Can you drive without axle nuts

Can You Drive Without Axle Nuts?

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Axle nuts are described as bits of hardware that are mainly used in securing a wheel to its axle.

The axle nut is a sort of rotating shaft which assists in securing the wheels to the rest of the vehicle and which also facilitates movements, while the axle nuts are secured to the lugs that are fixed to the axle itself.

Can You Drive Without Axle Nuts? No, you actually should not drive without the axle nuts, for if you do, the trailing arms and the stub axles could get damaged as a result of that.

Consequently, if the hub should get missing, there is nothing else to help in holding the end of the driveshaft securely in place, as a result of which it may eventually pop out.

When this happens, the vehicle will simply not turn at all. In reality, most modern vehicles have open differentials, therefore, whenever one side loses drive, so would the other side as well.

Can you drive without a CV axle nut?

Certainly, you can drive without any issues even if there are no CV joints at all. On the contrary, however, you need at least part of the CV joint.

Should this make any sense to you, if you happen to break a CV joint, pull it apart and remove the joint of the CV beside the wheel of the vehicle? However, when you do this, make sure that you remove the other parts of the CV joints not being used.

Can you reuse axle nuts?

A strict warning was issued by the shop manual not to reuse the same axle nut for whatever reasons, because they are very special nuts of major components like the axle shafts and the ball joints,  where either a lost or loosened nut can lead to an accident, sometimes even fatal ones.

How do you fix axle nuts?

For this procedure, you should twist the axle nut until it locates the thread. Twist and it would grind away any of the burrs since little metal filings are preventing the nut from moving on smoothly. 

How do you get axle nuts put back on?

All you need to do to put the axle nuts back on is to get your wheel and promptly pop out the center cap off. Thereafter, twist it until it locates the thread. You should add little metal filings which are stopping the nuts from going on smoothly. You need either a special torque wrench or even a designated torque wrench to tighten the axle nut.

How do you remove a nut without an impact wrench?

To be able to do this properly, you need to have a mallet and a rubber mount and hit it until the nut comes off on its own accord.

In addition, you can also use a liquid penetrant which is readily obtainable from any auto parts shop commonly called liquid wrench, which will help significantly when the nuts and bolts are corroded.

In the alternative, you can use a rubber mallet attached to the end of your ratchet handle or a manual impact wrench. After that, beat on it with a hammer and also pound on the other end with the hammer too. 

How do you remove axle nut ATV?

To remove the axle nut ATV, spray some penetrating lubricant into the axle lock nuts, which will allow you to remove it.

How to remove the rear axle from an ATV

(1). First, you should place your ATV in the park.

(2). Thereafter, remove the lug nuts before you pull off the wheel.

(3). Then, place the lug nuts back on the hub and lightly tighten it up. Note that some hubs have a plastic cap covering the same nut, which is also called a castle nut or castellated nut.

(4). After this, remove the brake caliper by removing its fasteners.

(5). Finally, you should remove the hub.

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Is it safe to drive without an axle nut?

Yes, you can drive safely without CV joints, but you still need part of the CV joint. You should know that the trailing arm and stud axles may become damaged, and if the hub nut is missing, there is actually nothing to hold the end of the driveshaft in position, and eventually, it may pop out.

That will not make the car not turn. Notably, most vehicles are equipped with open differentials, therefore, whenever one side loses drive, so would the other as well.

How long can you drive without axle nuts?

You can drive the car until it refuses to move but to be on the safe side, endeavor to have the problem solved the moment the vehicle starts to move to either side of the road. However, the average life span of a bad CV axle is between 5 to 6 months.

Frequently asked questions(FAQ)

Can you drive without a spindle nut?

Yes, you can drive without a spindle nut. However, doing so may eventually cause damage to the vehicle’s trailing arm and also the stud axle.

And without the hub nut, there is nothing to hold the end of the driveshaft in position, which in itself is another risk factor. (Read Also: Can I Put 235 Tires On 225 Rims?)

Eventually, if you continue driving without the spindle nut, the driveshaft may finally pop out. So, as much as possible, you should either get the spindle nut repaired, if that is possible, or replace it, if repairs are not possible. That’s the long and short of it.

How do you break axle nuts?

To break your axle nut, you should get your wheel and promptly pop out the center cap. Next, you should put the wheel back on and then lower down the vehicle.

Finally, hit the axle nut using a mini sledgehammer before using a 32 mm socket and a 1/2 inch breaker bar to put a long pipe at its end. This should accord you enough leverage to finally pop out the axle nut itself.

Can a broken axle be repaired?

No, a broken axle can hardly be repaired with any satisfaction. In most cases, replacement of the axle remains your best way to either fix a bent or broken axle. 

You should know that patching up an axle crack or break is quite risky indeed since it can fail while you are driving. So, do not endeavor to repair a broken axle.

How do you change a CV axle?

If you want to change a CV axle, first, you should remove the vehicle’s hubcap. However, before jacking up the car, you have to remove the axle nut. Start by removing the hubcap. The following are steps of doing it correctly.

Step 1

Removing the vehicle’s hubcap so that the respective wheels of the CV axle can be replaced. However, vehicles with rims may get a cap at the center of the wheel rather than a hubcap.

Step 2

Next, you should remove the cotter pin from the axle nut. Should your vehicle have a cotter pin that secures the axle nut, you would have to also remove it as well.

This pin will look like a Bobby pin with its ends kind of folded back to hold it securely in place. You may even have to use a pair of pliers to straighten the 2 bent ends of the cotter pin before it can be removed.

Should the pin become stuck, you should try to spray it with a highly penetrative lubricant. This lubricant should be able to assist with the same nut finally.

Step 3

This is where you would have to remove the axle nut. The moment you have succeeded in removing the cotter pin, you should be able to easily remove the axle nut too.

The axle nut should take tremendous torque to remove, which is the reason it is much safer to remove the nut before jacking up the vehicle. Unfortunately, however, axle nuts hardly come with standard sizes, and the socket size needed may be different for different vehicles.

Your spare parts dealers should be able to tell you the exact size if you care to check before beginning the project entirely. To remove the wheel and brake assembly, execute the following steps:

(1). Jack up the relevant side of the vehicle. Next, go ahead and take off the wheels.

(2). Put the car on jack stands

(3). Then, you should remove the wheels of the vehicle.

(4). This is where you should remove the brake caliper and rotor, which should be visible.

(5). Unbolt the outer tie rod from the steering knuckle. The outer tie rod is essentially the rod bolted to the steering knuckle just behind the rotor.

(6). Unbolt the hub from the strut tower

Can You Drive Without Axle Nuts – Conclusion

The axle nut is such an important component in the vehicle so much so that, even though you can safely drive the car without it, you really should not because it is very capable of leading to many other problems in the vehicle if you persist in driving with a damaged axle.

What you should do with regards to any problem the axle may develop has been explained to a great depth. This implies that you are equipped to handle whatever problems may result thereof.

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