how important is the torque?

[cinnabar]

I just need to know how critical the factory torque specs are for the strut assembly. My repair manual from toyota says it should be around 203ft/lb for the 19mm bolts that connect my new tokico struts to the control arm. I don't have any torque wrenches that I can measure the torque but my hammer wrench seems to get it pretty tight at 120psi. is this ok or should I follow specs?

I'll probly ask my alignment guys to check them once I'm done putting the struts on anyway.

[freakinbox]

well they don't want the bolt to losen while you drive or for things to move as you hit bumbs and shit, so I would say pretty important

[Flashmn]

I shot mine on and off with a bolt gun

[freakinbox]

impact gun? hell those can break bolts, Most likely your are tight enough or to tight. to tight can be just as bad, damaging parts and such.

[canadianae92]

actually a problem with the impact gun is that it can actually be to lose, happened to me while i was doing a pizza delivery i heard thump thump thump so i pulled over and lugs where lose all around on the front(this was after changing my clutch) and yes the lugs where put on tight as possible with the impact gun.

[cinnabar]

Originally Posted by canadianae92

actually a problem with the impact gun is that it can actually be to lose, happened to me while i was doing a pizza delivery i heard thump thump thump so i pulled over and lugs where lose all around on the front(this was after changing my clutch) and yes the lugs where put on tight as possible with the impact gun.

That's that I suspected. I found I could tighten them even more with just a wrench and some pure brute force. I'll have them checked anyway when I go for an alignment.

[rlee777]

ALWAYS use a torque wrench when working with suspension parts. It is critical for the parts to operate with the right torque specs, especially the strut to steering knuckle (203 ft/lbs) bolts. These hold the camber and under torqued bolts is a safety hazard. Buy or borrow at Autozone a torque wrench. Do it right, especially with the suspension!

[freakinbox]

depends on the impact gun, some aren't strong enough for lug nuts. we have several at the shop, different sizes and such

[Maxpayne124]

my ingersoll impact goes to 1000ftlbs so i dont have to worry about not having enough torque BUT heres a motto to go by: "tight is tight and too tight is broken"

[Flashmn]

actually a problem with the impact gun is that it can actually be to lose, happened to me while i was doing a pizza delivery i heard thump thump thump so i pulled over and lugs where lose all around on the front(this was after changing my clutch) and yes the lugs where put on tight as possible with the impact gun.

Obviously you missed the number 1 rule about putting on tires, you always check the lugnuts after a while to see if they loosen, rims tend to live a bit, and the lugnuts can loosen while driving.