Brian Evans wrote:
>
> An alloy of what? almost all metals are alloys...
>
> Brian
>
> At 07:37 PM 03/15/2000 -0500, mark w roper wrote:
> >the wheel nuts on all 911& 944 were alloy
> >
> >Mark
> >
> >Brian Evans wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > if by alloy you mean aluminium, I'd say you were thinking of a quick way
>to
> > > spend a lot of money on body work. I'd stay close to very high grade
>steel
> > > for lug nuts on a car as heavy as a Porche. I don't think the savings on
> > > unsprung weight will really impact lap times anyway...mind you, who knows
> > > what the factory team came up with?
> > >
> > > Brian
> > >
> > > At 02:45 PM 03/14/2000 -0500, Robert McCurdy wrote:
> > > >Hello listers,
> > > >
> > > >This one's for the 911 racers on the list. Anyone have an opinion about
> > > >alloy versus steel lug nuts for a racing application? Is there a
> > > >'trick' 911 nut lurking out there anywhere?
> > > >
> > > >Thanks to all.
> > > >
> > > >Robert McCurdy
Fellow listers (not Listers)
Since I am sure some of you are perplexed by the recent Porsche "alloy"
lugnut posts I thought it might be somewhat informative to give some
explanation. My '84 911 Carrera came equipped with lightweight alloy
lugnuts. I have seen them referred to as aluminum alloy as well as
magnesium alloy but whatever they are made of they are not a steel alloy
or a titanium alloy. The first time you hold one in your hand it is
obvious that they are not steel and the first time you use a standard
steel socket to loosen them it becomes obvious that they are not
titanium. They work great for street use and track use with stock
wheels and lugs. Usually they are anodised black and can be easily
ruined by steel sockets. Either the finish gets scratched or the metal
gets distorted especially if an impact wrench is used. To keep them
nice looking and not bent you have to use a deep "soft socket" that has
a plastic or aluminum insert. Some racers are concerned about the
ability of the "alloy" lugnuts to withstand heat from braking though I
don't know how wellfounded these concerns are. The main reason for not
using these lugnuts for racing is that they are closed ended and if the
lugnut bottoms on the lug before it clamps the wheel to the hub it will
not secure the wheel properly. Steel lugnuts allow the lug to protrude
through so that a quick visual inspection precludes this problem. It is
common practice to swap around various wheels from differing models of
Porsches and change stud lengths and use spacers to accomodate changes
in backspacing. This is where some racers have gotten into trouble
using the "alloy" lugnuts. Hope this answers some questions.
Robin
'58 MGA (steel lugnuts)
'87 328 Ferrari (chromed steel lugbolts, but thats anouther story)
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