Ian Vincent Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 I took my car out for it's first drive of the year last weekend and there were two issues, the brakes were spongy (but worked) and the steering felt dreadful, the car would start to wander for no apparent reason. I converted it from LH to RH drive when I rebuilt it and fitted a rack at the same time. So today was the first chance that I have had to put it up on axle stands to remove all the wheels and replace the brake fluid and give the steering a through once over. First thing I found was that one of the rear hub adaptors (nearside) was very loose. And the other one wasn't all that special. I have tightened all the nuts to 60 pounds ft now but does anyone out there know what they should be tightened to and also, would the loose hub make the steering feel odd or should I still be looking for something else amiss? Rgds Ian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Morrison Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 65lbs and 'Lochtited' John. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
saggy Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 Sounds like the loose rear end has been doing the steering for you - rather like a fork lift truck Were there any noises and is there any improvement after you bolted the loose hubs back to the car or haven't you had a chance yet to test it again ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
brian-nz Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 Hi. I recently had a mechanic friend help me with the front wheel bearings. He noticed that the hub and adapter had painted surfaces which is a big no no from an engineering stand point - I had painted the hub when I rebuilt the suspension but the adapters came painted. We scraped off all the paint, in fact some paint had blistered due to the heat generated. The hub and adapter should have a metal to metal surface otherwise the paint can cause the two parts to slip and move which in turn could snap the studs. As I am no engineer I was grateful for the advice and something you may wish to check. Regards Brian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nigel C Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 (edited) I produced a large scale model of a caravan wheel bolt for a manufacturer a few years ago. He had spent a great deal of time and money testing caravan wheels/brake drums (due to the high level of wheel loss compared with cars) and was campaigning to get caravan manufacturers to remove the paint from their drums and wheels. Their wheel bolt had a rotating cone so you didnt get the added drag when tightening. I think it says in the TR workshop manual (certainly does in my owners handbook) that you should check your adapters every 1000 miles. I also think the double cone faced nuts are difficult to tighten and have resorted to using Cortina mk2 wheel nuts.. These clear the back of the wire wheel hub and are large enough to gain better purchase. Edited April 1, 2015 by Nigel C Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hpremote Posted April 1, 2015 Report Share Posted April 1, 2015 Ian: I have in the past shed a rear wheel after the w/w adapter nuts worked loose. I can confirm that the impact upon the steering of the car while the adapter nuts were loosening was exactly as you describe. In my wisdom at the time, I ignored the symptom until experiencing the final lurch of the nearside rear to the tarmac and witnessing the wheel overtaking me. Much wiser now, the incident having cost me a new rear wing. So torquing up those nuts should improve the steering no end. Just one last thought (which might conceivably link to the spongy brakes): have you checked that the rear axle/leaf spring U-bolts are still nice and tight? Tim. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mleadbeater Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Use a high-strength threadlock compound. Another reason why not to convert to wires. Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ian Vincent Posted April 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Thks All, I will be checking for painted surfaces and cleaning them and getting some high strength threadlock. I will also be checking all the other fixings associated with the rear axle and the steering. Rgds Ian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Hi Ian, at the risk of stating the obvious . . . . ! I've seen this happen in the past, and once the adaptor has come loose, the threads are b*gg*r*d by the resultant chattering . . . . . no amount of threadlock will cure that. New studs and nuts, and make sure that the hub to adaptor mating faces do actually mate . . . . . the adaptor in particular can deform under sufficient stress. Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ian Vincent Posted April 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Thks Alec. Points noted. Rgds Ian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
littlejim Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Mine came with the ones marked "L" on the right side and vice versa. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 That's because you're on the upside down side of the world . . . . . . Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mleadbeater Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 Here's an idea: if as already mentioned you replace the double chamfered nuts with single chamfered ones, locktite and torque them, then angle-grind the outer corner of each nut 'til it clears the wheel hub ( check with engineers blue), this would prevent the nuts unscrewing. They would have to be replaced on the same stud following subsequent removal. any comments? Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stuart Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 If you remove the paint from the drum where the adaptor sits, the rear of the flange and the circle of the counter sink, use a proper six sided socket with a proper torque wrench and new correct nuts torqued up to 65lbs with loctite then you wont have any problems. If you are going to deviate from that procedure in any way then you will have problems. Stuart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ian Vincent Posted April 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 My sockets are all proper six sided ones and the torque wrench is a quality item. It's the person using them that is the problem! Rgds Ian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 I'd add to Stuart's comments, treat the adapter as you would a road wheel, wind up the nuts to say 40 pounds, then 55, then 65 in the usual o'clock order each time - 12, 6, 9, 3 or whatever. If you take each nut straight to 65 in clockwise order, ie 12, 3, 6, 9 o'clock, then you're asking for trouble . . . . . Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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