Fixed Ops Journal - August 2019 - F29

FIXED OPS JOURNAL

LUGGING A BURDEN

Despite lawsuit dismissal, disputed Ford parts complicate dealership service

JENNY KING

foj@autonews.com

ug nuts used by Ford Motor Co. remain
a source of controversy - and concern
for some Ford dealership service departments - even after a federal
court this year dismissed a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging that the two-piece design
was defective and dangerous.
Critics asserted that the caps of the lug nuts
were prone to swell and change shape, making them hard to remove for regular maintenance or wheel and tire replacement. Plaintiffs in the suit against Ford, filed in 2017, alPlaintiffs in a dismissed lawsuit said "swollen"
leged that vehicles with "swollen and delamilug nuts made many Ford vehicles unsafe.
nated" lug nuts "cannot be safely driven."
A U.S. district court judge in Detroit dises, by those working on the nuts. Other Ford
missed the complaint in January, ruling that
dealers say they have not experienced trouble
the plaintiffs had not presented sufficient
servicing vehicles with the lug nuts.
facts or "legally viable claims" for relief. The
Collins, who oversees the wrenches used in
decision is not being appealed. But some Ford
his dealership's service department, concedes
dealership service managers say the lug nuts
that he sees only a handful of lug nut probare still a nuisance.
lems each year. But he notes that some of his
"It's a bad design," Jeremy Collins, parts and
customers were faced with having to replace
service director at Kelly Ford in Melbourne,
the lug nuts on one or all of their wheels. The
Fla., told Fixed Ops Journal. "It surprises me
number of nuts per wheel varies from four to
they don't do a recall."
six or more on some trucks.
Ford used the steel lug nuts from roughly the
A lug nut replacement kit from Ford typical2000 through 2015 model years, on car and
ly costs about $220, Collins notes, compared
truck models including the
with $69 to $79 for an afterFocus, Fusion, Escape, F-150, "It's a bad design.
market kit. He says "nine out
Flex, C-Max, Expedition and
of 10" customers opt for the
F-350. Detractors contend that It surprises me they cheaper kit.
dirt, road salt and moisture
Trysha Maness, service addon't do a recall."
can work their way under the
viser at Brad Manning Ford in
cap, creating corrosion and Jeremy Collins, Kelly Ford, DeKalb, Ill., says the lug nuts
even the possibility that the Melbourne, Fla.
generally have not been a
wheel the lug nut is holding on
problem at her dealership.
its hub could fall off if the nut is not properly
When nuts are damaged, she says, she advises
tightened. Under less dire circumstances, they
customers to replace them.
say, removing the nuts is difficult and
Working on damaged nuts may require largtime-consuming, and over-tightening can
er wrenches than factory-specified tools, Madamage a bolt by stretching its threads.
ness adds. She notes that other automakers
Some owners of affected vehicles comuse lug nuts of a similar design.
plained to dealers that the wrenches in the tool
"It's not just a Ford issue," she says.
kits that came with their vehicles would not fit
a lug nut cap that had expanded, making reToo much torque
pairs impossible. Plaintiffs in the court comRick Wegley, a dealership consultant with
plaint accused Ford of continuing to use an inNCM Associates Inc. in Kansas City, Mo., says
ferior design to save on manufacturing costs.
caps like those molded to the Ford lug nuts
"tend to mushroom if excessive torque is applied" when they are installed or removed. If
Wrong wrenches?
this happens, he says, a technician "may have
Ford defends the design of the lug nuts. The
to use an oversize socket wrench to remove
automaker blames problems on improper use
the affected lug nuts."
of tools, especially wrong-sized socket wrench-

Big lug

Issues in the dispute over lug nuts
used by Ford Motor Co.:
 Critics say the design of the 2-piece
lug nuts is flawed and potentially
dangerous.
 Ford says the problem is not with
the lug nuts, but with techs' use of
wrong-sized wrenches or incorrectly
calibrated tools to work on them.
 Use of power devices rather than
hand-operated wrenches to tighten
lug nuts may cause the cap to
detach.
 Lug nuts replaced by a shop other
than a Ford dealership may be
incorrectly installed.

Applying excessive force to the lug nut exacerbates problems, Wegley adds, and may
cause the cap to detach.
Justin Morningstar, a professor of automotive service at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Mich., identifies another
potential complication: the use of power-operated torque wrenches to
install lug nuts. Such tools,
he says, are not as dependable as properly calibrated
handheld wrenches - a
lesson Morningstar says
he emphasizes to his students.
Even though Ford is not
treating the lug nuts as a Benton: Ford,
problem, dealerships may "Be careful"
want to give affected owners particular attention, says Sriram Narayanan, an associate professor at Michigan
State University's business college who specializes in supply chain management. That
could include priority for service, he says.
Distorted caps on lug nuts are "absolutely" a
potential hazard, says W.C. Benton, a professor of operations and supply chain management at Ohio State University's business
school who has consulted and published extensively on quality concerns in the auto industry.
"Ford should be careful about this," Benton
says. "Anything with lug nuts raises serious
safety issues." 

AUGUST 2019

PAGE 29

Fixed Ops Journal - August 2019

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