Bolts and nuts for cast wheels and their difference from stamped ones

Types of fasteners

Here are the types of fasteners needed for alloy wheels:

1. Bolts are metal rods with a screw thread at the end. Used to connect detachable elements.
2. Nuts are round-shaped parts designed to fasten elements by screwing a metal die onto threaded rods.

Steel, aluminum or titanium alloys are used to produce products.

Titanium bolts are distinguished by high quality indicators. Black bolts for alloy wheels are made from steel with the addition of molybdenum or steel with a chrome or nickel coating.

What is important when choosing

When choosing, you need to decide on the following parameters:

• Dimensions. External characteristics are not decisive in selection. It is important to determine the diameter, length, depth and width of the well, and revolutions.
• Material. This is an equally important point when selecting fasteners. The main requirements in this case are aesthetic appearance and high strength. Budget products are made from metal, the rest are made from high-quality steel.
• Appearance. The ferrous metal rod negates the effect of the cast hubcaps. The modern Russian tuning market offers a wide range of decorative coatings. All that remains is to make a choice.

Characteristics of bolts and nuts

Bolts and nuts differ in design features, so the choice is determined by the type of disk. The stamped disc is made from a durable type of steel. Moreover, it has a small thickness at the point of attachment to the central part of the rotating part. For an optimal connection, the bolt and nut must have a flat surface. The composition of cast wheels includes relatively light alloys. They have reduced reliability characteristics. The fastening system of the products is made in the form of a cone.

Thread

When purchasing bolts, you should pay attention to the threaded part. Not all elements have the same thread pitch. More often there are hardware with a thread pitch of 1.25 and 1.5 mm with a diameter of 12 or 14 mm. It is recommended to purchase new wheel bolts complete with rims or take into account the requirements of the car manufacturer's instructions.

Thread length

To select a bolt of the required length, the easiest way is to try it on site. This technique does not work if the bolt is coated with a coating that is difficult to scratch. Then another option will do; you will need to count the number of revolutions when unscrewing the old bolt. Next, the length of the threaded pin is divided by the resulting figure. The result will be the required length of the fastener.

Replacing nuts on my car

Let's get back to the situation with my car. To the question that made me study this subject. Let me remind you that when replacing wheels, the tire service workers asked their wife for special nuts for alloy wheels, and when they didn’t find any, they insistently advised changing the existing ones to special ones.

Of course, I listened to their recommendations, after all, experts advise. Moreover, the story was as follows. The car was purchased from a dealership with a standard set of stamped wheels. Later, the stamped wheels were replaced with cast ones from the Russian manufacturer SKAD. The stamped discs were fastened with five conical nuts and of course no one changed these nuts. They also attached the casting. This made me wonder if I did everything right.

As it turned out, the purchased alloy wheels have a similar conical seat. When installing alloy wheels, the nut is completely screwed onto the stud, which has a small protrusion above the nut. That is, there are no deviations from the rules and regulations, as can be seen from the picture below.

The question arises: why did tire workers ask for special nuts for alloy wheels? Incompetence? They do not sell them themselves; there is no commercial benefit for them from such a replacement.

I was interested in this topic in other places. I didn’t go around the city specifically asking about the need to replace the nuts, but I did contact some tire shops that I came across along the way. No one answered me specifically or tried to understand the situation, even if there were no clients and the master was clearly idle. They spoke mostly in general phrases. “If your nuts are from stamping, then you definitely need to change them, otherwise it will be bad...”

How to measure yourself

Measurements must be as accurate as possible, since the indicators differ in close values ​​with a distance of a couple of millimeters, for example, 98 and 100 or 110 and 112, and they are not interchangeable. To eliminate errors, it is recommended to use a caliper or ruler.

Adjacent holes

Here's how to determine the distance between bolt holes. The dimensions of the circle on which the holes are located are taken. The diameter is determined using compatibility tables or by measuring using a ruler. The resulting distance between adjacent fasteners should be multiplied by a factor that depends on the number of holes. The circumference of a VAZ is 9.8 cm, and that of passenger cars is 139.7 millimeters.

Far holes

A simple measurement method is carried out on models with an even number of recesses - for 4, 6, 8 fasteners. Parallel Hole Distance – PCD.

And here’s how the far holes of disks with five bolts are measured: the calculation is made between non-adjacent recesses, the resulting figure should be multiplied by 1.051.

Hub window diameter

Indicative data for the central hub window are indicated in the table and in the complete bolt pattern formula. In the absence of information, readings are measured with a ruler or caliper. The diameter of the hub area on the VAZ 2110 = 58.6 mm.

The bolt pattern is carried out taking into account the relative size of the vertical axis of symmetry of the disk to the area adjacent to the hub.

Appearance and service life

When choosing, most motorists tend to choose chrome-plated wheel bolts. However, no type of topcoat provides guaranteed protection against corrosion. It all depends on the operating conditions and quality of care. Molybdenum and nickel-plated screws are not inferior in performance.

The only objective advantage is the spectacular and aesthetic appearance of the chrome coating

The service life depends on the strength class, which is recognized as a quality mark. The higher this indicator, the longer the product can be used before corrosion occurs. The existing fittings are produced at Russian, European and Chinese factories. Russian-made mounts are suitable for domestic cars. For Volkswagen and other auto industry giants, you should choose Italian models created specifically for European cars. There are special catalogs for them with a number and article number.

Purchasing bolts for caps can sometimes be the only solution to the problem. For example, deficiencies in PCD readings between holes can be corrected using eccentrics. In addition to the main function, this part plays the role of an accessory that transforms the appearance of the car. To confidently move on the roads, you should determine what type of accessories will suit a particular vehicle.

Are stamping bolts suitable for casting? VAZ Classic.

Full and abbreviated bolt pattern formula

Manufacturers provide detailed wording that reflects all important meanings. Motorists use abbreviations that do not fully describe the product.

Abbreviated

PCD (Pitch Circle Diameter) is a short formulation that includes two parameters. It is indicated: 4×98 – wheel bolt pattern on a VAZ-2110. The number of four indicates the number of bolt recesses. The number 98 was obtained as a result of the transverse method of measuring their circumference.

Full

Let's look at an example: the full bolt pattern formula is indicated on the rim: 7.5 J×15 H2 5×100 ET 40 D 54.1.

Decoding of alphanumeric groups means:

• 5 JX 15 – rim width 7.5 inches and diameter 15 inches;
• X – indicates that the disc is made by casting or forging;
• J – it is recommended to use the product on single-wheel drive vehicles;
• JJ – marking of all-wheel drive models;
• H2 – the number of protrusions that secure the tires. Models with one protrusion - H1. Absence of protrusions - marking AN;
• Hump ​​- indicates high-quality rubber retention; this feature eliminates depressurization.

Corrosion protection

For reliable operation of the chassis, everything is important: the bolt pattern, the dimensions of all components, the alignment/camber settings, and even the protection of the arches from corrosion. It is the arches that are more susceptible to adverse factors than other parts of the body - from ordinary moisture during rain to reagents on winter roads

To ensure reliable protection of the arches, it is best to install lockers (fender liners) on the VAZ 2110. Such protection will cost much less than subsequent repairs of rusted arches

It is important to choose the correct size of the lockers and ensure their tight fit in the area of ​​the arches

We hope that by completing all the repair work yourself, you will provide your VAZ 2110 with many years of trouble-free service on the road.

Consequences from another bolt pattern

Using inappropriate bolts is a safety hazard. When a bolt pattern occurs, an axial displacement of the entire wheel relative to the hub occurs. At high speeds, the wheel spins unevenly, the car will shake, which is accompanied by a beating in the steering wheel.

When installing wheels, car enthusiasts often encounter such a problem as a discrepancy in the diameter of the fasteners. In this case, eccentric bolts with a movable conical part are suitable, which will eliminate discrepancies in size.

Stamped discs

Their advantages are unpretentiousness, low cost, high wear resistance, and ductility. This means that if it falls into a hole, the disc can be dented, but cannot be split or broken. A bent disk can be easily straightened even with an ordinary hammer. Stamped wheels are so cheap that cars with them don’t take their shoes off at night.

As for the disadvantages, the most important one is the large weight, which affects acceleration, braking and inertia. The result is worse handling and higher fuel consumption. In addition, from a purely aesthetic point of view, all cars look the same. Rust can also be a disadvantage, since factory paint is usually short-lived. Also, the stamping should be washed well in spring and autumn to avoid unnecessary noise and corrosion by salt.

Tightening fasteners on alloy wheels

Before installing the bolts into the mounting recesses, it is recommended to treat the hardware with graphite lubricant. As a result, when it comes into contact with the disk, the head of the bolt or nut will rotate and make full contact. This will prevent blocking during starting power due to friction between the disc and the mounting system. Bolts are produced that compensate for minimal deviations in fastener dimensions. A loose connection will lead to cyclical failures in the fastening system; the bolts and nuts will begin to unscrew themselves.

How to choose a bolt of the required length?

1. First way. It is best, of course, to buy wheel bolts according to the code specified by your manufacturer, but you can go the other way and just try on the bolt.
2. The second way is to try it on locally. This means buying bolts and checking whether they fit or not. Although the method has a “right to life”, it does not always work; this, as a rule, concerns “beautiful” bolts that the seller simply will not give for fitting.
3. The third method is mathematical. We unscrew the old bolt, count the number of revolutions, then divide the resulting number by the length of the bolt. As a result, you can find out the required bolt length that you need to compensate for the height of the alloy wheel well.

Thread. Everything is much simpler here. We unscrew the old bolt to eliminate errors and try the new bolt on the new one, selecting the required option.

Note: Do you know that any wheel bolt or nut, regardless of the material from which it is made, is designed for 30-40 “unscrew and tighten” cycles. After the service life is exhausted, it is recommended to replace the wheel nuts or bolts, otherwise there is a high probability of damage to the threads.

When choosing a bolt, pay attention to the color of the bolt; there should be no “blue” on it, which indicates that the bolt is overheated. The wheel bolt must be made of quality material and properly hardened

A bad bolt can cause you unnecessary problems, such as when the bolt breaks off inside the hub. For those who are still unlucky, we recommend reading one of my previous articles on how to unscrew a broken bolt. Moreover, breaking a bolt during tightening is far from the worst scenario. Just imagine a situation where a bolt bursts while driving at speeds above 50-80 km/h.

That's all for me, I hope the knowledge gained will be enough for you to make the right choice. And lastly, before choosing and buying wheel bolts, take the time to consult with the seller on this issue, indicating to him the make and model of your car, as well as with the person who will install your alloy wheels.

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Locking bolts for alloy wheels

Secret bolts for alloy wheels are another subtype. If you install locks, car tires will be protected from theft. You won't be able to remove the wheel with a regular wrench. To unwind the secrets, you will need a key that comes with them in one set.

When selecting fasteners for wheels, you should remember that cast products are relatively thick. Accordingly, longer bolts are selected for them than for stamped discs.

Everyone knows that bolts are used to secure wheels on many domestic cars, in particular on the “nine”.

Without exaggeration, the life of the driver and passengers depends on the wheel fasteners. Therefore, you need to select wheel bolts for the VAZ 2109 with all seriousness and it is better to purchase them from official dealers of automakers. Only correctly selected wheel bolts guarantee reliable fixation of the wheels.

Video on how to choose wheels

Correct replacement of wheels - and as many of you will ask, because most people don’t even know that you need to change a wheel somehow correctly, that is, just take the wheel, then unscrew all the bolts that secure it and install a new one, but in fact In fact, everything is not so simple, firstly, in order to lift and unscrew all the bolts, you must first rip them off, provided that the car is standing on the ground, because if you lift it and with the wheel hanging out you begin to rip off the bolts, applying great force to this, that is the likelihood that the car will fall off the jack and damage you, this is the kind of advice we will give you in this article, so read everything carefully and, as they say, delve into it.

What types of wheel bolts are there?

Let's look at what a VAZ 2109 wheel bolt is.

Standard fasteners have:

• hex head;
• conical clamping part;
• threaded part.

Moreover, the edges of the head turn into a cone. M12 thread with pitch 1.25 and thread length 22 - 24 mm. Thread pitch is a very important parameter. If you forcefully screw in bolts with a different pitch, you can ruin the threads in the hub, and then you will have to change it.

Such hardware is used for wheels with stamped discs. If cast (light alloy) wheels are used, then for the VAZ 2109 the wheel bolt must be longer (27 - 33 mm). Chrome plated with a conical rotating washer is often used. This washer, located under the head, protects the surface of the disc when the bolt is tightened. Its threaded part must completely fit into the hole in the hub, but no more, so that when the wheel rotates, the bolts cannot touch stationary parts.

It is worth emphasizing that you cannot put old stamping hardware on new alloy wheels. In this case, the bolts can easily unscrew under load and the wheel will fall off while driving. I don’t even want to talk about the consequences.

The clamping part of the bolt can be spherical, but it must coincide with the profiles of the holes in the wheel rim to ensure wheel alignment.

Wheel bolts for VAZ

The appearance of the car, among other things, depends on the wheels installed on it. Stylish alloy wheels can transform the simplest and most unprepossessing car, giving it originality. VAZ car owners have access to a wide variety of rims:

For each type you have to buy suitable bolts to securely fix the wheel. These fasteners are made from numerous materials:

• black metals;
• nickel alloys;
• metals with the addition of zinc or chromium;
• alloys with molybdenum, etc.

When choosing wheel bolts, be guided not only by their appearance and strength, but also by their dimensions: length, head type, thread size and pitch.

How to avoid wheel theft

To protect wheels from theft, some use “secrets,” as they are called. This is a bolt that cannot be unscrewed with standard tools, but only with an individual special key, available only to the owner of the car.

Various methods are used to protect such fasteners. For example, the head of a bolt can be made in the shape of an irregular polygon or a completely arbitrary figure; one of the profiles is sometimes shifted to the side. A perforated profile with holes of various diameters and depths is also used. You cannot determine the reliability of secrets by looking at their profile; it is more important to use products from proven and reliable manufacturers.

Usually, in order not to ruin the secret bolt, it is tightened with less force. Because of this, such wheel bolts in the VAZ 2109 are placed one on each wheel. Unfortunately, in our country there are still people who like to “take off” your car’s shoes, so the topic of secret locks remains relevant for now.

All these secrets make it difficult for lovers of easy money to remove the wheels, they make it difficult. Because if you have time, you can unscrew everything, but thieves have little time.

Therefore, in order to most effectively protect your wheels, you should follow several rules.

1. It is better to buy expensive secrets, this helps to avoid matching products. Because when producing unique secrets, after some time the cycle repeats, and there is some chance of repetition of parts. But in expensive products such coincidences are excluded.
2. If you buy alloy wheels, it is better to choose ones in which the secrets would be “recessed” inside the disk rather than on the surface. They are more difficult to unscrew.
3. It is worth purchasing bolts with a flat pattern at the top of the head, which is not sharpened to a key. (For example, an asterisk or a heptagon). That is, the drawing should be as unusual and flat as possible.

The price on the Internet for regular wheel bolts is from 14, and for “secret” ones from 160 rubles.

Sometimes car enthusiasts use bolts for VAZ 2109 wheels with an offset center. They are easy to find in online stores. Such bolts are used if there are no original disks and others have been installed with slight differences. The eccentric bolts allow you to align all the holes and securely fasten the wheel.

Bolts are made from different materials. This can be steel with an admixture of molybdenum or steel coated with nickel, chromium, etc., sometimes even titanium. Coated bolts have a nice appearance. But don’t think that this is the best choice. The problem is that any bolts are susceptible to corrosion. And the technology of nickel or chromium coating with sufficient stability has not yet been created. After a year, coated bolts will inevitably lose their beauty. Therefore, the appearance of the bolts is practically unrelated to their operational data. The most important factors are strength, thread pitch, length and type of bolt head.

To change wheels yourself, you need to know how to properly unscrew and tighten the wheel bolts. To do this, you should look at the photos and videos. There are a lot of such materials on the Internet. There are also instructions online for tightening bolts using a torque wrench. It is especially important when installing new bolts after approximately 50 km to check the tightness of all bolts. Most likely, some of them will have to be tightened up!

Freelance options

VAZ-2107 cars are equipped with stamping, which has certain advantages and disadvantages. Stamped discs serve for a long time and reliably, bend and do not burst upon impact, and can be easily repaired even at home. Such models are easy to use, affordable, and do not attract the attention of intruders. However, the relatively large weight increases fuel consumption, makes acceleration and braking difficult, and creates inconvenience during installation and dismantling.

Innovative light alloy models are divided into 3 categories based on their manufacturing method:

Cast ones are made from alloys based on aluminum or magnesium, which allows them to reduce their weight by a third compared to standard versions. The fragility and inelasticity of the material upon impact leads to chips or even bursting of the wheel.

Forged products are distinguished by increased strength and lower density due to hot stamping technology. Deformation requires a lot of force, but the inflexibility of the material forces the suspension to take on the full force of impacts when driving on a bad road.

Prefabricated ones consist of 2-3 segments fastened with bolts. You need to pay special attention to the fastening material. Steel bolts rust quickly, titanium bolts do not corrode. Components can be manufactured using different methods and from different materials. This technological solution makes it possible to reduce weight, increase the interchangeability of parts and the maintainability of products.