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I installed a Curt hitch on our LS430. Shortly after, I noticed an annoying vibration/rumbling that I mistakenly blamed on the Michelin Pilot tires. Noticed that the hitch makes contact with the gas tank so I removed the hitch today to make some modifications. Good news is the vibration is gone after removing the hitch and the car rides quiet once again. The problem is, I reinstalled the brackets that hold up the muffler and used the original OEM bolts. The passenger side re-installed perfectly fine and easily. However, on the driver side none of the 3 bolts will screw in enough to hold the brackets flush. There is about a 1/4" of play. Even went out and bought a breaker bar for the ratchet for more leverage. I'm afraid I may have stripped all three bolts. The bolts keep spinning but won't get any tighter. Also problematic is that I can't unscrew them now. They just spin in either direction but won't release. It doesn't create any noticeable vibration or noise while driving but I do hear a slight clunk when I drive up the curb onto the driveway. What are my options at this point? TIA.
Last edited by FatherTo1; Jun 30, 2016 at 09:26 PM.
When you see how the threads are after removing the bolts then the options open up.
1. Chase the threads as a simple approach and replacing the bolt if it is mildly cross threaded/stripped.
2. Go up the next size bolt after tapping it
3. Thread repair kit that includes inserts. My pick for usual crossed threads that cannot be chased because this maintains the original bolt size-threading.
4. A gap filling thread locker if you don't foresee having to ever remove the bolts. Not my suggested fix but this is done as an easy/lazy fix.
When you see how the threads are after removing the bolts then the options open up.
1. Chase the threads as a simple approach and replacing the bolt if it is mildly cross threaded/stripped.
2. Go up the next size bolt after tapping it
3. Thread repair kit that includes inserts. My pick for usual crossed threads that cannot be chased because this maintains the original bolt size-threading.
4. A gap filling thread locker if you don't foresee having to ever remove the bolts. Not my suggested fix but this is done as an easy/lazy fix.
Thank you for the suggestions, RA40. I'll explore options 1 and 3. Thanks again.
Help: Stripped bolts that hold up muffler
