Hello - I was going to check to see if any fellow owners have ever come across an issue like this...

I recently just bought a 2014 Countryman S All4 CPO, and it is a fun car. It has about 17k miles - about the time I start checking on a few things.. brake pads/rotors, bushings, etc. I started by putting the car up on jack stands, and took the rear wheels off. Both sides were extremely difficult to unbolt.

I have taken my share fair of wheels off, and nothing compared to this. I got both side off, with one side having quite a bit of resistance while extracting the entire lug, on three of them. After I got them out, I could see that the threads were stripped as stripped could be - looks like due to force+cross threading. Note, I only use sockets to get lugs out.. these required a very, very large breaker bar.

With only two lugs in, I called my Mini dealership up (Motorwerks Mini) and told them what's going on with a car I just bought a month ago. Mini roadside assistance towed it.

Anyone else have issues with overtightened lugs from dealerships to the point of damage?

 

Dumbarse with an impact wrench can cause havoc.

 

Sounds like somebody at a local tire shop didn't use the torque sticks on the impact! Running the impact enough to virtually strip the threads is quite amazing they didn't snap the heads off the studs!! Sorry to hear of the issue, but hopefully in your hands this situation won't repeat.

 

Dealership took care of it, as the only tires on there have been installed by the dealer.. I would have taught that the heads would have snapped too..

 

The heads didn't break off because the weakest link did. Yep the treads. Sloppy work by the person who mounted the wheels last. Glad the dealer took care of you.

 

Too many ugga-duggas with the impact wrench and not enough brains by whoever fiddled with your wheels last. Glad you got it resolved.

 

In 50 years of wrenching I never had a frozen lug until recently on a 1999 Lexus with 250K, that I have owned since new and only let Costco install tires. Problem appears to have been corrosion (lots of salt here in NoVA.) Had to replace 2 lugs on one wheel; no big deal.

 

I am sitting here chucking about the "lots of salt" comment. My brother called me a couple weeks back and asked me to look for a winter beater as his current beater had the suspension fall off due to New York Winter weather. For those of you that do not know what a winter beater is, it is a disposable car that you know will disintegrate in front of your eyes from salt rot. Now that is some salt country. When I lived up there I had a oil pan on my dodge truck rot out in 2 years from the salt.

In upstate NY you don't worry about your lugs getting corroded, you worry about the holes in your car as big as a basketball from salt rot being used by your cat.

 

Today I was the dumbarse ugga-dugga with an impact driver. Doing tire rotation. I used the air ratchet to remove the lugs. And I know better than to use it for reinstallation. That has to be done with more care to get the lug bolts started properly and not cross-thread them. And I know this. And thats what I did..... on all but the 1st bolt of the last wheel. I can't believe I did this. So one rear wheel is running with 4 out of 5 lug bolts. I'm not a mechanic, I was just playing one today. What can I do? Can the threads be re-tapped. I don't have a tap set but have friends that probably do. Anyone know the size/thread pitch for sure? is 14x1.25x27 the right size stock bolt for my car? Realoem.com gives me part # 36136890324. I'll probablly have to at the very least buy a 1 lug bolt. ECS has them for $6.68/each. Cheaper other places. How do I measure the length? from the back of the cone to the end is @27mm.

 

For the countryman its : https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2011-...,_-and-_Nuts/2

14x1.25x27 conical stock.
Where the neck of that cone meet the solid rod part of the bolt till the tip is the length.

 

Thanks ECS. I found the bolt at a local auto parts store because I didn't want to wait. Also picked up a 14x1.25 tap to hopefully clean up the threads I buggered up.

Worst case, if I can't get the threads re-tapped, can you link me to the part (hub?, left rear) that I would need to replace.

 

yep,
I would check that hub out, if the threads are fine u are ok, if they are cut/damaged also I would just replace it. Retap on a one time use thing is ok, retap on a thread with bolts that will be taking on/off many times might have some issues.
Are you All4 drive, is so then here:

https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2012-...heel_Bearings/

 

Success! I was able to tap the threads in the hub and they cleaned up nicely. New bolt installed. My car is a 2012 Countryman S (not ALL4). If I find I need to replace the HUB in the future, is this the part?
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-zimmerma...4219811539kt2/

 

There is something to be said about doing it "the old fashioned way", hand threading the lug nuts, using a lug wrench and then a torque wrench.
No need for impact on lugs, in my opinion, unless you don't have a 5 or 6 foot breaker bar to use for leverage, to get the stuck ones off.
But I am just old school like that.

 

ClubmanG you are absolutely correct and I know better than to do what I did. I got lazy. I was sitting with the tire on my feet, positioning the wheel for mounting, as one does. And my socket wrench was out of reach. The air ratchet was close at hand so I grabbed it and proceeded to cross thread the first bolt. Lesson learned. The money I saved on doing the tire rotation myself was quickly spent on a new lug bolt an a 14x1.25 tap which I hope to never use again.

 

Oh man, that sucks.
I been there in different situations, being lazy, or excited, (not on cars) and always kicked myself later.
I am pretty **** when it comes to my vehicles, I don't let anyone work on them unless it is something that I absolutely can't do, like if it needs to be on a lift or something like that, as I don't have a lift.....yet
But in the past when I have had to take it somewhere, I am always at the door, or at the edge of the bay watching.
I don't care if it's a dealer or any other specialist shop, they can always hire a dumb *** that does not have the attention to detail that I have.

 

Last year I bought a "stud" that threads into a bolt hole after removing the first bolt. It prevents the wheel from falling off after removal of the other bolts. Then holds the wheel in place for re-installation. Works great. Don't have to balance the wheel while trying to get the first bolt started. Bought it from ECS Tuning. Looked for it to link and could not find it quickly.

 

You know, as I laid in bed last night thinking over my idiocy of the day, I imagined just what you mentioned for next time I need to remove and reinstall a wheel for any reason. It' so simple, wish I had thought of it beforehand. I will definitely get a 14m1.25 stud to help next time.

 

 

Thats great, here is your MINI Countryman S: https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2012-...heel_Bearings/

 

Thats the one for the 14x1.25 thread:

https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2012-.../Wheel_Hanger/