Outer Headlight Bracket

[Andy_C 50]

Stumped again. The screws have rounded and nuts rusted solid. Tried an impact driver without success and would rather avoid butchering the bracket but can't think of another removal method.

 

Any ideas chaps?

 

TIA

[welshpug 1,656]

a sharp 6mm drill bit straight down the middle of the head.

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

As above, you can still get them new when you go wrong, (Or could having not checked in the last week)

[Andy_C 50]

This is silly now. 6mm drill bit snapped despite being kept cool. Properly stuck - ridiculous as it's a bloody bolt

[Slo 283 1 Cars]

10mm nuts on the back of those bolts? just undo em bobs ya uncle

[welshpug 1,656]

 

funny guy...

[Slo 283 1 Cars]

? mine were same no tool would undo em then looked on back and presto 10mm nuts just undid em with ratchet spanner came straight off

[welshpug 1,656]

still need to stop the screw turning.

[Slo 283 1 Cars]

Didn't on mine they were that tight they were stuck to the headlight bracket and the nuts came off easy but in that situation it would be far easier to just dremmel the nuts off at the back

[Andy_C 50]

Nuts are frozen solid and as Mr WP says the whole bolt just spins. The screw head is properly butchered too.

 

Impact driver and a second pair of hands tomorrow - this little bastard's not going to beat me.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

To be honest forget an impact driver, all you will achieve is to break the plastic mount and bend all the flimsy panel work.

Hold the nut on the back still with a spanner or socket. Take a sharp 3mm drill and drill a pilot hole in the centre of the bolt head, only 5 mm deep is needed. Follow with a sharp 6.5, keep the speed down. The head will then come off and you can push the rest through. Drills need to be high speed steel (HSS) as a minimum, Titanium Nitride coated (Gold ones) are even better. You need a drill that has variable speed, the single speed type invariably run too fast.

[Andy_C 50]

Thanks Tom. It worked. Had to drill deep but one side's off. My second pair of hands had to disappear but at least we know how to attack the other side now.

 

Would have been beyond embarrassing for a silly 10mm bolt to have delayed this!

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

What has sometimes worked for me is a left hand drill bit. Hold the nut as per before then with the drill in reverse push quite hard into the head of the bolt and give the drill a squirt. You want the drill to grab and bite into the head, often that's enough to spin the bolt out of the nut. They are not usually seized solid but usually too tight to undo with a screwdriver without buggering the cross head.