I drive a 99 V70 GLT with 140k miles on it. A few days after I changed over to my summer tires the wheel bolts came loose. The front and rear wheels on the driver side came loose but the front wheel bolts were a lot more loose - I actually lost one of the bolts.

I brought my car to an independent volvo mechanic and he told me the wheels probably weren't torqued properly. The change over was done at Canadian Tire, a large auto/hardware/houseware chain here in Canada (similar to Sears in the U.S.)., so I find it hard to believe that they would make such a mistake as they've been around for decades. The mechanic inspected the wheel and the assembly that it attaches to and told me it doesn't look like there were any damages.

Two years ago, the same thing happened with the same car only at the time the wheel bolts came loose 3 months after I changed over to my summer tires and the change over was done at a volvo dealership. Again, I had the wheels and the car inspected and they did not find any thing wrong with the wheels and car. At the time I thought my car was just vandalized and that somebody actually tried to steal my old alloy wheels, so after the dealership told me everything was fine I just ignored the whole episode.

So now that it has happened the second time I'm thinking maybe the mechanics/techs are missing something here? What are your thoughts? Do you think this car is still reasonably safe to drive without finding and addressing what's causing this to happen?

In the meantime, I've resorted to checking my wheel bolts almost on a weekly basis.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Everything I've ever read about alloy rims is that they should be re-torqued after about 100 miles or so. But I've never done it and never had my bolts loosen. I torque mine to about 200 ft-lb, though.

 

Yeah, some manufacturers say after 25 mi, others 100 mi. Either way, alloys are supposed to be re-torqued after a while. I used to work at a small local shop, and we'd always make sure to tell people to stop by after a week or so after we installed tires.

Most people (me included) over-torque them. Then they usually don't come loose, but they could crack.

 

Hello, Here's a shot in the dark for you. Maybe you fell victim to a distracted mechanic and/or low air pressure in shop's pneumatic system. Potentially deadly consequences, yes; longshot regarding occurrence, no. Kira PS I recommend anti-seize on lugs. Just remember to tell anybody working on your wheels that it's there. K

 

few months ago after swapping to summer tires, I noticed a small clunk under low speed turns/braking. looked around the front of the XC and sure enough the drivers front wheel was loose and causing the clunk. I did the change over myself an torqued to the reccomended level. Never had this before, but it can happen with alloys

 

Thanks guys for the advise. I guess I will just need to check from time to time the bolts are torqued properly, although a bit glad to hear no one suggested it could be a defective wheel(s).

 

Hello, I mentioned this subject to a few friends as we were changing seasonal tires the other day. One guy said that it pays to remember that a wheel can set crookedly on the hub-staying cocked a tiny bit-and the first lug can jam it in a way which seems solid. Sometimes, this theory continued, you can tighten the other lugs and they crank down too. If the wheel wobbles when you drive off you'd probably notice it. If the wheel set itself squarely on the hub upon take off the next thing you'd notice would be loose lugs. How much time would pass is up to the circumstances. Remember that all the different styles of alloys come from various suppliers and can have slightly varying center hole sizes. I guess the thing to do is to set each wheel carefully, run the lugs up then give the wheel a shake (hit it at 9 and 3 a couple of times) to be certain it's landed then tighten them. Kira