[bree1982]

Hi guys,

New to the forum....

Was swapping out my Msport wheel tonight and got stuck when try to remove the 3 torx bolts that hold the airbag carrier to the steering wheel...

I have snapped 3 x T15 torx bits trying to remove.

Any ideas....?

Thanks
Brendan

[grannyknot]

Ooooo, not good, the base that those 3 hardened screws are in is cast aluminum, soft.
Trying to drill them out is tricky because your drill has to be perfectly centered or it will jump off and dig into the aluminum.
I broke one and it was the blue thread locker that had hardened up.
Try some concentrated heat like a micro butane torch and an ezout.
https://www.amazon.com/Ez-Out/s?k=Ez+Out

[StradaRedlands]

Originally Posted by bree1982

Hi guys,

New to the forum....

Was swapping out my Msport wheel tonight and got stuck when try to remove the 3 torx bolts that hold the airbag carrier to the steering wheel...

I have snapped 3 x T15 torx bits trying to remove.

Any ideas....?

Thanks
Brendan

Ouch. Just wondering, but what kind of bits? Maybe get a socket type instead of a driver bit? Cheaper ones should be fine, but if not, higher end Snap On or similar socket

[rbryantaz]

Originally Posted by StradaRedlands

Ouch. Just wondering, but what kind of bits? Maybe get a socket type instead of a driver bit? Cheaper ones should be fine, but if not, higher end Snap On or similar socket

Socket bits are best, even the harbor freight ones are fine. Note that torx bits should fit tight, smaller sizes often work but risk damaging the screws.

If by chance you used the wrong size there might be a chance to still get them out. Torx screws are harder to strip out than phillips which is one big reason that they exist.

If they are really damaged then drilling them or cutting the heads off with a dremel might be the only option. If you drill them consider using a left handed drill bit. I have a set of them just for this and sometimes because they drill forward in the loosen direction they will actually loosen the screw as you drill and it will come out.

Getting a set of screw extractors is also a good idea if the screw head is deep enough these have worked for me:



-Rich

[aktif8]

Fwiw - two out of 6 of my radiator cover torx bolts stripped almost instantaneously when I was attempting to get my carbon piece put on. No method worked for removal except using a dremel to slot the head, and using a flathead.

[rbryantaz]

Originally Posted by aktif8

Fwiw - two out of 6 of my radiator cover torx bolts stripped almost instantaneously when I was attempting to get my carbon piece put on. No method worked for removal except using a dremel to slot the head, and using a flathead.

The dremel a slot method is probably the best way. I have also done that in the past and should have thought to mention that... Good suggestion.
If that fails then you can always grind the head off completely and then extract the shank when it has no tension on it after the wheel is removed.

Once they strip slightly it is best to replace the screws with new ones anyway so cutting them isn't such a big loss at that point.

I recently encountered a 12 point torx bolt when replacing my e70 front wheel bearing.... I initially considered using a 6point on it and realized that wasn't going to work and had to run to mulitiple autozones to find the right tool... Then I had to drive it out of the socket and cut down the bit to shorten it to get it to work.

Oh the fun of specialized screws...

-Rich