I have always used a "dead blow" hammer to remove and secure knock offs. I don't know how you could possibly ever get a torque measurement from that!
I had knock offs on my old corvette.

[IMG]local://upfiles/2910/2820769F2ED74530B47EDE644AF5B339.jpg[/IMG]

 

yea there is no proper way to measure the torque which is the problem. I had them on for a long time and nothing ever went wrong until we took them off and put them back on. We must have slipped up on the tightenening thing. RIght now the other 3 wheels stay on fine so it will be ok. Thanks for the help with finding the brand name and such.

 

Damn man you seem pretty chill about a wheel falling off on the highway if you ask me! I'd be a little more shaken up if my wheel fell off going 60mph... LOL
[align=left] [/align]

 

I had a wheel fall off one of my 240sx's once scared the crap out of me and I was only going like 15mph (because I was turning). Finally got the car stopped and the wheel had gone down the road bumped a cadillac and rolled literally right back to where I was standing lol.

 

I Had to revive this thread, 'cause I almost found myself in the same situation just yesterday.

I was driving down the highway with three pretty ladies in my truck -- when suddenly I felt a lot of vibration. I immediately pulled over, to discover that three lugs on the rear passenger side wheel had popped right off! The wheel was being held (barely) by two bolts. Five more minutes, and we would have all been done for. My girl said, "Just tighten up the two bolts and drive slow, and we should be okay." Hell no! I had someone come pick up my passengers, and I had a tow truck take me home. It was worth the $150.

I just finished browsing the boards and saw someone else's post about re-threading bolts. Kyle the Guru said something very important, that I WISH the people who sold me the wheels had told me -- that you're supposed to re-check the torquing of the bolts 500 miles after you install the wheels. They've been on the truck for about 1500 miles -- and I was also planning to take a road trip this weekend. Thank God it happened now instead of the following weekend, while I was out in the boonies somewhere!

The tow truck driver also said that he's seen this happen many times on trucks with aftermarket wheels. A few of the victims weren't as fortunate as me, as they left the scene in the back of ambulances.

So...others be forewarned. If you buy mag wheels for your truck, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE be sure to check the torquing of your bolts within a few hundred miles after you install them. Your life (and your truck's) depend on it.

I'm so spooked by the whole situation that I'm tempted to slap the ugly factory wheels back on it. Can anybody else give feedback on this subject (especially Kyle)? What can we do to ensure our aftermarket wheels are safe?

Raph

 

Don't be spooked. Everytime you take your wheels off, make sure to retorque the lug nuts a week or so later.

I had that happen to me a few times when i first got into modifying my vehicles, didn't take long to learn to retorque bolts after working on stuff (like suspension components!)

 

Is that why they're called "knock offs"? LOL

 

Jigg, thanks so much for the tip. But what a way to learn...

 

Yeah, no joke!

I actually learned the hard way with retightening the suspension components... i had a ball joint pull off of the control arm while i was out wheeling... not fun at all! Cost me like $300 in parts because it took the CV, wheel bearing, and both ball joints with it.