parking lot repair

schumicat · 01-19-2014, 06:04 AM

ran some errands in the 911 yesterday and it drove great. as I pulled spot in a big parking lot, heard loud clunk and the wheels were no longer getting power. I looked under car and the diagnosis was really easy....driver side axle was hanging down. surprisingly all the bolts were still there. I ended up walking to wal mart across the street and buying a set of allen wrenches. after an hour lying on my back in parking lot I had 4 of the bolts tightened. I didn't think it could be done without jacking up car. one broke with little torque, and I think it must have been the last one to back out and was overstressed. was able to get home, drove pretty slow. this a.m. will get the broken bolt out and torque them properly.

so the lesson is retorque the axle bolts a few months after install. I had the drivetrain out last year to replace trans and didn't do it.

matt930s · matt930s's Garage

Ouch. Glad you weren't hauling on the interstate.

Glad it turned out ok.

MattR

JJ 911SC · JJ 911SC's Garage

Did you had Schnorr (or similar) washers on them?

shadowjack1 · shadowjack1's Garage

I used stage 8 locking fastenres. Seem to be working great.

johnsjmc · 01-19-2014, 11:46 AM

This is a fairly common situation. Schnor washers and be sure to clean the threads in the flange with brake cleaner. I locktite them too.

village idiot · village idiot's Garage

I loctite'd mine as well as drilled and safety-wired them( I used to roadrace motorcycles, glad I hung on to the special pliers

)

fanaudical · fanaudical's Garage

Hmmm...I think I'll go check mine.

dad911 · 01-20-2014, 06:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by schumicat

...... one broke with little torque......

They were stressed. You really should change them all.

Joe Bob · Joe Bob's Garage

I just renewed my AAA Premium Card.....working on a car in a parking lot sucks. Glad you were able to fix it....

OsoMoore · OsoMoore's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by dad911

They were stressed. You really should change them all.

The bolts are cheap enough, I agree. I changed all my bolts when I replaced/repacked my CVs. McMaster Carr is a good source of excellent bolts for this.

I found my bolts a little loose about 2 weeks after I replaced them. Re-tightened, and they've stayed tight since.