thanks,