DIY: Replacing front & rear wheel studs (without replacing wheel bearings)
05-13-2012, 01:40 PM
#1
DIY: Replacing front & rear wheel studs (without replacing wheel bearings)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR THIS DIY:
1. CHEAP WHEEL STUDS! ARP 100-7708 studs for late model GM cars fit the RX-8 application and they retail for around $13-$15 for a pack of 5 in the US. Plus they're longer and probably the strongest studs on the market.
2. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DISASSEMBLE REAR WHEEL ASSEMBLY! This means you DO NOT have to scrap your rear wheel bearings!
3. I DO NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYTHING YOU MAY DO WRONG OR ANY DAMAGE YOU MAY CAUSE TO YOUR CAR!
- - - - - - - - - -
Before I begin, I'm going to call this a "Semi-DYI" because you need some basic mechanics knowledge and you definitely need the proper tools. If you don't have the latter, you probably want to take this job to a shop to get done.
The whole reason I got this done was to fit 7mm spacers on that did not have built in extended studs. As well, 1 or 2 of my studs were slightly crooked.
I went to see my buddy at his shop and I acted as just a helping hand, so if you have any questions regarding this procedure, I'll answer them the best I can.
- - - - - - - - - -
We started by removing the brake caliper, disconnecting the ABS sensor, removing the rotor, dust shield, etc... to finally remove the front hub. We removed the front hub so that we could use a press to remove the old studs and press in the new ones.
1. CHEAP WHEEL STUDS! ARP 100-7708 studs for late model GM cars fit the RX-8 application and they retail for around $13-$15 for a pack of 5 in the US. Plus they're longer and probably the strongest studs on the market.
2. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DISASSEMBLE REAR WHEEL ASSEMBLY! This means you DO NOT have to scrap your rear wheel bearings!
3. I DO NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYTHING YOU MAY DO WRONG OR ANY DAMAGE YOU MAY CAUSE TO YOUR CAR!
- - - - - - - - - -
Before I begin, I'm going to call this a "Semi-DYI" because you need some basic mechanics knowledge and you definitely need the proper tools. If you don't have the latter, you probably want to take this job to a shop to get done.
The whole reason I got this done was to fit 7mm spacers on that did not have built in extended studs. As well, 1 or 2 of my studs were slightly crooked.
I went to see my buddy at his shop and I acted as just a helping hand, so if you have any questions regarding this procedure, I'll answer them the best I can.
- - - - - - - - - -
We started by removing the brake caliper, disconnecting the ABS sensor, removing the rotor, dust shield, etc... to finally remove the front hub. We removed the front hub so that we could use a press to remove the old studs and press in the new ones.
Last edited by Munchy; 05-20-2012 at 02:24 AM.
05-13-2012, 01:41 PM
#2
So the really cool thing about changing the studs for extended ones, is that I used ARP 100-7708 studs. These studs are made for Late GM models such as the Camaro, Firebird, and Corvette. They have the same thread and pitch as the RX-8 but they have a slightly larger knurl diameter and they're obviously longer. The best part is that they are much stronger than stock studs and much cheaper! I paid $19.99CDN per pack of 5, but on Summit Racing you can get them for $13.29USD for the same pack of 5 if you're in the States.
Last edited by Munchy; 05-20-2012 at 02:24 AM.
05-13-2012, 01:46 PM
#5
Now the rears... The rears are quite different from the front. From what I understand, the rear wheel bearing is press fitted into the hub. That means if you remove the rear hub, you'll have to separate it from the bearing, thus scrapping them instantly. So we had to figure out another way to proceed...
My friend came up with the idea of notching the dust shield and then rotating the hub and pushing out the old studs one by one and the opposite for the new studs. Notching the dust shield was no issue, but then we realized that the metal assembly behind the dust shield gets in the way of the studs coming out or going in. This resulted in us grinding down the metal assembly to allow passage in and out from behind. We also ground down the heads of the old studs and the new studs WITHOUT touching the knurl area.
My friend came up with the idea of notching the dust shield and then rotating the hub and pushing out the old studs one by one and the opposite for the new studs. Notching the dust shield was no issue, but then we realized that the metal assembly behind the dust shield gets in the way of the studs coming out or going in. This resulted in us grinding down the metal assembly to allow passage in and out from behind. We also ground down the heads of the old studs and the new studs WITHOUT touching the knurl area.
Last edited by Munchy; 05-13-2012 at 01:59 PM.
05-13-2012, 01:49 PM
#7
All this to fit on a set of wheels with spacers...
Finally, make sure you get an alignment done whenever re-installing or modifying the hubs (also when you're fitting different sized wheels or need more negative camber like me).
I'm running around -4 camber at every corner (which I plan to lower even more). I would like to run even more negative up front, but the camber bolt was seized within the bushing and wouldn't budge. Not the end of the world...
Hopefully this thread gives some insight on this procedure, and like I said, I'll try to answer questions the best I can.
Good luck!
Finally, make sure you get an alignment done whenever re-installing or modifying the hubs (also when you're fitting different sized wheels or need more negative camber like me).
I'm running around -4 camber at every corner (which I plan to lower even more). I would like to run even more negative up front, but the camber bolt was seized within the bushing and wouldn't budge. Not the end of the world...
Hopefully this thread gives some insight on this procedure, and like I said, I'll try to answer questions the best I can.
Good luck!
Last edited by Munchy; 05-13-2012 at 02:01 PM.
05-13-2012, 02:03 PM
#8
for many racing classes notching the rear shield isn't permitted and grinding off part of either the upright or stud head is not really what you want to do in high wheel loading situations either which is why we pull the rear hubs, installing new hub/wheel bearings is not necessarily a bad thing either ....
We ground off so little that I highly highly doubt there was any hit to the structural integrity. The metal is so thick.
I don't race the car at all either, but I do understand where you're coming from.
05-13-2012, 02:05 PM
#9
This is the response I got from the spacer manufacturer when I asked why there wasn't any "lip" on the spacers:
The inner ring is hubcentric so there is no need for for the ring that is
pictured on the website. It used to be a universal fit and the rings would
make them more specific to each chassis.
pictured on the website. It used to be a universal fit and the rings would
make them more specific to each chassis.
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13b_doritos (11-17-2020)
07-03-2012, 08:59 PM
#20
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Can someone more knowledgeable than myself chime in on the viability of this method for a track car? Grinding away part of the hub/brake assembly doesn't seem like it would necessarily be problematic but shaving down the shoulder of the studs to get the new ones installed seems less than ideal.
Munch -- can you foresee any additional issues you may have run into if you tried using longer than 2.5" studs? For instance 3.25".
Munch -- can you foresee any additional issues you may have run into if you tried using longer than 2.5" studs? For instance 3.25".
10-25-2014, 09:09 PM
#22
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Hey guys. Bringing this post back hopefully for some help. I need to replace all my studs in my back driverside hub so I was wondering if anyone has really thought this over by now. Got new rims and tires at a tire place turns out they messed up 7 studs and I need them replaced. They agreed to replace the studs however 5 of them are in the rear. I really don't want to have the shop pull apart the bearing and have to replace that along with anything else because then the tire shop might say enough is enough and not pay for the extra stuff. I want to know if this would really be alright to do as long as I am not going to the track anytime soon.
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