Another rusty bolts thread

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Grovsie31

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Feb 3, 2015
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Location
Stafford
Car
2009 335i DCT
Last year i painted my old wheel bolts, and there looking pretty tatty now, i was going to buy some more from MB, but im pretty sure they will just go rusty again.

Are zinc plated ones any good from the likes of alloywheeldirect etc? i assume proper stainless steel ones arent available?
 
I got bolt covers for mine tenner off flea bay. Bit of a loose fit though so will probably end up painting mine at some point
 
The zinc plated ones are OK for about a year, then start to deteriorate.
Next time I'll try the chrome plated caps that push on as they are pretty cheap
 
After going through two sets of original MB wheel bolts (replaced under warranty) on my W203.... I bought a new set of (presumably zinc plated) made by Febi.

The standard Febi bolts are identical to the original MB bolts, i.e. mat grey/silver, and the Febi locking bolts look much nicer than the bulky MB ones.

Car now sold.... so can't really say how long the Febi bolts would last.

But sadly at 4 years old the W204 is now also showing signs of finish deterioration in the (black) wheel bolts... will need to think of something.
 
Are there no aftermarket stainless bolts? Hmmm might just paint em again. I find those cap things really tacky looking.

Never happened on other cars ive had.
 
Are there no aftermarket stainless bolts? Hmmm might just paint em again. I find those cap things really tacky looking.

Never happened on other cars ive had.

There are many aftermarket options, e.g.:

Packs of Wheel Nuts and Wheel Bolts from Alloy Wheels Direct

http://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/option/locking_bolts

I went for Febi because they looked identical to the original MB bolts (I am starting to think that the original MB bolts are made by Febi perhaps?)
 
There not stainless...........
 
I bought some rust resistant bolts from Alloy Wheels Direct, and whilst universally well regarded, they started to rust after a few years.
 
Unless you can get stainless, any coated bolt will rust especially after being tightened with metal tools. A small chip and the water can start it's oxidation process. Many years ago, I bought some alloy wheels for a previous car and also got hold of some "standard" stainless steel bolts. I managed to buy some sleeves to go over the bolts which made them fit the wheels. For the life of me, I cannot remember where they came from and it was certainly pre internet days.
 
Stainless might not be strong enough. They need to be high tensile bolts to a certain spec. Some of the best grades of stainless might just about be good enough but in general stainless bolts are not used in high tensile applications.

Edit
I just looked at the link to replacement bolts. They are class 10.9 which I believe rules out stainless completely.
 
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caps

This is what i fitted over my bolts . You get the tool to remove them in the packet .I just put a dab of grease inside so i can get them off .
 
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Stainless might not be strong enough. They need to be high tensile bolts to a certain spec. Some of the best grades of stainless might just about be good enough but in general stainless bolts are not used in high tensile applications.

Edit
I just looked at the link to replacement bolts. They are class 10.9 which I believe rules out stainless completely.
^^ This.

The common/easy to find stainless steels used for bolts (A2-70, A4-70 which are 304 and 316 respectively) don't meet the strength properties of a class 8.8 carbon/alloy high tensile steel fastener...
'Stainless' covers a LOT of ground but the vast majority of stainless fasteners are significantly weaker (yield and tensile strength) than high tensile carbon/alloy steel and definately not suitable for things like brakes, wheel bolts, suspension fasteners etc. Complain to MB and/or paint the head of the bolt but do not swap it for one made from stainless...

A class 8.8 fastener is made from quenched and tempered carbon steel and has a min UTS of 800 MPa, a min yield of 640 MPa and proof strength of 660 MPa for the sizes commonly found on cars. Bolts holding wheels, bits of suspension or brakes together are typically stronger than this, commonly class 10.9

Common stainless bolts are made from austentic grades (for corrosion resistance) which are not hardenable by heat treatment. These are covered by different standards... the material grade is called out as A2 or A4 etc and the strength properties are given by a suffix so for example

A2-50 is a fastener made from 304 stainless which has a min UTS of 500 MPa and a min proof stress of 210 MPa. There is no quoted yield strength as stainless steels have a different stress-strain behaviour to carbon steels i.e. there is no distinct yield point
A4-70 would be a 316 bolt with a min UTS of 700 MPa and 450 MPa min proof strength
Off the top of my head A2-70 and A4-70 are the most common flavours of 'stainless' bolts offered. -80 strength classes also exist which match the min UTS of class 8.8 but not the yield strength and they aren't that commonly offered. 'Proper' high strength stainless bolts are harder to find and made from different flavours of stainless which have less corrosion resistance [/gross generalisation]

This is why, in the old days, MB wheel bolts used to have a stainless cap glued/bonded/friction welded to the head of a carbon steel class 10.9 bolt
 
I got these in gloss black and they are a very loose fit. So ordered some chrome ones and they are all so loose fitting.
Got them both to fit 17mm bolts but none fit? Don't bother with them waste of time and money IMO
Better off painting them, something I'm going to do when I find the time.
Going do the disc bosses silver hammerite as well while I'm at it.
 
Ended up ordering some of the rad ones from alloywheelsdirect. See how they do.
 
I got these in gloss black and they are a very loose fit. So ordered some chrome ones and they are all so loose fitting.

Got them both to fit 17mm bolts but none fit? Don't bother with them waste of time and money IMO

Better off painting them, something I'm going to do when I find the time.

Going do the disc bosses silver hammerite as well while I'm at it.




I bought a set too, also a big loose so it was out with the masking tape on the inside and now they fit fine, also got locking nut covers now too

93b7efbda32ddc645896775d0f2f5fb0.jpg



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