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I am new to Rennlist - and a 1997 Silver Targa. The car is very standard although I am very encouraged by the list of mods and upgrades that many of you have completed.
My first task is to refurb the OE wheels - 17inch split rim speedlines. I contacted a specialist, but they want $$'s to take them apart. I assumed that this was an easy job untill I tried the first bolt - the head is shallow and the nut looks fairly solid!
Has anyone any experience of taking these apart ? - what do I use on the head - looks easy to round the shallow fixing - what size allen key / hex piece and do I need to apply heat to the bolt?
One of our local shops will refinish this wheels (a bit far for you since we are in Vancouver). I seem to remember its about $170/wheel CDN. That includes dissassembly, any straightening, welding/turning to take the rash out, refinish including paint/clearcoat and reassembly. The bolts are difficult at times to get off, they are in a wet environment and are pretty tight. They also have a special tool at this slightly different than an allen key. You also have to be carefull not to chip the bolts, if you do they will rust easily.
I guess when I am saying is that if you are not sure pay the $$ and be happy. Either that or hunt for a replacement set, they sometimes go pretty cheap.
You need a spline tool to remove the bolts. They are not tight (about 15-20lb/ft) but theres a possibility that they may snap. Are they two piece or three piece wheels? If two peice the bolt can snap in the wheel and you're in deep s**t. If three piece they have nuts on the baqck and it's not the end of the world.
Good practice has it that you should replace the bolts everytime they are removed but they're pretty expensive once you start replacing them all. If you are going to do it, make sure the surfaces of the halves are spotless before assembly. The following may help.
Mike and Guards Red - thanks for the advice and help - looking at the thread on the 911uk link - this looks like a serious job - might opt for the safe option and have someone else try the first wheel as they are the two piece wheels and knowing my luck the bolts will snap!
Recently, I was in a position to remove these wheels and refinish them for a client. I called around all the reputable vendors, and all told me they either don't do it or for me not to do it because it's very difficult. Needless to say, it was a tough project, but we never give up here at GP.
As you all know, our biggest hurdle was finding the bolts. We managed to source them, not exact OEM since they don't exist, but pretty darn close match. From my research, you cannot just install any bolt...hardened steel is the bolt required here.
Here a few photos of what the wheel looks like during bolt removal. You will need a 13mm for the nut and 5mm allen for the bolt:
Here's a video on how to remove it. Trick is, use lots of penetrating fluid to loosen up the nut. It is held in place with medium strength lock-tight, blue fluid.
Once enough oil gets in the threads, loosening them is easy.
Moe, fantastic video which is very helpful. Can you please tell us where did you get the bolts from? What sizes are they? Do the nuts need replacement as well? What glue/seal you used between the nuts and bolts? Much appreciated for your help. My mechanic will not take the wheel apart without replacement bolts.
The bolts for the 17in can be bought from Pertsch & Partner. Contact is Steinhauser@titanium-touch.com. They are not expensive. One needs 96 screws and bolts for the four wheels. Note the head of the screw is a little proud. I actually think they look better.
01-02-2008, 08:10 AM
Targa wheel repair
