Inspira: DIY Changing the wheel lugs.

**DarkAccoon** · 05-23-2012, 10:51 PM

So my fingers and wallet were itchy and was tempted to try those space saver tyres (AKA Sotong Tyres). Purchase a pretty good one as per advice by the chop shop fella and man was I in for a surprised on the work needed.

I took the space saver home and started to test if it fits (chop shop fella assured me that it will fit) so off I went taking out all 5 lugs from my wheel.

Manage to open 4 lugs when the 5th was stuck. Kasi power sikit and..... disaster happened, the stud snapped and i was left with 4 lugs......
Ah well, wheel was off so I might as well test if the space saver works..... to another shocking surprised..... IT DOES NOT. Did a bit more researched and found that the space saver I bought belongs to BMW E46 which is 5 lugs PCD 120 whereas Inspira is 5 lugs PCD 114.3. (It is for sale now, http://www.zerotohundred.com/newforu...-for-sale.html)
Damn was I pissed.

So next day I bawa the Inspira to proton and was quoted between RM 50 to RM100 to have the lug replaced. Sad but not happy with the price, I went and research more on wheel lug replacement.

Tada, found the workshop manual for Lancer Evo X. Seems fairly simple and went to spare part shop to get the wheel lug. TADA, 1 lug = RM 2.50. So I bought 5 lugs. HOHOHO, take that Proton.

Got home and got to work on it and below is what you get.

Something odd bout this picture.... why TWO wheel lug patah wan.... well, another one broke when I was opening the wheel again.

Snapped clean.....

BOTH OF IT, lesson learned..... going to gym too much causes disaster to your beloved car.

That is the brake caliper bracket that took a while to get it out. Had to use a mallet.

These are the new lugs.... shiny leh

Inspira brake pads after 1 year 4 months use.... still got plenty of pad left.

After taking out the lugs and compare it with the new one.... you can see how much have snapped off.

Replaced one of the lugs already, another one waiting to be replaced.

This is how I initially tighten it cause I do not have proper thick washers to do the job.... lesson learned, this destroy spanners too.... I really need to de-buff my muscles.

Then I figured out.... why not just use the brake disk and rims as washers..... (forget red calipers, no calipers is the way to go now)

Can see that the new lugs have been tighten nicely into the groove.

Did not replace all 5 lugs, just the two broken ones, so I got spare lugs in case I need it again.

Caliper installed back and...... too tired to actually clean anything.

How messy my workspace was.

Last pic of the day, see how much corrosion on the old lugs...

Lesson learned:
- too much gym (to be honest, I never go gym) will break your car.

Steps/ guidance:
- Ensure you loosen the wheel nuts before jacking the car up.
- Once you have jacked the car up, make sure to secure it with A-Stands (can be bought at hardware shops for like RM 29.90 each)
- the nut to release the caliper is size 14 and is easy to take out.
- the nut to release the caliper bracket is size 17 and is a pain in the ass to take out (i resorted to mallet and brute force.)

Thank you for reading thru all my rambling and if any feedback (good or back), it is much appreciated.

**ixeo** · 05-23-2012, 11:10 PM

how you manage to break it in the first place i have no clue. 3 cars in my house and did not manage to break a single lug bolts. seriously is the Proton lug bolts that crap? I assume its a local content part instead of a Mitsubishi part.

**DarkAccoon** · 05-23-2012, 11:22 PM

ixeo: as per ur signature... u takde kereta wor... only a boat. =P

I also dunno how it can be broken.... somemore two lugs in 2 days in a row.....

My family has owned 2 putra, 2 wira a/b, 1 savvy, 1 neo, 1 accord, 1 volvo and I have never seen the wheel lug broke before.

This one.... I am speechless, was among the first batch of Inspira with chassis number 26XX. I assume its Mitsubishi lugs but I stand corrected if I am wrong.

**ixeo** · 05-24-2012, 01:02 AM

3 cars in my house ma, doesn't mean its mine :P i love my boat.. can goyang.

quicksilver7 · 05-24-2012, 10:00 AM

Hey DarkAccoon, where did you buy your inspira space saver tyre from and what's the price? I wanna get one too since the boot size now is too small. thanks!

**DarkAccoon** · 05-24-2012, 10:21 AM

got it at the halfcut shop.

Have to shop around. When to 4 halfcut shops and only managed to find one. Was told that it fits but ended up..... wrong PCD.

If any halfcut shop wanna sell you BMW space saver tyres, tell them to go flykite. BMW E46 uses PCD 120, Inspira is PCD 114.3.

Got mine for RM250 (pricey but the tyre was in excellent condition, too bad the PCD is wrong.)

Space saver tyre for Inspira should be around the range of 150 to 250 depending on place and condition.

^pomen_GTR^ · 05-24-2012, 11:40 AM

try munlee at puchong...

i saw they got bucket loads of space saver tyre, oem manual jacks and even the oem 4-crossed T spanner they collect from their countless halfcut body....

**Izso** · 05-25-2012, 07:25 AM

Darkaccon : wahlau! TWO lugs snapped? How the hell man?

Btw, where the ABS sensor? I thought the ABS thingy will get the in way of replacing the lugs and you'll need to pump out the lug to replace it as is the case for the Myvi.

**DarkAccoon** · 05-25-2012, 08:37 AM

Izso: yeah, two lugs snapped. And I think more will snap from the other wheels. Looks like the tyre shop over tighten most of the nuts.

Next week project: Replace all lug nuts to longer ones. That might stop them from over tightening.

The ABS sensor for Inspira is behind the disk shield (i made this name up cause I dunno what the metal shield is called behind the disk.) so its out of da way. I did not have the tools to pump so I did it Jeremy Clarkson way..... *get me a hammer*. Works just as well.

Veloc · 05-25-2012, 08:49 AM

This is dangerous bullshit man... Lug nuts are not suppose to go snap just like that... Scary... By the way bro, from where did you get the lugs and are there different grade/materials of the lug nuts or are they just standard everywhere?

**DarkAccoon** · 05-25-2012, 09:04 AM

Dangerous.... VERY.

I am a bit concerned if I get a puncture now, I might not be able to remove the nuts in the middle of nowhere.

It does actually take a bit of force to snap it. I was using a metal rod as leverage for more power before the thing snapped.

No choice but to snap it as the donkey shop already over tighten probably to the point that the lugs thread already makan into the nut.

Got mine at a friendly neighborhood spare part shop. I did ask around and the only concern when buying a lug is the size and length. In terms of grade, the fella only has one grade which is taiwan grade. Still looks much sturdier than the original but as a saying goes "looks can be deceiving"

**me2kimi** · 05-25-2012, 04:59 PM

This week, 2-3 day ago saw a Fiat Punto (I guess) right front tyre left the car in the middle of LDP, Western Digital area.
Maybe same thing happened to the owner.

**ken yeang** · 05-26-2012, 12:03 AM

bro, 1 piece of lug for RM2.50?? Sure?

i think that is too cheap, for a lug. I am concerned the lug is not up to its strength, judging from the price.
"Good stuff not cheap. Cheap stuff is not good" as many ppl would say.

**Izso** · 05-26-2012, 12:28 AM

Yeah, good point. RM2.50 is cheap. Mine was RM18 per piece.

^pomen_GTR^ · 05-26-2012, 12:32 AM

well..even the offset-camber adjuster screw that tyreshop selling for rm15-rm30 was only fetch around rm5 at sparepart shop...

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