Torque wrench suggestions

[Vlad D Impeller]

It does not have to be the least or most expensive wrench, since i have a lot of time on my hands, i have decided to do the servicing myself on my car which has not been driven for the last two and a half years, i need a wrench or perhaps two different ones for doing wheels, plugs and changing out transmission fluid, motor oil and the rear differential oil.
I have looked at a few on some web sites and the choices become a bit confusing after a while. Do they all come calibrated new out of the box, or would i need to get that done somewhere? Or could it be something that i can do myself with a few instructions?

 

[Cofe]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

For home use I get my torque wrenches from a local auto parts store. I get a 1/2 drive in foot pounds, and a 3/8 drive in inch pounds. The cost isn't too bad, and the parts store warrants the wrenches.
When done using a torque wrench, always turn back the torque setting to zero. This helps to keep the wrench accurate.

 

[marlboro180]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

For what you mentioned, just a 3/8 in foot pounds should work fine. I have a couple, Craftsman , Snap-on( inch punds) and they were fine out of the box.

 

[BuzzStPoint]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

I bought a 3/8 foot lbs..

I only found 1 inch lbs around my city.. Craftsman at 80 bucks... Nope..

The one I bought goes from 5 ft Lbs to 120 ft Lbs.
If you run into anything that runs inch lbs, just divide that by 12.
Example: 106 inch lbs = 8.83 ft lbs.. Since I bought my torque wrench, I haven't seen anything under 6 ft lbs one the 4 vehicles I worked on.

 

[woosterken]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

do you have a harbor freight near you? go to there web site and check store locator

woosterken

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

Buying a torque wrench and the quality needed depends on what your torquing. If your basically going to just torque wheels you don't need a high quality wrench. If your planing to do engine rebuilding get a higher quality. For you a 3/8's wrench would probably be a wast of money unless your planing to rebuild some small engines. Most things hand tight is just fine like for spark plugs and other things.

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

I don't need to do a rebuild or anything like that, the vehicle is in great shape, it's a 2004 G35 coupe with only 28K miles, it was in parked in my garage and not driven for close to two and a half years.

I will be changing out all of the fluids and oils first, besides that the tires are all flat, i ordered four new ones today at a local tire shop.
it shows just under a quarter tank of gas, i have not yet tried to start the engine due to the gas being old.

The manual call for the wheels, spark plugs, and both transmission and oil drain plugs to be torqued, Infiniti uses a brass type crush washer on their drain plugs.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

The manual call for the wheels, spark plugs, and both transmission and oil drain plugs to be torqued, Infiniti uses a brass type crush washer on their drain plugs.

Ayuh,... For Heads or whatnots, I use a Torque Wrench...
For the things noted, I use my Calibrated Elbow....

 

[SCW71]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

In my humble opinion. It may be wrong but I have never used a torque wrench on any of those items. Just get them tight. And check them every so often for leaks or looseing (at oil changes maybe)
I do all my own wrenching at home.
Heads are about all I know of being critical to torque exact.

Hope it helps.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

Heads are about all I know of being critical to torque exact.

I will respectively disagree with that. I use a torque wrench on pretty much everything. Wheel lug nuts, caliper bolts, exhaust manifold bolts, transmission pan bolts, spark plugs, any suspension fasteners...Maybe the only thing I don't use it on is the oil drain plug, but I should probably use it on that too!

 

[slia67]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

I don't need to do a rebuild or anything like that, the vehicle is in great shape, it's a 2004 G35 coupe with only 28K miles, ...

When you pull your spark plugs, check for oil around the plugs. The G35s are notorius for leaking o-rings on the valve cover (the plugs go down into tubes that are sealed with o-rings in the valve covers). At 28k miles you may not have a problem though. Chances are you won't need to replace the plugs either, I believe they came from the factory with high mileage plugs.

The only thing I would use a torque wrench on (that you will be doing) is the tires. The reason for that is the extreme tendency for the G35 brake rotors to warp prematurely (unless you have Brembos). No sense adding to to the cause.

FYI, every bolt has a torque spec based on its size, grade, and composition. Another big consideration is tightening sequence on components, including your rims. In most cases you have a lot of lattitude on how closely you follow torque specs. The exceptions would be internal engine components (I always use a t.w. when working the inside of an engine), suspension parts, etc.

Hope this helps.

 

[cribber]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

Craftsman has some decent torque wrenches for about $80. I think every tool box should have one for those times when you need to tighten a bolt to a certain spec.

 

[Fl_Richard]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

I've got two of the craftsmen wrenches. The are nice. I use my arm like Bond O for steel stuff but for my aluminum outboards I torque everything. I'm always afraid I'll strip it out.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

The manual call for the wheels, spark plugs, and both transmission and oil drain plugs to be torqued, Infiniti uses a brass type crush washer on their drain plugs.

You will find that all good manuals will give you specks for every bolt and nut. If you are not sure how tight something should be by all means use a torque wrench. Just don't go a quarter turn before mush.

 

[mscher]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

In my humble opinion. It may be wrong but I have never used a torque wrench on any of those items. Just get them tight. And check them every so often for leaks or looseing (at oil changes maybe)
I do all my own wrenching at home.
Heads are about all I know of being critical to torque exact.

Hope it helps.

Might be a sign of the times.

Things are made much cheaper and use lighter weight materials, than in the past. When engine heads were cast iron, you could crank a spark plug in pretty tight and get away with it. It's more iffy with aluminum heads and stripping out the thin threads will be sadness.

Oil pans used to have heavy threads. Some of them now just look like they run the bolt through the sheet metal.

Lug nuts could still be allright without torquing, unless one is using a impact driver, then its a must. Impacts will easily overtighten lug nuts, which can easily warp the thinner brake rotors.

I also still use my "hillbilly torque wrench" (my arm) most of the time.

 

[i386]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

I found a Stanley Torque wrench at Big Lots for $25. It's the clicker type and works just fine. It seems to be of very good quality; a steal for $25 I think.

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

You will find that all good manuals will give you specks for every bolt and nut. If you are not sure how tight something should be by all means use a torque wrench. Just don't go a quarter turn before mush.

According to the factory manual for this vehicle, almost every bolt have a torque spec.
Right now i have another set of problems. No power after (New) battery hook up.???

The Engine compartment is extremely tight on space, It seems that the only way to get at anything is to disassemble everything, and perhaps a bit more complex than my mechanical abilities would allow.
The Dealer will pick it up on Monday.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: Torque wrench suggestions

If you don't have any power at all recheck your battery connections. Its surprising how often you can hook up a new battery and have nothing. Bad grounds on cars that have sat for a long time seem to be the most common problem.