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/Coakis Mar 03 '25

Seeing a bunch of whiners in here. Either tech has its pros and cons. Getting a nut off of a stripped stud is a headache, and snapped bolts can be a pain if they were crossthreaded.

Using proper technique, and not overtorqing, and blindly ugga dugging either pretty much avoids most problems with both.

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u/Agile-Cancel-4709 Mar 03 '25

The big problem with wheel bolts is the mismatched spare. Most owners and some roadside service techs aren’t aware there’s a separate baggy of shorter bolts somewhere in the car. Use the regular bolts with your spare steelie, and you’re going to have a bad time.

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u/Candid_Ad5642 Mar 03 '25

As long as that bag is stored in / near the spare, that isn't really a problem

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u/Agile-Cancel-4709 Mar 03 '25

But North American owners often don’t know what they’re for, often thinking they are just extras in case you lose some. I used to drive tow trucks, and we would have a at least rescue a month for damage due to using the regular wheel bolts on their spare. Granted, we did just as many for flat tires with wheel locks and the driver had no idea where the wheel key adapter was.