BURNS ON BRINK OF MENTAL COLLAPSE

Yup, you're screwed, all right. The guy that told you to whang on the end of the bolts with a punch may be your only hope, other than getting out your money gun and shooting a lot.

I learned that trick in the oil fields, and it some-times works, but then they're not embedded in a costly engine either. Or at least one that I bought with my own money. Have you given any thought to divorce?

Is is a shame you don't live in Arkansas. I have several cousins that could fix your Mercedes in half an hour and make it look like it took them all day long...



The person who suggested "snapping the wrench" is your best bet. Penetrating oil won't help.



Then again, my cousins use impact wrenches for every bolt on a car and this method seems to work no matter what nationality your ride is.

I've found that beer really helps with these kind of problems. The bigger the problem, the more beer is needed.

So had the car developed a problem or did you just click over the magic 100,000 miles? If so I would have gone with the "sell it to another sucker" option. Otherwise keep battling with help of the suggestions above.



Or you could emigrate to New Zealand and buy a cheap second hand decent Japanese car down here.



Cheers

Merv.

It's never a shame to not live in Arkansas.

How can a smoldering heap of rubble collapse? Doesn't a "mental state" have to be standing, intact before it can collapse? Please check and make sure you used the correct tense in your title...

12 Point Bolts....

I assume you are talking about 12 point bolt heads and not torx. Like other German made things, they are probably "torque to yeild" head bolts (tighten to x ft.lbs. and then so many degrees). So, they will need to be replaced with new ones. As others have said, get a big solid breaker bar, 3/4" drive that wont flex, and push really hard. Don't worry about breaking the bolts off, they are probably pretty strong. If not, then all of that "over engineering" is just a pile of horse crap. Of corse, if it were engineered correctly you wouldn't be doing the job to begin with. Damn engineers! I hope they don't bring back the square wheel.

ROTFLMAO!

And cuss him on the way out!

Re: 12 Point Bolts....

what are you saying man? Torx isn't the right bit? It fits, more or less...

Re: The answer is....

Glad to see there are others out there that subscribe to my methods.

After kicking it give it a couple of really hard whacks with whatever you happen to be holding at the time. That breaker bar should do just fine. This won't have any affect on the stuck bolts but it will make you feel much better and will scare away everyone annoying you with "helpful" advice. Then you can sit back and figure how to get the bolts out and fix whatever it is you just smashed the ***** out of with that breaker bar. Good luck. ;-)

Re: 12 Point Bolts....

I know that everyone is saying use leverage, and that is a good thing. While putting about 6 feet of pipe on the wrench is a good start, you can try one more thing- Hit the top of the socket with a large hammer (4 lbs or so), while applying lots of force to the wrench. Impact while turning is good, so big impact while turning is...? Also, and this sounds scary, but drill a small (about 1/8th") hole, just deep enough to pass the depth of the head. This should relieve stress on the bolt head, while maintaining integrity in the bolt. Plus, when you strip it out, you now have a starting point for the extractor!

How about dribbling some liquid refrigerant on the bolt heads? It should make the metal bolt contract slightly.



Joe Rider

Re: 12 Point Bolts....

I was hoping that they were not external torx. I really, really hope they are not internal torx (similar to an "allen" head bolt but more spline like). If they are internal torx, do not continue unless you have a high quality torx bit. Real tool steel like Snap-on, Mac or Matco, not Taiwan or other cheapo stuff. 12 point bolts are just like regular old 6 points but with a smaller 12 point head. They work very well and are strong despite their smaller heads, when using a quality, proper fitting socket. I cringe at the thought of a torx head bolt fastening anything besides the plastic trim on my cars dashboard.

I would avoid using a refrigerant on the bolts because it will likely cool them so much that they fracture when a lot of force is applied.



I hope you have already tried this: have someone hold the bit in place and whack the end of the breaker bar in the same direction you need to rotate it to loosen the bolt. I would use a medium size hammer (small sledge/engineer's hammer). It is important to apply as much force as you can with your free hand before smiting the end of the bar. This is obvious though, so I'm sure you tried it.



Anyway, what's it like to be a traitor to your country? Why don't you go out and buy a Ford in order to reclaim your status as an American?

Piece 'o' cake my son, being a steam engineer I deal with frozen bolts all the time, soak the bolts with some good industreal penetrating oil like sea-air, or crc 3-36, put a good size punch in the center of each bolt and whack the ***** out of it with a hammer, soak it down again, then go drink a bunch of Coors, fall asleep with your boots on, wake up, stagger out to the garage, use the right size torx bit and the bolts will jump out on their own. works every time.

In pure desperation

Indeed, this seems the best solution. I have used it several times myself. The vise grip usually works. Other than that, coat the bolts with the secret mixture of WD40 and rabbit semen. The bolts will jump out of the holes.

Vlad

JB, crankin500 had the best answer so far. My recent experience is with the T-50 headed seat belt retainers in my '93 GMC pickup.

After peeling the splines off of three el cheapo auto parts store bits, I went for the Snap-On catalog and found a "T-50 GM Style" bit for $25. The flutes of the bit appear to be forged rather than having been cut after casting.

I still had to drill one of mine out after stripping the bolt head, an experience I imagine you'd rather miss. Get a good bit or two and the tightest fit in the head you can manage.

PS

Hot tip: once I got the dogs**t factory fasteners out, I replaced them with grade 5 stainless hex heads... hope that's an option for you, too.

Re: 12 Point Bolts....

Best suggestion I've read so far!

Hitting the top of the bolt while applying torque allows the threads to separate from the tapped hole for a microsecond, and usually is all that's needed for the job.

I once got a interference-fit tapered flywheel off using this method. The SOB was held on by a 1 1/2" nut and "ringing" it was the only method that worked.