I've broken a couple studs on my Forester too. Happened just as you described. Not sure what the issue is with the studs and lug nuts. Since this occurred, I soak the factory lug nuts in WD 40 while swapping my winter wheels. No idea if this solves the issue, but have swapped the wheels 4 times since the issue and have not broken a stud.

BTW, I have been changing wheels on cars since I was 12. Usually 2-3 sets, twice a year since then, am 42 now, have only broken 2 wheel studs ever, both on my SJ Forester.

 

FYI, the original WD40 contains vegetable gum which accumulates AND absorbs moisture. Don't use original WD40 on anything that you do not want to gum up and/or be in contact with moisture.

GD

 

yazuz sounds like your nuts were wound on by clyde the orangutan !

 

If I get a flat tire I must call AAA to change a tire. I can no longer remove those lug nuts.

 

Same here. In the past year I've had to replace 4 wheel studs, two of which broke in two. I blame Discount Tire (DT) who does all my tire rotations.

Just recently, on my first rotation after buying tires at DT, they broke off a stud. DT wrote out a repair voucher and sent me to a shop to have it replaced. In the process of checking all my wheels, the repair shop found two additional damaged studs which they charged back to DT.

If Discount Tire wants my business in the future, they are going to have to loosen and tighten my Forester's lug nuts by hand and not with a power wrench.

 

Same here. In the past year I've had to replace 4 wheel studs, two of which broke in two. I blame Discount Tire (DT) who does all my tire rotations.

Just recently, on my first rotation after buying tires at DT, they broke off a stud. DT wrote out a repair voucher and sent me to a shop to have it replaced. In the process of checking all my wheels, the repair shop found two additional damaged studs which they charged back to DT.

If Discount Tire wants my business in the future, they are going to have to loosen and tighten my Forester's lug nuts by hand and not with a power wrench.

I have personally broken several studs on my 2014 and 2016 Forester. They often get frozen when they are being removed. To many times to be a coincidence.

 

i think those tiny lugs are burrowing into the wheel too much and closing up the 1.25 threads. i switched to bulge acorns and so far so good. almost all my originals got so tight i might not've got them off with the car's wrench. i bought the dorman exact fit and the same thing happened.

 

I've seen the same problem and I don't blame the tire shop. I have a 2014 Forester with 114000 miles. I've changed probably 4 studs on this vehicle over the years, studs where I was the one that tightened the nut with a torque wrench. I had a similar problem with a Volvo. Outside of these two cars I have never had a problem. Of course both of these cars use a smaller pitch thread.
ColoradoZ28

 

Never had a single problem with wheel studs - ever!

I always add a tiny bit of anti-seize to the stud, use correct torque and always check for correct torque after visits to the tire shop.

 

I too have never had a wheel stud problem. I use a tiny bit of anti-seize when needed and always use a torque wrench. After a drive I will double check the torque, often one or two might need a bit more.

 

I havent had issues with any of my subarus but this is the kind of thing that can haunt you later... maybe even several rotations or wheel changes later.

I use a the impact on low power(setting 1) to zip them back on to aprox 65lb-ft then final tighten with a torque wrench.

Also always hand start them at least 2 turns.. I saw the one dufus at DT put them on with the impact wrench and torque stick.

he didnt hand start it .. and they didnt move at all when he checked with the torque wrench. I loosened and retightened them all right in front of their bay.. and complained to the manager.. noticed last couple of times I went there that guy was mysteriously gone. This was at an out of town DT(on my work commute) not my normal one.

They have the right tools but you have to use them correctly.. in a fast paced environment.

Of course since then I bought a house and I do almost all the normal car maintenance in my driveway now.

 

Thanks for the response, Folks! I'm 73 years old, and I have been changing my own tires since I was 17. I believe I've only had about two occasions where I had to change studs - not counting the four I've had to do with my Subaru. This helps to know others have had similar problems. It seems to me these studs are made of a softer metal. It didn't seem to take much muscle to brake them. The replacements are a golden color and could be grade 8 studs (although I don't see any grade indication on them). Since I've had 4 of these things go out on me, I'm tempted to replace all of them. I surely don't want this kind of problem to happen out on the road while trying to change a flat.
The problem could also be the nut. I am using acorn types.

 

@Rand

Thanks for info, Rand - I think I will take my wheels off and have the tire shop change tires on the loose wheels - then mount them on myself.

 

I blast mine with a wire wheel on a cordless drill every few years to keep the threads clean.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

Studs were previously over tightened and stretched. Removing the nut added extra heat and the stud broke. If you would have stopped when it got tight....Went a half turn clockwise then backed off 1 turn or so and repeating the process ..allowing the stud to cool it wouldn't have happened. But the damage was already done.

I would go to the place that put on the wheel and complain.

 

I tried backing off and then re-loosen on the third stud but to no avail. Like you said, "the damage was already done". I don't think this problem was really the falt of the tire business - Oh, I am not saying that they didn't over tighten of nuts ... they just clamped down on those studs to ensure the wheel would not come off on the road. That kind of "abuse" should have been anticipated by the designer of that wheel. During earlier years, I remember having to stand on a breaker bar to loosen a wheel nut - doing so without damaging the stud. Today, the quality of these fasteners seems to be out of control. Either that, or the engineering of these fasteners have become too clever - they have designed these fasteners to mathematical specs without really understanding what is happening out here in the real world.
But I'm ranting ...... end of rant ...

 

When I was putting on my winters last fall I to had a nut freeze-up. I use an impact to remove the nuts but I hand tighten and use a torque wrench for final torque of 90 lbs. I took it to the dealer to have the new stud installed. When I got home I attempted to complete the tire switch over. Two more nuts on the same wheel they just repaired were now frozen and wouldn't budge. Back to the dealer I go. I raised hell and they replaced all four of the remaining studs at no cost. I purchased and replaced all 20 lug nuts and hope for no further problems.


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I realize this thread is almost asleep. Took in my 2015 Forester XT premium to Kal Tires in Vancouver BC (I believe Kal Tires is related to Les Schwab in the states) I had some lovely Gram Lights put on. Not one, not two, but four broken hub bolts. The guy said it happened a lot on Subarus. It was the first I'd heard of it. He said it's a continuous problem with Soobs but Subaru pretends it's not a problem. Three were sheared, the fourth actually had been misthreaded at some point and the person just forced it instead of taking care of it properly.

I bought the car via Carmax outside Seattle in January. No telling if they were responsible for this, or it happened while the previous owner had it worked on. It seems the nuts are cheap being only threaded two -thirds of the way. Inside the dome part of the nut it's not threaded -is this the normal design on these nuts? Anyway I'm guessing too tightly tightened down.

 

I know this heretical to suggest but I've run into numerous professionals suggesting this. Put a little anti-seize on the threads.

 

Burning at the stake is an option for such free thinking

 

I've now had 3 studs freeze up when removing wheels. Independent mecganics I've asked about it all claim it is a common problem with Subarus so I've had all of them replaced with non Subaru studs and also nuts. I don't want to get stuck on a track miles from anywhere because I can't change a wheel.

 

An earlier post here says that he tightens them to 90ftlb for his 2015, for my 2011 it is 72ftlb. What is confusing is that 2015 uses the same lug pattern and thread size. Why the almost 20% difference in torque value? To compound confusion a torque value listing site says for 17'' rims it should be 80ftlb on a third-gen Forester.

Lug Nut Torque Chart | Wheel and Tire Proz

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From my owner's manual--
Wheel nut tightening torque 72 lbf·ft (100 N·m, 10 kgf·m)*
*: This torque is equivalent to applying approximately 88 to 110 lbf (40 to 50 kgf) at the edge of the wheel nut wrench. If you have tightened the wheel nuts by yourself, have the tightening torque checked at the nearest automotive service facility as soon as possible.

Can somebody explain what they mean by the comment with the asterix???

 

From my owner's manual--
Wheel nut tightening torque 72 lbf·ft (100 N·m, 10 kgf·m)*
*: This torque is equivalent to applying approximately 88 to 110 lbf (40 to 50 kgf) at the edge of the wheel nut wrench. If you have tightened the wheel nuts by yourself, have the tightening torque checked at the nearest automotive service facility as soon as possible.

Can somebody explain what they mean by the comment with the asterix???

I don't believe anyone answered your question. The "wheel nut wrench" doesn't measure exactly one foot from the center of the socket to the end of wrench, and your grip on the wrench is closer still to the nut. That makes your lever arm shorter, so you need to pull harder to get the correct torque. If you grip it about 8" from the nut, you need to pull (or push) with 110 pounds of force to obtain 72 lbf-ft of torque. The "edge of the wheel nut wrench" verbiage is misleading, but right on par with most of Subaru's tech writing.

 

Ditto on my 2014 (total of 6 ) and 2016 Forester (2 so far). I have a bag of spare suds in my garage. To many to be a coincidence.

 

The Subaru studs are fine. I’ve never had a problem. Check your threads and if needed, use a quality die or replace (OEM) any stud where the threads are damaged. Cross threading is one reason for damage. I use a tiny amount of anti seize. Copper AS works well. And, I use a torque wrench.

 

I've never had a stud break in 22 years of owning at least two Subarus at a time.

 

I've never had a stud break in 22 years

23 years of Subies w/o a stud break - also never had a stud break on any vehicle. I too use a little anti-seize and a torque bar.

 

What torque value are you guys using? And does anyone know why the range is different for different models?

 

Def. anti-seize (in general), on anything that’s meant to come off and on periodically. Especially if high corrosion (coastal, or salt roads).

Studs would be preassembled on wheel hubs (on later model cars). So, as Subaru has changed OEM suppliers over the years, there would have been some manufacturing discrepancies. They should be hitensile, but I imagine (statistically speaking), that there must be some instances where there are impurities or faults in the alloying process.

I believe ‘ARP’, make a decent bolt. Might consider having a few spares, after hearing these instances.

I haven’t had it happen on a wheel stud (yet), but I have on banjo bolts (Venhill), and suspension bolts (Whiteline). Torqued to factory spec (as instructed), and they sheared off. Supplier replaced them (expect Whiteline, poop customer service), and they did the same thing.

Had torque wrench checked on calibration load cell, was spot on. Which surprised me, for a cheap sh!tty Kincrome wrench.

 

I don't use a lot of anti-seize. Just enough to make a very thin film is more than enough. I'll put it on and then wipe down the threads. I've always used a torgue wrench and followed the factory specs for your model Subaru. They don't all have the same spec.