When you see a tire fitter wrenching on your wheels at the tire shop, do you see them use a torque wrench?
I have seen vehicle dealerships use torque wrenches, but I cannot recall any time when I’ve seen it done at a tire shop. Usually, the tire fitter spins the lug nuts on the wheel with a rattle gun or ‘impact driver’, to be exact. But how precise is the impact driver? It’s just a guess!
The RVIA, the industry standard for RVs, says that wheels on travel trailers and fifth wheels should be torqued to 120 lbs/ft. This should be done when the tire is fitted and checked again after 30 minutes of highway driving.
To be precise, you should find what your manufacturer specifies and follow those settings. Really though! Who does this? I am always removing travel trailer and fifthwheel RV tires for wheel bearing and brake checks and I am sure those lug nuts are on way tighter than 120 lbs/ft. I always remove wheels using a breaker bar, that’s an 18 inch bar and often I can just barely crack those lugnuts off.
What would it be like for someone trying to remove these wheels on the side of the road with a flat tire and a standard 10 inch tire wrench?
If you rely on AAA or other roadside rescue organizations, then you might wait a little longer, but you won’t have to do any wrenching at all. You may be the other person, like me, who likes to have the right tools for the right job and wants some definition on what to do.
So here is what the full time RV Tech carries: I always carry an 18 inch breaker bar in my pickup truck along with a variety of sockets to match different lug nut sizes. Yes, lug nuts vary in size. I do not carry my torque wrench with me at all times, and I most certainly set my lug nuts to the correct torque specification, using a torque wrench when I am at my workshop and or at home.
Why is it important to set the wheel’s lug nuts to the correct torque setting?
- Firstly, you have a manufacturer’s or industry standard reference point, so applying a target torque setting gives you peace of mind by knowing that you are following design recommendations. No guess work!
- Using an impact wrench and guessing the tightness offers a risk in over tightening lug nuts. This not only makes lug nuts nearly impossible to loosen, but over stresses the wheel studs. My recent trip to Australia, where most travel trailers run on heavily corrugated dirt roads in the outback, revealed many stories of wheels sheered off and axles dragging on the ground. This can be caused by the wheel studs being stretched by over tightening lug nuts – the wheel stud is stretched, weakening the tensile strength of the wheel stud. That’s enough evidence to me!
- If you use a 10 inch tire wrench or guess with a power wrench, how do you know the wheel nut is on tight enough? Wheels do fall off from loose wheel nuts.
I don’t travel too far in my fifthwheel these days, but if I had time over again and I took 2,000 mile journeys, I would certainly pack a torque wrench so that I know my reference point. I always check the wheels at my first stop. It may not be 30 minutes or 50 miles down the road, but when I stop for a rest break, or get more fuel, I do check every lug nut.
Remember you truck too! I do all my own general servicing on my one ton dually pickup. I have had three instances when a front wheel is wobbly from loose lug nuts. Twice after my own guess tightening, and a third time after a wheel alignment and ball joint replacement from a trusted workshop. My truck has steel dually wheels. You can wrench those on and drive 20 or 30 minutes on the highway and hear a rumble and feel vibration. As soon as I’ve felt that – I pull over and find those lug nuts running loose.
Recommended tire tools to carry on your next trip away …
- The correct sockets to fit your truck and trailer, or motorhome.
- An 18 inch breaker bar. Longer if you like. It does not have to be an expensive one.
- If you have the space and the weight is not a problem, take a torque wrench on very long journeys. You probably don’t need a torque wrench if you are taking a 200 mile trip to your campground and back. Torque your wheels at home and at your first stop, just check the lug nuts are firm with your breaker bar.
- Pack a compressor if you can, but especially have a tire pressure gauge with you. Gas station tire gauges are not accurate. Remember the rule of only checking tire pressures when cold.
- Pack a tire valve tool. It’s a small tool to tighten or remove the tiny valves from the valve stem of your tire. You may never need it, but when you do need it you will find that no one else has one.
- I had a screw in my tire that created a leaky tire in my pickup recently. The screw fell out and the tire would deflate overnight. I bought a temporary tire repair kit. The kind that you clean out the hole in the tread and plug in a soft material to stop the leak. This kit worked well. It will get you to your next tire shop for a replacement or a permanent repair.
- Summary: Pack a tire gauge; breaker bar; wheel nut sockets; tire valve tool; puncture repair kit. Optional: (especially on extended trips) Compressor; torque wrench.
You do not need the most expensive tools, but you can be assured, you will be the only person in the campground with the whole kit. If you do not carry these essentials, it will be almost impossible to borrow them. Yes, you could visit an auto parts store and buy them, but it won’t help you in a remote location away from towns and when stores are closed.
If you have any questions, please contact me in the comments area below, or phone 805 610 9394.