Guys, need your help here.

I was trying to remove my alutec strut bar and managed to strip one, possibly two, nuts or studs.

The outer portion of the nuts are fine, which leads me to think it's either the threads on the stud, or inside the nuts, that are stripped.

I can't put any leverage below it to lodge a flathead or such to coax it into moving upwards and aid in removal.

Any ideas?

Thank you.

p.s. To borrow a photo from mishmosh, you'll see why it's hard to lodge anything underneath either the bar or the nut itself.

 

Is the nut spinning on the stud?
Or is the stud spinning, and you cant get the nut off??

Raise the car with the suspension hanging, allowing the weight to pull down on the stud.

 

You could remove the intake out the way that might give you some more leverage.

 

Thanks guys. TVP, i'll give that a shot, great idea! The nut is just spinning. Can't get to it today, do you think it's okay to drive around like it? Two of them seem to still be torqued correctly.

 

Good luck Mike, too bad it's in such a tough place. If anyone is versed in strut nuts that would be you, can't think of anyone else that's done as much w/ their suspension lately. Sucks that it's one of those things that even when you can get to it it's still a messed up situation, pretty important studs there

 

Would a pair of small vice grips fit into the recess? Maybe that would give you enough to be able to turn and pull at the same time.

 

Remove all the nuts except the stripped one obviously and that should give you some gap underneath the bar to pry up and turn the nut loose at the same
Time.

 

Mike, it that's the OEM upper spring seat that has has the stud come loose, you're going to have to replace it. It might be easier to just wait until you remove the strut assembly and then you may be able to hold the stud from the bottom with pliers/vice grips/etc while removing the nut from above.

 

Thankfully, and hopefully the stud is okay. It's just the nut that keeps turning. The part the nut covers is quite near the end, so even in worst-case -- as long as i can remove the strut bar -- i should be able to torque down new nuts onto the studs for a secure fit.

Good idea, i've ordered a locking plier, that should help. The smallest vice grip i have only bites down the tips of the nuts, which risks stripping the outer sides.

Another good idea. I'll give that a try, too!

The stud is fine, it's the nut that just keeps turning. If it has to come down to it, i hope it's the nut that's stripped and not the stud.

Worst-case... if i have no real need to remove the strut bar, and if possible, can i just force torque down that stripped nut so it's at least secure?

 

hmm can you wedge anything beneath the strut bar and give resistance to the nut that way? maybe use an impact driver on the nut to reverse it out while prying up or jb weld another nut onto the stripped one and see if that'll give you enough to grab it and spin it off.

Edit: i forgot try a neodymium magnet if its that loose

 

Not sure what the grade of steel is on the nut but another option is to just take a dremel and cutting disk to the nut, being careful not to pass through to the stud, and grind into it. Once you have a slit cut completely through one side of the nut, you could probably just pull it apart with pliers to remove it all together. I used to do this all the time with stripped nuts and screws on paintball guns and equipment.

 

I'm not understanding what you mean by this. The stud is in place and completely normal? If the stud is stationary and the nut is spinning, will it not spin all the way off? Explain it to me differently because I don't follow. If we didn't live so far apart I would just drop by and give you a hand but I went to Mike D's house when I sold him my drive shaft one evening who lives near you and it took over an hour form work in afternoon commute traffic. Maybe I can meet up with you right after work and take a look because our work locations are only about 10-15 minutes apart I think. Let me know if you want to do that one day.

 

It sounds like the issue that arises when you over tighten a nut, and the stud threads are stripped at the bottom.
he needs to remove the 2 good nuts, raise the car on the frame, letting the strut hang on the sole stud, hopefully the stud will pull down to where the nut can now catch a good thread on the stud.
Same theory as wedging a screwdriver under.
I personally think the stud threads are also damaged.

 

OK, I can understand that. makes sense to me now. If that's the case then replacement of the upper spring seat is required once it comes off.

On a completely unrelated note, I noticed my screen name in the quote above by TVPS is in blue and has a hyperlink. When did that crap start? It links to some women's rubber boots.

 

This most likely ^^^^ what he said. I would just cut the sucker off, replace the stud and the nut both. it is very likely both are going to have to be replaced anyway. I have done this with a dremmel being very careful with a small cutoff wheel.