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**SOS** Wheel bolt stripped

G

graftingrome21

Ready to race!
Location
CT
Hi everyone,

Earlier today I picked up a set of winter wheels for my MK7 GTI. While I was torquing down one of the lug bolts, it kept spinning and spinning, which means I've cross threaded it without realizing it.

What is my best course of action? Anyone have any idea on what a cost to replace a hub would be if I need to explore that route?

Please help as this is currently my only running car.
 
G

George Ab

Drag Racing Champion
Location
Pacific NW
I had to remove the rear hub and wheel bearing to install performance package splash shield. Requires a M18 triple square and a large breaker bar as torque is 150 ft lbs plus 180°.
 
A

AR11

Ready to race!
Location
CA
It should be fine as long as you remove one of the two opposing bolts as well just to keep things approximately balanced. 5 bolts is overkill IMO! Just another manufacturer CYA. The original GTI had 4 bolts and it worked fine. Hell I've even seen some cars with just one big bolt.

Live bold. Less bolts.
 
jay745

jay745

What Would Glenn Danzig Do
Location
Slightly Outside Chicago
Car(s)
Mk6 racecar, Tacoma
AR1 said:
It should be fine as long as you remove one of the two opposing bolts as well just to keep things approximately balanced. 5 bolts is overkill IMO! Just another manufacturer CYA. The original GTI had 4 bolts and it worked fine. Hell I've even seen some cars with just one big bolt.

Live bold. Less bolts.
Click to expand...

Good lord don't follow this advice OP. The cars with one large bolt are centrifical like some porsche models, gti hubs are not. Removing one bolt will cause the force to be un even. Removing more bolts is NOT a solution.
 
N

nate704

Go Kart Champion
Location
Virginia
AR1 said:
It should be fine as long as you remove one of the two opposing bolts as well just to keep things approximately balanced. 5 bolts is overkill IMO! Just another manufacturer CYA. The original GTI had 4 bolts and it worked fine. Hell I've even seen some cars with just one big bolt.

Live bold. Less bolts.
Click to expand...

most dumbest advice ever!
 
vj123

vj123

Autocross Newbie
Location
The Detroit
Car(s)
19 & 16 GTI - sold
AR1 said:
It should be fine as long as you remove one of the two opposing bolts as well just to keep things approximately balanced. 5 bolts is overkill IMO! Just another manufacturer CYA. The original GTI had 4 bolts and it worked fine. Hell I've even seen some cars with just one big bolt.

Live bold. Less bolts.
Click to expand...


I would not give such an advice which might affect another person's safety one day.
 
G

graftingrome21

Ready to race!
Location
CT
Update:

So I was able to remove the wheel and put the stock wheels back on. But out of 5 bolts only 2 went in perfectly fine which I don't understand how this could have happened. So it looks like now I'll have to get the entire front hub assembly replaced anyway unless anyone else has a solution. It looks like not only did 3 of the lug bolts get messed up, but the threads for inside the hub themselves also got damaged.
 
Hoon

Hoon

Autocross Champion
Location
Rhode Island
BxGTI said:
Hubs are 220.00 OEM 119.00 aftermarket


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

And you definitely want OEM.

OP, if the threads are damaged beyond what can (or should) be corrected with a thread chaser, you'll have to replace the hub.

Im not really sure how this happened. Did you try to run them down with an impact without starting by hand?

These are fine thread but they're long, large bolts. I don't understand how you could possibly cross thread one beyond the first thread or two.
 
ITGUY

ITGUY

Autocross Newbie
Location
PA
Just a bit of hind sight: You should always start the bolts by hand.. you can pretty much feel if you start to cross thread it. Maybe you had a shop do some prior work and they cross threaded it and just backed it out and didn't mention anything?

My dealer knows not to screw with me since I walk right out in front of them with my torque wrench and double check my car before I drive out. I already had a tire store not put a wheel on correctly and it started to wobble and I pulled off the road and sure enough all the lug nuts were loose.
 
A

AR11

Ready to race!
Location
CA
My guess is OP didn't fully seat the wheel on the hub and was using the bolt to "pull" the wheel in to place. I'm basing this assumption on the observation that of all the times I've bolted the wheels on (which is many times between the various suspension jobs and track wheel swaps) I've never felt the bolt remotely want to cross thread.

Was it a steel wheel? I guess those might not "guide" the bolt in straight as much as aluminum wheels tend to do.

Oh, and; have you ruled out gorilla glue?
 
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