Stripped a seat bolt :(

thought I'd do a simple weekend project and try to see the issue with my saggy driver seat and then in the process stripped one of the bolt heads. It must've been installed by a giant. yes using an e12 socket. I don't think there's anything I can do to get that one out really worried I'm going to have to drill it out now. the torx head is twisted. tried an impact driver too hoping it would at least loosen it a tad. then the breaker bar I guess was too much for it

Have you tried to hammer on a size smaller ?

Or sacrifice a smaller socket and just bang it on and try again before you start drilling. That usually does trick

When it happened to me, I had to take the car to a shop where they welded a piece onto the snapped bolt to remove it.

I also had an extension on it at one point and my own force snapped the extension head off in the socket (granted cheap ext apparently). Friend is going to bring an impact gun. I'll try sacrificing a smaller socket, good idea.

Ah, here is one more potential trick. Since the head is already a mess, you may find you can use a regular 10mm or 11mm socket on it. Some idiot used a regular socket on a T12 and wrecked it, but the regular socket worked.

Weld a nut to the top is the best way but most cant do that. Just jb weld a cheap socket to the bolt.

Try a 12 point socket as it will have more bite points, then use the shortest extension possible, as you extend the length of the extension it will reduce the torque applied, i would also try a penetrant over night.. as well. you might also try to hand tighten the head very slightly to break the seal so to speak. another trick i used is a heat gun, then cool heat gun then cool repeatedly. hot cold hot cold.. i know this all seems too fussy, not as fussy as drilling and tapping and or picking out the threads with a pick..

The job maybe done already but……. That socket appears to have reliefs or taper (for the lack of better words).If you were to grind or cut that socket back you might have more contact ‘patch’.

Quotes source post: 19074024

I didn't notice that, your correct that was likely a factor... the other one being it is very very tight.. I had service work done which required removing the passenger seat, later when i came to remove the seat myself one of the bolts was pretty rounded, i got it out but immediately ordered new bolts from suncoast or it might have been porsche atlanta they came in a couple days and were just a few bucks i then replaced the worn one...

Quotes source post: 19074455

If the individual removing or tightening those bolts isn�t concentrating (or as someone else said, was using a long extension at an angle) the heads are easily damaged. I dislike the bolts immensely, so I use fastener **** : Grade 8.8, Xylan coated, M10 flanged bolts of the same length as OE. They look more �factory� than the factory items, and you�ll never have issues getting them undone or torqued up. upload image to url

The deed is in fact not done. I'm about to go try to work on it again. Though I'm not sure what good it'll do. I've tried hammering on a sacrafical socket, and while it does go on there, it still doesn't budge, and eventually slips off. And to think this was the 'easy' job before i was about to start the water pump replacement project... eish

These go down to 8mm diameter : https://www.uktoolcentre.co.uk/produ...ml#ProductTab1 I’ve measured the head of an OE seat mount bolt , and it should allow the smallest bolt removing socket to grip. Failing that, I’d get a brand new centre punch with a good sharp tip, and use it on the flange of the bolt to either shock or loosen the bolt. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252367506...xoCLl4QAvD_BwE

Sorry to say, but as an ex Airforce mech/tech but there is an art to removing stubborn bolts and studs, i learned my techniques on 40 year old gas turbine engines where we stripped them down for refurbishment, each stud had been heat cyckled 1,000 - 2,000 times, of the 40 or 50 we removed from the hot side we were lucky if we could get 80-90 % out then it was drilling and using an easy out (not easy) penetrant included, that technique carefully used would usually work, but it was always touch and go on one or two, then we would drill out the stud and pick the threads out with a scriber, when we contacted the manufacturer of the engine, they simply said "oh we use a spark eroder" takes 5 minutes per stud.. recently i had to remove a bicycle pedal on a pretty nice road bike, steel pedal shaft in an aluminum alloy crank, it took days of heat cycles and penetrant, i am pretty sure it had been red loctite affixed, i was at the point of giving up after a week, i thought well one last try, heated it up with a heat gun, applied the full monty with a long bar extension, an almighty CRACK!!! my wife said oh no the wrench broke... i was of the same mind, then as i pick up the pieces and realized the socket wrench was in tact, i gently tried the bolt and it had come free... i couldn't believe it.. i can only suggest watch lots of you tube videos to try a few techniques..

Quotes source post: 19077996

The main problem is limited space. I want to use a torch, but it'll destroy the seat rail and carpet around it. The torx threads are totally destroyed at this point. I'm so frustrated. I think my only options are to JB Weld on a 3/8" socket and hope to hell I can get the bolt out, otherwise I then have a socket stuck on a bolt and won't be able to move my seat back. A seat bolt of ALL things!

Try to find a less expensive or borrow one of these. Amazon Amazon

Quotes source post: 19078766

Don't despair. There is always A Way Out. The seat bolts are hella tight. Add some water from having a cab... makes it tough. Some ways I have gotten stuck bolts out. 1. Torch. Not appropriate here. 2. Impact. The head's already too chewed up for this. 3. Use a dremel tool with a cutoff wheel. Grind six flats on the bolt head, making it into a hex head bolt and use a socket on it. 4. Drill off the bolt head. Going to be tough, these bolts are hardened. 5. Use the dremel and cut the head off. Make 4 or 6 cuts leaving the center of the bolt sticking up. It should be small enough to fit through the hole in the seat track. 6. Use the dremel to grind a slot in the head to make it into a slotted screw. Use an impact driver (the kind you hit with a hammer, not a rattle gun) to loosen it. 7. Get an induction heater and heat the bolt that way. 8. Weld a nut on the damaged bolt head. 9. Using a TiG, heat the bolt up with the torch. Careful here or you'll weld the bolt to the threads. This doesn't work with a MiG. 10. Under no circumstances use an easy out. It will break off and you'll need an EDM to get it out. A buddy asked me what he should do with an easy out kit he inherited. I told him to clean it carefully, oil it nicely, and give it to someone he doesn't like . I replaced my seat bolts with 12 point 190ksi ARP rod bolts.

Quotes source post: 19078837

So I just tried option 2. It snapped a socket in half. I have no clue what happened to these bolts. I did notice they had white residue on the tips of the bolts, so I assume someone added some kind of loctite at some point. My replies to your suggestions above. Thank you. 2. Impact. The head's already too chewed up for this. -- I manage to hammer on a 9mm bolt that was fully in place. I used an electric impact gun (for lug nuts) and it just ended up splitting the socket in half 3. Use a dremel tool with a cutoff wheel. Grind six flats on the bolt head, making it into a hex head bolt and use a socket on it. -- I kind of did this with #2 above, but I think with hammering on the socket, it put too much stress on the socket - just worried if I have enough room in the seat rail to succesfuly make a hex shape... 4. Drill off the bolt head. Going to be tough, these bolts are hardened. -- Yeh, not ideal 5. Use the dremel and cut the head off. Make 4 or 6 cuts leaving the center of the bolt sticking up. It should be small enough to fit through the hole in the seat track. -- What do I do once the head is cut off? 6. Use the dremel to grind a slot in the head to make it into a slotted screw. Use an impact driver (the kind you hit with a hammer, not a rattle gun) to loosen it. -- This was suggested, but not sure what you mean by impact driver his with hammer not rattle gun..? 7. Get an induction heater and heat the bolt that way. -- I think that was suggested above, $400 is a bit too much... 8. Weld a nut on the damaged bolt head. -- Would using JB Weld work? Or do I need someone with an actual welder. Concerned this will totally render my seat useless as I won't be able to put it back until the bolt is off. 9. Using a TiG, heat the bolt up with the torch. Careful here or you'll weld the bolt to the threads. This doesn't work with a MiG. -- not sure what a tig or mig is, but wounds like I shouldn't do this regardless.

1/2" socket banged on or jb welded to the bolt. Then 1/2" impact gun. With a big impact you can be pushing down on the bolt. Or drive it to a machine shop and have it welded.

Quotes source post: 19078837

Easy out saved my bacon when I stripped my oil pan drainplug though. It will always have a special place in my heart for that.

well the Dremel cutting wheel was not very effective. I could only really square off two of the sides to make a hex. There's just not enough room in there. so I've resorted to JB welding on a 3/8 inch socket. Hopefully by tomorrow night after it's cured I will have some good news to share. Otherwise I'm not sure what I will do next.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/TEKTON-3...2905/205674679

Quotes source post: 19081537

Ah that's kind of neat device. You think it'd be more effective than an impact gun? The post prior said this not a rattle gun, so I'm assuming there's some benefit to the manual tool?

Quotes source post: 19081592

The benefits seem to be from the downward force in conjunction with the rotational force. This is especially useful with screws because the screwdriver tips like to "cam out". The shock is also helpful. If the JB Weld fails, try using the Dremel to cut a slot straight across the center of the screw head. Then use this impact screwdriver with a large slotted screw tip and a big hammer. Watch your aim and don't smash your hand or fingers.

Quotes source posts: 19078787, 19081537

Clever gizmo -- ouchie price. But I really like the localized heat idea. I've had some luck with a new-ish product from CRC, Freeze-off. It doesn't heat, it chills. The idea is the same: to use expansion/contraction to break the bond between bolt and threads. You'd have to be careful to put absorbent materials around the area to keep from soiling the carpet. https://www.crcindustries.com/freeze...nt-11-5-wt-oz/ I have one of these from umpty seven years ago. They're great tools. Need a good bit of room to get a proper swing at them though, and of course the tool needs to be held in place. With the situation OP is in I would strongly recommend against electric or pneumatic impact guns of any kind. If you're splitting sockets you're using cheap sockets. Get an impact socket -- black in color. If you JBWeld or hammer something on there, use leverage rather than impact. 1/2" drive breaker bar and a length of pipe (I've been known to use a jack handle). Add pressure slowly. You'll have much more control.

Quotes source post: 19082165

Yes it was a cheap socket, and made worse by hammering it on. I used another cheapish socket to weld it on. I am worked on the rear door side seat bolt so there is just enough room to use a standard size breaker bar and maybe 1/4 rotational distance. Other wise i have to do it at an angle to clear the back seat (which is how I think the stripping started in the first place). So i think i have two options tonight, try breaker bar and hope the position of the socket head lines up with the 1/4 rotational distance i have, or try the hammer impact and hope I can hold it and hammer in the tight spot. I'm not bullish on either option.

Any chance you have tried tightening the bolt ? Yeah I get that it's stupid tight but just thinking about breaking whatever bond is there . And the hand held hammer impact works very well . But only if you have room to swing the hammer . It has saved me many times removing brake disc Phillips screws that hold the disc on . Good luck

If you remove the underbody tray, can you see the bolt from under the car? You can try heating from the bottom. You can dampen the carpet to keep it from burning up then.

Quotes source posts: 19082458, 19082571

Well i waited 12 hrs for the JB weld to cure, not the 15-18 recommended and I was just curious how hard it was, and did a quick test, and it came right off the bolt with very little force... Is that last 3-5 hrs make or break for this stuff? (I got the steel reinforced highest strength stuff.) My hammer impact drive came, and so I cut a nice grove in the bolt head. But sadly after a few solid hits the flat head bit that came with the driver (Craftsman brand) twisted and snapped. I have tried tightening. And see image above, broke and twisted the bit. Yes, I was wondering the same. Guess I'll be going back up on the lift (thankful for the Quickjack now). I am nervous about torching anything under there, but maybe worse comes to worse I can drill from bottom.

It sucks that this is so difficult for you. At this point I would drill the head off of the screw and then driil and tap a new thread on center of the original thread. Center punch as close to the center of the existing thread as you can. Use a new drill bit that is about 1/16" larger than the thread size with a low RPM drill motor. Stop drilling as soon as the head is off. Once the head us off and the seat is out of the way, use a drill that is the 60% tap drill for the thread of the screw and drill out the remaing screw. Now use a tap that is the origanal thread size to cut/clear the thread.

Cannot access the other end of the bolt from under the car. It's bolted to the seat base frame, a weldment that is then attached to the floor.

Quotes source post: 19082631

Would a soldering iron tip provide enough heat?

Have you tried tig welding a large nut to whats left..?

Quotes source post: 19083069

This is the only way to get it out at this point. I would not drill it if it were me. Sounds like with the slot cut in it that would be difficult anyway. Is there a reason you haven't taken it to someone with a welder?

Quotes source post: 19083092

Cause I thought with all the suggestions I could get it out. I have a friend with a welder who DIYs on cars, so I'm going to call him. Or go find a shop... can't believe how much effort this has taken.

Quotes source post: 19082631

Yes - you didn't let the JB cure. This trick will work - I used it myself to get a rounded drain pan plug out. When you goop up the JB - expect the cure time to take longer because the JB is piled up and the stuff in the center will remain softer, longer. It's meant to be applied as if you're welding something together in small patches. JB weld your socket on and let it sit all week and then try next weekend. Make sure that MFer is dry.

Quotes source post: 19084120

My personal 2-cents is that I would be surprised if JB weld works. It is hard, and bonds strongly, but it is brittle. If you've ever stressed JB to failure, it cracks through and sheers off. The bond is stronger than the internal structure of the JB weld. But I hope, for you, that I'm wrong. Good luck! I think Welding is in your future.

Quotes source post: 19084380

My friend with the welder said he'd be potentially worried about catching the surrounding carpet on fire or damaging the back of the drivers seat. I get his concerns, don't want to mess up someone's interior as a favor.

Quotes source post: 19084430

That should be a real concern for a mig welder. A tig welder is a lot more controlable and should not splatter. I would still cover just about eveything in wet towels.

Quotes source post: 19084430

As with all welding jobs, take precautions to protect surrounding areas... If you're worried,,, I'd wrap a wet towel or 2 around the carpet/seat/etc, in question, and maybe have a helper hold or place a piece of sheet metal as a shield if needed. But for an experienced welder its a fast job to fill up the nut with good penetration at the base of the nut/bolt.... Maybe don't let the bolt cool all the way before fitting a tight socket on the nut squarely applying torque... jmo

You beat me to it DJ...lol

Well @Ben8jam , I don�t envy you. I do wish you the best of luck though. Just chiming in to say this is my favorite thread on rennlist in a while. It�s a great team effort on a difficult adventure with an as-yet-to-be-revealed mystery ending! Keep going, you can do it!

well id say the car is totaled lol i kid i kid, worst case you put the seat in with what you have it will likley never make a difference, but i know when i found my seat bolt that was pretty marred from the indy shop that just had it out, i was like oh crap, they likely put them in with a 3/8inch impact to tighten them, i dont know that but it was in pretty common use make in the day when i worked at a pontiac dealer, i think they had what was called a butterfly impact back then for the shape of it, they for sure would have used a 3/8 air wrench back in the day, these days its all battery tools.. but to be fair from the factory and after 25 years or so, they are likely properly tight. OK so with my worst personal vehichle nightmare this is what happened I had a Yamaha Star Stratoliner... and changed mirrors to after market, they were red loctite installed but i didn't know this, i snapped the second one off clean.. hmmmm drilled out the center and snapped off an easy out, re-drilled slightly off center second easy out, used heat cycles and it finally came out after many heat cycles... unfortunately i had damaged some of the threads on one side but i had enough good material left to install the new mirror with Blue loctitie what a fricken nightmare i had and of course you are in the middle of one as i write. If you resort to drilling out what remains of the bolt there are a few things to be aware of, get a proper center punch and hit a pilot spot as perfectly center of the stud as you are able, use a very small drill at first a 16th or an eighth of an inch, just to get things started and in the center, before you move up in size you may have an opportunity to re-center with the next biggest drill, the actual drilling does produce a good amount of heat that in itself my help with the thread corrosion for want of a better word.. use lube and lots of it.. regular 3m oil or engine oil keep applying during the drilling process it will stop you bit from going blunt. NOTE: if the bolt itself is of a hardened material you may need a special drill bit to successfully drill the bolt material out. NOTE 2: make sure you drill straight or you will blow out the side and damage the threads. watch lots of you tube videos before you get started for tips... I hope you try the weld method first a decent independent mechanic or machine shop could probably weld on a new bolt head in the form of a nut in less than 15 mins..

What did you end up doing to solve this?

Quotes source post: 19202921

Very funny timing. I literally just got back from my indy mechanic who out of niceness tried to extract it for me using his much stronger extraction sockets and a hammer. No go. It just kept breaking bits of the bolt head off. He said he would use a grinder (he showed me some very nice grinder bits), get the head off. Take the seat and rail out. Then drill down into the bolt and remove it. He said if he wanted me to do it, I would have to drop car off for that, which is totally fair. It was really nice of him to stop what he was doing and even try. So I think i will look into a grinder and try and do that. I have to admit, I stupid didn't even think that once the bold head was off, I could remove the entire seat and have a lot more room to work with.

I've got a similar issue I'm dealing with, I thought surely you'd have a solution by now, but I'm not that surprised to hear it's still a headache and needs to be done the hard way. Were the grinder bits small enough to get clearance in to cut the bolt?

Quotes source post: 19203131

Yes he had a set of four that looks like mini tunnel bores. Different shapes, but easily would fit into the seat rail clearance. They looked similar to this (just did a random search for "drill bit grinder bore"): https://www.mechanicsurplus.com/products/710467413 And yes, I thought it would be out by now too. Just been so busy with life and so frustrated with it, been slacking.

Quotes source post: 19071448

I find it never pays to buy cheap tools, particularly tools that have force applied to them. The old Craftsman tools were good, but I generally buy Snap-On. Quality tools, bought once, last a lifetime and even longer. Cheap tools that break are a false economy, not only for the repeated replacement cost, but secondary damage they can cause to you and other parts.

Keep us posted. It was a pain for me to take out the drivers seat a year ago and stripping a bolt was my fear too.

For everyone following along, after trying to dremmel the bold head down, and/or cut a slot in it for different tools, etc etc etc... I finally went back to said mechanic and said "please can you get this out". He called me the next day and said it took 30 mins to grind the head of the bolt off, remove the seat, and then the stem of the bolt cam out with his bare fingers. The flat part of the bolt must have fused to the metal plate of the seat rail in some fantastical fashion. Even he had no idea. But it's out!!

Congratulations . The bolt won the battle but you/mechanic won the war 😁

Hooray!! Glad to hear you got it out

Huzzah!! perhaps it was over torqued and by grinding off the head it released the pressure.

No its just high friction due to corosion. The flange allows for a greater surface area and this happens with these flanged and countersunk fasteners. His issue was aggrivated by someone using the wrong socket (probably more then once) and f'ning up the head

Quotes source post: 19287561

No, the bolt was fine when I started. I actually used the right socket (e-torx), and stripped it myself. The mechanic tried to use an extraction socket that bit into the bolt and it just ripped it apart even more. That bolt bent my socket extension, broke three different sockets (that I tried hammering on), and bent an impact driver flat head (after I tried slicing a groove in in. There was zero corrosion on the seat rail no idea how that head just fused to the rail.. Just one of those WTF stories to tell now )

Hi Ben (and all who were interested in this thread), I am glad you got it out! Suggestion to anyone who is going to drill out a broken bolt: use a small Titanium coated left hand drill (after center punching the center of the bolt), and work your way up in drill sizes. Many times the heat and torque of the drill bit will unscrew the broken bolt. In a similar stuck seat situation, my sister broke the fore-aft drive on her JagXE. Like many cars, you have to move the seat all the way fore and aft to access the track mounting bolts. After looking at every seat track/frame pic that I could, I ordered a used frame/track from eBay. I learned how to dis-assemble the frame from the track while it was flat on the floor, and then used that skill to remove the seat from the tracks while in the car. Once the seat was out of the car, I could access the fore-aft drive socket (a small square drive, just like on the 996/986 seats) and wind the gear using an electric screwdriver (with the good side of the square drive shaft) and access the mounting bolts. But I just pushed the drive motor back down into the drive, and moved it that way... I then used the good fore-aft tracks from the used seat and put her seat on that. It took me a few hours, but the Indy Jag shop quoted her $2500 My cost ? a used seat base : $150 So you are asking yourself "WTF does his have to do with a 996?" The motors (are the drives and tracks??) on a 996 seat are made by BROSE (a U.K. company) the same as the Jaguar seat tracks/motors... I just bought 2 996 seats at the L.A. Dismantler auction, and when I looked at the motors I saw BROSE... although the tracks and drive mechanisms are a different design. This is the Jag XE driver seat Paul

Good Info, Thanks for sharing! (Doesn't matter at all but Brose is a German company, with plants all over the world)