Reminder - Copperslip your hubs!

I was driving home last night when I heard a noise that I was convinced was the rear wheel bearings collapsing.

Thankfully it turned out to be a rear tyre puncture.  I was on my way to an appointment and my first thought was "I hope the garage coperslipped the hubs like they said they had".  I had asked them to do so when the van was new (a year ago) based on stories from some of the guys on here that told us about alloy wheels getting "welded" to the steel hubs if this wasn't done.

I needn't have worried.  Apart from getting flithy hands (I must remember to put some rubber gloves into the van) it was a non-event.  The wheel studs came off no problem even using the flimsy, short OEM spanner, and the jack, which got a bad press on here recently, seemed to work fine, although on that last note I still plan to get a bottle jack as the standard one is quite weedy.  The wheels came off the hubs like they's been put on yesterday and I could clearly see a load of copper grease had been applied.

So if you have alloys, get the rear faces of your wheels copperslipped.  It really works. 

i dont carry anything anymore got vw cover they are going to change the
wheel if i get a puncture in the first year

DO NOT use any lubricant on the studs or hubs. If you find your wheel has become stuck on the hub, loosen the wheel bolts slightly and then drive the vehicle forwards and backwards a couple of feet and it should come off no problem.

If you dont have a torque wrench, make sure you get the wheel studs checked for the correct tightness asap after changing the wheel.

Because the manual says so!

Also it avoids the inconvenience and embarrassment of loosing a wheel.

Insider wrote: ...Also it avoids the inconvenience and embarrassment of loosing a wheel.

 

Interesting. The same VW main dealer that told me there was no difference between the 130 PS and 174 PS drivetrain also told me it was a "good idea" to copperslip the hubs, so it has been done.

They were pretty shambolic though.

North Wind

After my recent trouble;

http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13573& amp;PN=10

I'm sticking () with the copperslip!

I know what your saying about the studs Insider, but i had to heat the alloy to get it off. I did try shunting the van back and forth with " my nuts loose " but it didnt work.

Are you at your new post yet, or are you working out your notice ?.

 

Ex-car bloke wrote: In my young days I worked in the motor trade and it was like a little mantra that if you wanted your nuts and bolts to tighten up to torque without damage or wear and to keep a long term full-torque grip, you applied a little grease.

I recall from my young days when carrying out repairs to my own vehicles ie head gasket etc there was often reference in the manual to not lubricate threads. I understood lubricating a thread could cause over tightening as there was less resistance for the turning force registered on the torque wrench, but the compression between mating surfaces would be much greater and therefore could be a greater chance of the bolt/stud shearing under the higher tensile load.