MOT failure- what to do next?

mikey72

pendulum wrote: »

Just don't extend a ratchet with a scaffold pole or you'll break the mechanism. Sorry if that sounds obvious. Good luck

Post pictures if you get stuck or even just to show others how to do it

I've done that.
And broken a t bar by breaking the pin through it.
And split numerous sockets.
A lump hammer works wonders with brute force.

Funniest one was when I was crowbaring a brake drum off, slipped, and hit myself in the face. I didn't realise I split my eyebrow, until I went in and there was blood caked all down the side of my face.
What was funny, I had a perfectly normal conversation with a neighbour just after I'd done it, he never mentioned the blood pouring down the side of my face either!

BigDee2

mikey72 - that's funny but sorry to hear you got hurt.

pendulum - thanks for the advice about not using a ratchet with the pole. Know exactly what you mean. Is a breaker bar with a pole OK?

mikey72

Have you got a haynes manual, we're going to look a bit daft if the front hub is 30Nm

BigDee2

Yes, I've got a Haynes manual. It says...

Hub/driveshaft retaining nut = 226Nm.
Track rod end balljoint-to-Hub carrier = 56Nm

What Haynes does not mention is the size of the Hub nut. How can I found out/measure?

Cheers.

BigDee2

Hi pendulum - I'll try to remember to take photos.

asbokid

BigDee2 wrote: »

mikey72 - that's funny but sorry to hear you got hurt.

pendulum - thanks for the advice about not using a ratchet with the pole. Know exactly what you mean. Is a breaker bar with a pole OK?

A long breaker bar on its own should be enough. it is often not the torque of the driveshaft nut that makes it hard to loosen, but corrosion on the hub, driveshaft thread or the nut. A sharp jerk is often all that is needed to break that corrosion bond. Put the vehicle in gear first before attempting to undo it. Before fitting the socket, pull out the split pin and tap out any 'staking' on the nut. And pull upwards on the bar rather than push downwards, IYSWIM. On lighter cars, this can sometimes lift the roadwheel off the ground. If so, get someone to sit in the vehicle applying the brakes.

pendulum

BigDee2 wrote: »

pendulum - thanks for the advice about not using a ratchet with the pole. Know exactly what you mean. Is a breaker bar with a pole OK?

If you get a breaker bar of a decent length you probably won't need to extend it. Mine's a Clarke 450mm 1/2" breaker bar which I paid about a tenner for, and its coped with everything I've thrown at it, but if I was buying again I'd probably spend a little extra and go for a 600mm or bigger.

If you do manage to break a breaker bar chances are you'll just break the knuckle and these are replaceable cheaply. I'd be happy to extend my breaker bar with a scaffold pole if it came to it

BigDee2 wrote: »

Hi pendulum - I'll try to remember to take photos.

Cool

Rebob

Next time if you are unsure about whether to tackle the job call in your local motor spares as they often do some machanical job not just selling the parts and I would recommend buying the parts though a motor spares incase your car is one where the parts dont fit. Had this a few times with different parts such as a generic oil filter that should fit does not. Easy to swap if the dealer is local.

mikey72

asbokid wrote: »

A long breaker bar on its own should be enough. it is often not the torque of the driveshaft nut that makes it hard to loosen, but corrosion on the hub, driveshaft thread or the nut. A sharp jerk is often all that is needed to break that corrosion bond. Put the vehicle in gear first before attempting to undo it. Before fitting the socket, pull out the split pin and tap out any 'staking' on the nut. And pull upwards on the bar rather than push downwards, IYSWIM. On lighter cars, this can sometimes lift the roadwheel off the ground. If so, get someone to sit in the vehicle applying the brakes.

I always push down, so I don't put my back out. Quite often I just jump on the bar.
226Nm is enough to shift. Probably the 4 ft scaffolding bar.

vaio

Theoretically 220 Nm needs 22 kg on the end of a 1m bar to undo it (or 44kg with a 500mm bar)

Practically, aka back in the real world, you'll probably need need to double or treble that to overcome corrosion etc