Took my 2005 F150 in for ball joint replacement (72,700 miles). The shop calls and tells me that they cannot get the wheels off because the lug nuts are stuck. They broke a heavy wall socket trying to break them and I broke a thin wall socket AND the oem lug wrench. Any suggestions?

 

....find a new shop.

 

If they are so tight as to break a impact socket then it must have been made in china because a quality socket and impact wrench would have sheared the stud before breaking the socket if you have to break and replace the studs now is the time not when your in the middle of no place with a flat tire

 

The last tire shop I went to put my tires back on with an impact way too tight. Also, my driver side brake likes to heat up more than the others due to a sticky caliper so I think the heat basically welded the lugnut on.

I broke a 4' long breaker bar and two impact sockets trying to get it off myself. I then took it to a automotive shop. We tried heating it up and then a 10' long pole attached to a breaker bar. That didn't work either so we torched it until the whole lug nut was red hot and used an impact back and forth until it came off. I thought the stud would snap off but it held together. I think its time you bring the torch out and heat the crap out of it. Have a second person spray the wheel down with water so you minimize damage to the rim. If you break the stud, they are easy enough to replace and this might be your only option.

Good luck!

 

Wow, I hope you are NOT using a torch near your wheel bearings...

 

This happened to me on my Grand Cherokee last year, and it is a big problem I'll tell you now. There are a few in the thread making light of it, but it is no joke. We had a flat, and couldn't get one lug nut off, so called roadside service. They also couldn't get it off. A can of fix a flat got us to a tire shop down the street. They were also unable to get it off with either a very long pull bar and a guy that looked like a body builder, or with their impact wrench. The nut eventually started to round off, so they switched to one of those grabber sockets... still no luck. Took it to a second tire shop, and they tried for a while and decided it needed to be drilled out. They drilled for a couple of hours to finally get the stud out and replaced it. Cost me $250 labor and days of frustration. Alloy wheels look nice but are a real pain. It seems they can become overtightened, and just as common for me is the nuts loosening. Three different times over several years when rotating tires, I tightened everything down good and tight and then a month later found a couple of loose nuts.

So, I would get the truck to a good reputable shop that can do whatever it takes to get it off.

 

Convergent. While alloy wheels can be a pain they will not cause a problem if properly installed.1st use an anti sieze on the threads 2nd good and tight doesnt cut it use a torque wrench 3rd re torque after about 50 miles. I know this sounds like a PIA but its worth the trouble down the road

 

use a metric socket thats a hair to small, bang it onto the nut with a hammer till its good and stuck, then attach socket and breaker bar. your either going to break the stud, or the nuts going to come off. same deal i use for taking of the keyed lug nuts that everyone looses the key to.

 

I think its cause they are put on to 150 foot pounds! Way beyond whats needed for these wheels.. I think.

 

No s**t. I've been around the automotive world and if a shop can not get it off then they shouldn't be in business. This happens all the time.

There are impact wrenches that pound out well over 1200lb-ft of torque for tractor tires and I'm certain they'd be able to get that b***h off. My own impact zips up 800lb-ft in reverse for stubborn lug nuts. Quality tools matter.

I would sooner drill it out then use a torch anywhere near a wheel bearing, wheel hub, ABS sensor, etc.

No s**t, eh? Damn!

Personally I torque all of my lug nuts myself. And if I take my vehicle to a shop and I see them zip the lug nuts on with an impact then I tell them to redo it properly with by hand and torque it down with a quality torque wrench.