Well I'll be, mine are also 150 ft-lbs. Guess I'll go check them first things in the morning. I, too, figured it was 100 ft-lbs...

 

I agree with Code, there's a reason why 150 and not 120 Ft. Lbs. Go with the manual.

 

I run mine at 140 because I cheat and the largest snap-on torque stick I have access to is 140 ft-lbs.

 

Though I ALWAYS torque mine to specs (150 ft lbs), I do think you're at least safe at 140 lbs. It's the 90 or 100 lb. guys that scare me. If anyone has lost their manual or doesn't know where it is, America's/ Discount Tire has torque specs on their site for pretty much all the cars and light trucks. I have done business with them for quite a few years and at least the one I deal with may take the nuts off with an impact but for as long as I've dealt with them, they ALWAYS look the specs up and torque to specs.

 

Never have used a torque wrench on any car, I just tighten with the lug wrench until I feel it's good and tight, but I don't torque the hell out of it trying to get every last bit. Never had a wheel with a loose lugnut.

 

I switch back and forth between winter and summer tires and torque to 150. Since I started torquing the lug nuts, I have:

1. Never snapped a lug
2. Never had to deal with warped rotors.
3. Never had damaged wheels.

Started doing that in 93 after I had brakes put on and within a month the rotors were warped.

 

The poster below?! I have a name you know!

I guess you should give this advice to the Ford techs as well, at least the ones that have worked on my F150. I have never, ever seen one that uses a torque wrench on the lugs, even when I request they do.

I never said it was wrong or bad for the wheel/rotor to go to 150, just that I go to 120.

Ford's lawyers have as much to do with the numbers in the owners manual as the engineers do.

 

i use an impact gun but dont hammer them on like an idiot, i always check them with a torque wrench and they better move about 1/4 turn with the wrench.

what most people dont know is that the more coarse the thread the more torque is needed to achieve the same clamping force of a finer thread. The F150s with a 14x2.00 stud are a prime example of this. So please torque to 150ft/lbs..

 

Sorry about that T-Bird, I don't always remember the screen name when I'm in the process of posting and don't feel like going back to check.
Shame on the mechanics that don't, especially in this day and age. With the higher torques and aluminum wheels I feel it's even more important. I don't want my rotors warped and that's an additional reason I torque. I frankly wouldn't go back to a tire store that didn't torque, but in So. Cal. I think it's a pretty common practice. (torquing)
Probably won't have wheels falling of at 120 lbs, but I still always torque to specs. I had a '95, '99 and '02 before the '04 and torqued all of them to 100 ft lbs. Was surprised when I got the '04 that it had gone to 150. It is heavier all the way around, larger brakes than previous and larger wheels than previous so it produces a lot more stress on the nuts. If I remember correctly, the guy who was shocked that he lost the LF wheel on his new truck was towing a trailer at the time and that's gonna produce more stress on the wheels and nuts, especially when turning. If he was on this forum, maybe he'll recognize himself and chime in.

 

code58, your 02 should have been 150. It had the 14mm lugs also. They changed in 2000, after a few of the early 00s were made.

 

I noticed the America's/Discount tire site shows the same thing on the torque chart, but I could swear that the book said 100 lbs yet on the '02. I do always read and go by the book. The '99 was 5.4 and the '02 was 4.6. I wonder if that could have made any difference. You wouldn't think so. I know they were 5 lug up until the new body '04 but weren't the '99 and the '02 flat washer surface mount on the nuts? I always keep all the manuals and paperwork that comes with a vehicle, but always give it to the new owner, so I don't have it to check.

 

They were all flat washer types from 97-03, but they changed to the 14mm in 2000. On my 01 it was definitely 150 ftlbs.
I do not believe there was any difference between 4. qand 5.4, although all mine were 5.4.

Just checked the 02 owners manual. The 5 lug F150s were 150, the 7 lug were 100. They had the 12x1.75mm lugs. Maybe that is where you saw it.

 

Always possible KF, although I wouldn't have mistaken mine for a HD. Didn't the HD (7700) only come with steel wheels? Did they actually use the same flat washer nuts? I'm sure you're correct about my '02. Now I'm really embarrassed about that, I know I only torqued them to about 105 (I always gave it just a touch more than what the book called for, but never more than 5 lbs. Loved the truck, but only had it for a little over 2 years. Fell in love with the new body (and watching the crash tests on the '97-'03 had a little to do with it too)

 

They did come with steel wheels, and naturally, 7 lugs. Not 100% certain they used the flat lugs, but fairly sure they did. I know what you mean about the new body styles. Had a 04 and an 07. Now the 09. Like those even more than the 04-08.

On a side note, my 01 was the first truck that showed the torque rating in the owners manual. I do not remember it in my 98 or any previous truck. The 98 did have it stamped on the lug nut itself.

 

This is what happens when you don't do it right. Do it right.