550bryan

I just acquired a turbo equipped with CL's, although I probably won't track the car I want to be able to remove the wheels should I choose. I've heard there are torque wrenches available for around $450, but that they are made in China and are of questionable quality. I've also heard the only tool to buy is the Snap On version which is around $900? but much higher quality. Any advice from you experts out there on this?

sokoloff

I have the 1/2" drive torque wrench from the same company that makes this:
http://www.tooltopia.com/precision-i...ricegrabber_r1

I have a SnapOn TechWrench that is my go-to torque wrench, but I don't see any reason to think that that Precision Instruments tool wouldn't be more than sufficient for tightening the centerlocks. It's not exactly space shuttle critical. Being 10% off isn't going to hurt anything. You have a visual inspection that can tell you that it's fully locked, and you don't want to be 50% off, but 10% is well within the margin.

Side note: It's generally accepted as poor practice to remove fasteners with a torque wrench, so I'd also recommend a 3/4" breaker bar (think a ratchet, but it doesn't ratchet) for removal duties, so you don't degrade the accuracy of your torque wrench by using it to loosen the fasteners.

WaltB

I concur with Sokoloff and use the same torque wrench.

Walt

550bryan

Appreciate your comments. Interestingly I watch the dealer technician mount the CL's on what has become my car. He used a snap on tool that I think was one piece, it came in an about 3 ft long red plastic box. He pointed out the need to use a lubricant and that the wheels had to be torqued to spec, released and then retightened again. He did use the long torque wrench to both tighten and loosen the nut. The Precision Instruments alternative looks attractive from both a price and package standpoint (it's my understanding that the PI tool breaks down into a shorter storage box that would fit in the front trunk). Can anyone confirm that I have all this right?

WaltB

Yes- the PI tool breaks down and will fit in the frunk.
Electronic torque wrenches are fine to use in either direction. Mechanical ones like the PI should be used only to torque one the nut.
There is a procedure for putting the wheels back on and the lube used is Optimol Paste.

Walt

550bryan

WaltB and Sokoloff, Thanks for the advice. I'm assuming a breaker bar strong enough to loosen a 450 lbs nut must be one long piece? Although the Precision instruments tool will fit in the trunk I'm assuming the breaker bar won't. I'm assuming if only the toque wrench fits in the trunk it would be OK to use it to remove a wheel in an on the road incident? Lot of assumptions, but do I have this basically right? Thanks, I'm learning. Bryan

sokoloff

You can certainly take the torque wrench and use it in an emergency. It's not going to cause any kind of immediate problem, and many people don't know any different, and it may make the torque tolerance drift more quickly, but it's not a huge deal.

For emergency use, though, you could easily carry a breaker bar and a piece of black pipe to use as a cheater. If you think about carrying a breaker bar:
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and a piece of black pipe that fits around it:
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you can combine them and get the length you need to break free the nut, and you can re-install it to an approximate torque setting (in an emergency) by computing your weight, and using your full weight at an approximate distance from the nut.

If you weigh 200 pounds and want to torque the nut to 500 ft-lbs, stand 2.5 feet away from the nut (2.5 feet * 200 lbs = 500 ft-lbs).

Same issue in terms of loosening, but you sometimes need a little "extra" to break a nut free.
If you have a 20" breaker bar: http://www.tooltopia.com/k-tool-inte...nal-24080.aspx, and want to get, say 600 ft-lbs, you need 7200 in-lbs, which is 360 lbs at 20".
So, you want to carry a 2 ft piece of black pipe, which you can put overlapping the breaker bar, to make an effective 3 foot long wrench, upon which you need to load 200# to get 600 ft-lbs to break it loose.
And that will all fit in a 2 foot space and cost under $50 (not counting the socket, which isn't cheap)

Carrying the socket will be the most important part, as you'll be able to scrounge up a breaker bar and cheater pipe at a shop or a tow truck, but they may not be able to lay hands on the socket.

WaltB

This is what I use. http://www.suncoastparts.com/product//36116100.html
It's a Porsche part although fairly expensive it's collapsible and very easy to carry.

Walt

550bryan

WaltB, This has been a huge help. I jet took delivery of my car today so I'm pumped. Fortunately it came with the socket, so I'll just need a breaker bar and a torque wrench. I think I'll do a Precision Instruments wrench given that it's compact and affordable, in fact it costs less than the bar you recommended which is a surprise. As my car's a CPO the dealer pointed out that my emergency roadside service includes flatbedding in case of a flat. Regardless, I need to be able to remove the wheels when I choose. Thanks for all your help. Bryan