F550 8 Lug Wheel Coming Loose

[5FVFC3]

Has anybody heard of lug nuts coming loose on newer Ford F550's?

[bstiles]

Does it have aluminum wheels, or stell w/ simulators? Aluminum must be checked periodically for proper tourqe.

[SSHANK42]

Never heard of the 550 having problems. As far as the type of wheel I don't believe that either. I have a Bronco with aluminum rims that has 217,000 miles on it and they never get checked. Never lost a lug nut yet.

[Frmboybuck]

Aluminum wheels can come loose fairly easy.....Just depends what kind of lug nut it has, Acorn or flat washer style.

[bstiles]

Never heard of the 550 having problems. As far as the type of wheel I don't believe that either. I have a Bronco with aluminum rims that has 217,000 miles on it and they never get checked. Never lost a lug nut yet.

Consider yourself lucky, and shame on you for not checking. Im a ASE certified truck mechanic for a large fleet, and it is not uncommon to find a loose lug nut. That is why when you do a pre trip inspection, you check them, to make sure they are tight.

When you are operating a larger vehicle ie:Pumper, tanker, or ladder and it gets crashed, tell that to the DOT inspector, and see how long he laughs, and the let us know the amount of the ticket.

[Rescue101]

Odd.Usually a 550 has the opposite problem.Can't get the wheels OFF! Take all the lugnuts to full loose,drive around loaded and the wheel's still "glued" to the hub.I've never seen one with loose lugs unless someone forgot to tighten them. T.C.

[RFREY1]

I would have to agree
The lug nuts were probably not properly tightend or they worked loose as aluminum wheels on trucks can and will do
I have seen many cases of this over the years
And yes I have a 1/2 ton chevy truck with many miles and have not had no wheel issues
But I donot carry the weight a F550 does
But something I have seen is the wheels were probably telling you the lug nuts were loose
That would be the little lines coming straight out from the lug nuts that look like oil or something leaking that get wiped off when washing the truck
This is a sure way to know check the lug nuts
Just my experiance
Stay safe
Ray

[SSHANK42]

The power company trucks that are 550's have lime green pointers on every lug nut. They point at the next lug nut for a visual reference. If it is not pointing at the next lug it has came loose. Don't know if Ford put them on or it the power company did.

[5FVFC3]

I''m glad someone mentioned the power company because that is where my information came from. A letter was sent out from one of the power companies to all the other coops stating this problem. Not on aluminum rims but plain steel rims. However, there are a lot of 550's in the fire service and if it was a problem I would think that someone here would have reported it by now. Thanks to all for the info.

[ullrichk]

There was an incident involving an ambulance in Shelby County, Tennessee very recently. One of the duals came off the rig on a call. Sorry I don't have a link handy but it should be easy to find. Shelby County is having some major EMS problems - as in not enough busses to do the job - and this incident is pushing some communities toward contracting on their own.