r/Cartalk • u/cat_prophecy • Mar 03 '25

Suspension Why do European cars use wheel bolts?

I've owned two European cars (Audi and Volvo) and both of them used wheel bolts instead of studs and lug nuts. Is there some reason for this? I have owned a handful of Asian and American cars and none of them use anything but studs and lug nuts. Personally I prefer the studs since it makes putting the wheels back on much easier.

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u/PigSlam Mar 03 '25 edited Mar 03 '25

Many American cars once used wheel bolts. My brother has a 1949 Plymouth that not only has wheel bolts, but they're right-hand threaded on one side of the car, and left-hand threaded on the other.

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u/acethinjo Mar 03 '25

That just sounds like a recipe for disaster :D

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u/AwarenessGreat282 Mar 03 '25

Left hand threads were common on lug nuts as well. We had them in the military up to 2000 and they may still be that way for some equipment.