Just got a Terminator, and 68 Miles later it's broke.

[Corbic]

The story continues!

So after some reading, a lot of people say the rear-steer can because caused by the the tire balance. Big ol' heavy slicks can easily loose sticker weights and you just wont have a good time.

Took the car over to Discount Tire.

This is what they found.

Chewed to hell. So they let me borrow a spare.

Sexy beast.

Looks like the wheel is a Chinese Knock-Off. 17x10.5 27ET.

So getting chewed up, would that be a torque issue from the PO/Hi-End having the wheel off and not mounting it correctly? Or would it be the fact that its a cheap wheel with questionable materials and the car has been launched a billion times while riding slicks and making 600whp?

 

[MG0h3]

If thats the AFS I see many talk about on here, I dont think there is a known problem with them.

Id be curious to see what the taper side looks like. I could see that happening if the lugs were loose. The taper on the lugnut and wheel are what hold it tight, not the stud in the bore.

 

[Rich'sTRsvt]

It looks like the lug nuts weren't torqued properly or not re-torqued for a long time and became loose. It looks like you have extended wheel studs as well, so if they weren't seated all the way that could also lead to the wheel becoming loose. As far as the wheel, all 10.5 2003 cobra wheels are knock-offs and I have not seen a problem like this that I can think of.

 

[Corbic]

 

[MG0h3]

Are those the lug nuts in there? If so I believe you found the problem. Looks like you have the wrong lug nuts. Show a picture from the front and maybe compare from the side that isnt cooked. The taper of the wheel and lugnut should have a pretty solid contact area.

 

[Corbic]

Same style/size nuts are holding on the "Good" wheel.

What do I need to order to replace these suckers?

 

[MG0h3]

I cant tell from the picture but it looks like the lugs are sitting all the way down into the bore. If thats the case, the wheel is toast.

I know you mentioned something about the dealer having the wheel off, might want to give them a call and see if they will help you out.

Heres what I would do:

Check the torque on the good side. Should be right around 100ftlbs. Did the tire shop find the bad side loose vs the good side? I suggest this because it will give you an idea of the problem and maybe some ammo for getting the dealer to buy you a new wheel.

Pop one lug off the good side. Compare the taper portion of the good wheel to the bad. If any portion of the tapered portion of the wheel is eaten up youll have to replace the wheel.

From what I can see the lug nuts seem to be ok.

Another member mentioned that the extended studs may not have been seated all the way. I would inspect for that as well.

 

[cobraetti]

i am running the afs reps with no issues , on a side not i use the ET threads on the rears with a max motorsports spacer. when i swapped over to some late sve2 wheels from LMR i noticed i could not use the et thread lug nuts with those wheels due to them not seating.

 

[Corbic]

Here is the "Good Wheel". Looks good.

[video]https://youtu.be/H4M_AOvqvmA[/video]

Also, both sides have a bit of axle play. I'm hoping that is normal.

Also, the ARP Studs are all the way seated.

 

[Corbic]

i am running the afs reps with no issues , on a side not i use the ET threads on the rears with a max motorsports spacer. when i swapped over to some late sve2 wheels from LMR i noticed i could not use the et thread lug nuts with those wheels due to them not seating.

I honestly am not familiar enough with what you are talking about.

Spacer being a wheel spacer. I don't need those, I'm Hella Rubbing Flush now.

ET Threads?

 

[Corbic]

I cant tell from the picture but it looks like the lugs are sitting all the way down into the bore. If thats the case, the wheel is toast.

That's what I figured.

Check the torque on the good side. Should be right around 100ftlbs. Did the tire shop find the bad side loose vs the good side? I suggest this because it will give you an idea of the problem and maybe some ammo for getting the dealer to buy you a new wheel.

Too late for all that. Discount Tire took them off with an AIR piece and noticed the screwed up bores when trying to balance the tires. They gave me a dorky 17" MB wheel with a used tire, re-balanced the good wheel and sent me on my way. They checked all four corners afterward at 100lbs.

Pop one lug off the good side. Compare the taper portion of the good wheel to the bad. If any portion of the tapered portion of the wheel is eaten up youll have to replace the wheel.

Photos above... looks okay to me.

From what I can see the lug nuts seem to be ok.

Yeah, their shape and threads are good. I'm just worried that they are the wrong style? Are they to narrow? The tuner nuts that Discount used on that MB wheel have half the surface area.

Another member mentioned that the extended studs may not have been seated all the way. I would inspect for that as well.

They are flush.

 

[John M]

IMO both wheels look chewed up, they say with aluminum wheels to retorque after something like after 50, 150, 300 miles and so on just what THEY SAY, even the good wheel looks worn on the back side of the holes hard to tell without out being there id call afs and see what pitch nut to use and then youll know if what you have is right or not (on the good wheel put a lug nut and try to seat it and look from the back and see how far it sits in the wheel and then look at your extended lugs and see how far the threads are to the hub

 

[MG0h3]

I agree with John M. The "good" wheel looks damaged as well. The bores look oblong in a few and you really shouldnt see any burs or aluminum sticking up like that.

I think you said the car is a straight axle car? If the axle play you speak of is maybe an 1/8" in and out, that is normal on a C clip axle.

It almost looks as if someone opened up the bores for some bigger studs, and you lost some of the taper that the lug seats against. I could definitely see this resulting in an ongoing problem.

Either way, I strongly suggest that you call the dealer back.

 

[Corbic]

I agree with John M. The "good" wheel looks damaged as well. The bores look oblong in a few and you really shouldnt see any burs or aluminum sticking up like that.

Hmm, well AFS is out of stock. I'll check the fronts as well.

Would AM wheels chrome match my fronts if I got a set from them?

I think you said the car is a straight axle car? If the axle play you speak of is maybe an 1/8" in and out, that is normal on a C clip axle.

Yes, SRA.

Should I eliminate C-clips at 600whp?
Any down side to C-clip elimination.

It almost looks as if someone opened up the bores for some bigger studs, and you lost some of the taper that the lug seats against. I could definitely see this resulting in an ongoing problem.

I'm actually worried about that. Those studs are beefy. If I get new wheels, I may not solve anything.

Either way, I strongly suggest that you call the dealer back.

I'll shoot Hi-End an email with the picture in the morning.

 

[John M]

A quick check to see if they did drill the wheels out to fit you can try and take a wheel off the front and if it doesn't fit then they tried to make them fit, they could have used a lathe or end mill to clean it up. Or the lugs nuts were loose and just ruined 2 wheels, I know you said you had some other work done? in any of that work alignment etc.... did any of the shop or shops pull the wheels to check the brakes, or balance the tire/wheels etc...? The rear end felt weird since you bought it also?

 

[MG0h3]

If I had to guess someone put a drill in the bores. The bores in the "good" wheel look like they have some discoloration along with an oblong hole and burrs which to me, suggest it was done some time ago. On the "bad" wheel the bores are shiny due to the wheel coming loose and banging back and forth on the studs.

Agree with John M again, pull a front off and compare. You could probably just pull one lug off and see the taper and lug and youll have your answer.

 

[Corbic]

, I know you said you had some other work done? in any of that work alignment etc.... did any of the shop or shops pull the wheels to check the brakes, or balance the tire/wheels etc...? The rear end felt weird since you bought it also?

Firestone did not remove the wheels at any time. I did remove them (shown in this thread) after the problem started to check the brakes and torque boxes. I used a craftsman 1/2" torque wrench set to 100ft/lb with a 21mm deep well socket wrapped in electric tape.

I did not check the wheels at that time as I was thinking it was a dragging caliper or the differential.

Discount Tire took the wheels off to rebalance and that's when they noticed the chewed up wheel.

The MB wheel apparently fits over the studs, but it's tight. ARP lists them as the same thread as stock - 1/2-20

I'll try a front on the rear.

LMR has SVE wheels in stock. AM and AFS do not have stock nor ETAs.

I did email HI-End. I sent the pictures and a discription of what has happened. I asked for his thoughts.

I know HI-End had the wheels off because I asked for videos of the rear wheel fender trim/roll and if they could seal it to ensure it won't rust. He sent a video with the car in the air to show no rust.

 

[Corbic]

I got a response from LMR about the wheels.

Apparently there are two ARP kits. A stock size 1/2-20 and a 5/8" stud. If it's a 5/8" stud, the SVE wheels will need to be bored out.

Is there really any reason to run the 5/8"? Should I downgrade to a 1/2-20 to make life easier?

I'm going to run the nut over a gauge to see what size it since my eyeballs can't read SAE.

 

[Corbic]

1/2 - 20

5/8 bolts are F'ing huge. Maybe the car had 5/8 at one time?

 

[MG0h3]

Hard to say man. Either way, something has gone wrong.

Did you ever compare the taper area and bore on a front vs the rear?

It is a used car, but I would CALL the dealer. Seems like they take pride in what they sell when it comes to Terminators so maybe they can help you out.