Do you always, usually, or rarely torque bolts to spec?

“critical” fasteners mean engine, transmission , driveline components and wheels lol

most people working for a living can’t be bothered to load suspension let alone grab the crowfoot for hard to reach fasteners
 
I have the musts eg. engine rebuilds (rods, mains, heads, etc.), rear axle rebuilds (ring gear to differential, bearing main caps, etc.), lug nuts, oil pan drain plug, spark plugs, some drivetrain (clutch pressure plate to flywheel as an example). Beyond there, if it is convenient to get into the space with the torque wrench I will use it... but I find I am a big gear wrench fan pretty much everywhere else on my vehicles for space and convenience. Nothing beats a gear wrench for zipping on and off in tight spots eg. bellhousing bolts, belt driven accessory mounts, fan clutches etc. I'd love to use a torque wrench on the u-joint straps but it is impossible to get a socket on those. So... blue lock-tite, "snug and a bit" with a gear wrench or regular combination wrench.
 
I figure if the engineers who designed whatever it is I am working on felt it was worth the effort to publish a spec, I should probably heed it. Of course, I had to learn this via buckled, almost wafer thin, Triumph valve covers and other carnage I left in my youth....
 
Depends what it is. The new transmission pan on the Shadow, no, because the torque specs I found are believed to be for use with no gasket, and a bead of RTV. I used a rubber gasket, no RTV. I did it by "feel"The while watching the gasket at the corners. The thermostat housing, yes, because it's aluminum to aluminum and that's one of the last spots I need a broken bolt or cracked aluminum. If either of these leak, I will tighten down by 1 ft-lb until they stop.
 
I had a comback this week, TWICE; embarassing to say the least, because it was my parents 2015 Nissan Rogue. I did, a rear brake service, front pad slap with caliper service, LOF and cabin filter. I misread the FSM and torqued the rear torque members to 120ft-lb!!! Thankfully the bolts didn't snap (spec is 65tf-lb. IIRC), I should have known better, but I was multi-tasking and corrected it on the spot. The actual comeback was an oil leak from the drain plug. The first time it came back, I tugged on the drain plug and sent it on it's way, thinking maybe it wasn't quite tight enough. The second time, I removed the plug to have a look at the threads and they were fine, so I replaced the copper washer again (it's the hollow/rolled type) and actually used a torque wrench (dial type) to 34Nm, seemed like a lot but we shall see; fingers crossed.
 
wings&wheels said:
I figure if the engineers who designed whatever it is I am working on felt it was worth the effort to publish a spec, I should probably heed it. Of course, I had to learn this via buckled, almost wafer thin, Triumph valve covers and other carnage I left in my youth....
Click to expand...
They have to publish a spec because the robots only do what they're told during assembly. If there is no spec, they cannot do.
 
Lug nuts and engine stuff like head bolts generally yes. Nothing else really. And admittedly I’ve forgotten to torque both the things I said I do torque fortunately never had a comeback for either one. But now I’m better at remembering so it won’t happen again.
 
With respect to plastic air cleaners, the bolts holding the washer reservoir to the chassis (I'm looking at you Ford Transit) and battery clamps anyone seen going for one of those with an impact should immediately have all power tools of any sort confiscated and sent to the corner for the day. The second offense - well my solution is probably a little harsh...
 
Cylinder head bolts, differential nuts and bolts, wheel lug nuts, cv axle nuts…that’s about the extent of it off the top of my head.
 
Lugs, wheel bearing preloading, and torque to yield bolts get the torque wrench. The rest is go until its tight and won't loosen, but still be reasonable to remove.
I mostly do work on my car so, most suspension stuff I just go by feel, I know what 100ftlbs feels like approximately and go off of that. I assume most mechanics get a pretty good feel for what torque they are applying based on the times they do use a torque wrench. I did snap off a TTY strut pinch bolt on my Focus as I torqued it, then did the extra 90 deg or whatever and it felt too loose still... So I did a bit more and plink! Seems kind of dumb to use a small TTY bolt there as the rest of the suspension fasteners are well oversized, but you got to fix what ford gave you! I did follow the TTY instructions on the replacement bolt and it held, even though it seemed a bit loose as it was the smallest bolt in the front suspension...

I got in trouble once with spark plugs getting loose too, following the installation directions. I replaced literally hundreds of plugs dealing with old snowmobiles in my youth with no torque wrench and never stripped a head, or had a loose plug. The finger tight and then 1.5 turns in the instructions didn't squish the washer enough and 2 of 4 came loose.... Fortunately I heard the tapping early enough and did my usual procedure and they were fine.
 
I fond of the idea of torque specs.

It separates the engineer from the "mechanic" in me.

If I can find a spec I'm busting out my torque wrench. 🔧

Doing it anything less is just guessing and hoping the bolt doesn't break or come loose.

I want to do a good job and not use "a good feeling" of snug.

IMO workshops that have access to torque specs and not following through with them is pure lazy, not professional, and not getting what the customer is paying for.
 
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