Need advice on wheel stud issue
 

Hello everyone, have a dilemma right now and want some educated opinions. I posted this in the issues section but figured since people on this forum are track oriented and knowledgable, there are specific items you might be able to address better.

I track the FR-S as often as possible and did an event at the end of October at NJMP. I use dedicated track pads so I (obviously) have to take the wheels off to change them out. I did it no problem (not the first time swapping them) but since I knew I was going to be doing another event in about a month and knowing I wasn't going to be driving the car a lot in the intervening time, I opted to not swap back to stock.

Two weeks later I went in to Toyota to get the taillight (condensation) fixed and figured I'd do the 7500 mile service too. Everything went fine (as far as I knew) so fast forward to last weekend, no problems at the track. Today however I decided to swap the track pads back to stock ones. Got the fronts done with no issue but when trying to take off the passenger rear wheel, as I'm loosening one of the lugs, it feels as though I'm tightening it. Using an impact wrench yields no results either. I get confirmation on my theory from two mechanics in the shop I'm using that the lug is cross threaded.

So here's the dilemma. I did not take the wheels off since the dealership touched them so I'm 100% sure the mechanic working on it was being lazy with an impact gun and cross threaded it. But I'm sure that the dealer will deny its their fault. I always use a breaker bar/torque wrench when working on the wheels so I'm positive I did not cause the issue. I also just got moved from VA to Camp Lejeune in NC so the dealer that did the work is 5 hrs away. It seems to be an easy job so is it worth it to argue with the dealer and Toyota to admit fault and fix it for free or should I do it myself? Further, I know that I want to go to aftermarket wheels and tires in the near future, so (in the spirit of while I'm there.....) should I change to better studs and get lugs that will fit the aftermarket studs and wheels?

Thanks for reading since its a long post but you need the full background to understand the situation. Let me know your questions or clarifications.



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DIY, #@$% dealers.

Change out the studs for racing studs.
They are specifically designed for frequent removal.

http://www.race-studs.com/servlet/StoreFront

I dont know the size, but someone will comment soon with the #s.

Similar thing happened to me. I broke the stud off with a breaker bar (and a 24" pipe) and removed the broken stud with something like this and an impact wrench. Then put the replacement stud (sourced from Subaru for about $4) in using the "stack of washers" technique. Took about 10 minutes. Don't forget to buy another stock lug nut also.