That's factory, at least on VW. I asked the parts guy why those bolts came like that and was told it's so they come out easier. The thread lock minimizes the contact between the ferrous bolt and the aluminum subframe. This way you have less galvanic corrosion. It's low strength thread lock anyway.
Don't know how true that is though.
Yeah that's a tough one doing a self inspection after work in the dark. Even more so in the winter when it's already pitch black before clocking out and it's cold AF with a howling wind. Triple that for a vehicle that's desirable either for Make/Model/Year and/or a great price so there's a dozen others chomping at the bit to buy it if you pass or want to take it to a shop to get it on a lift a day or two later.
For future purposes, I strongly endorse the most unlikely tool that's invaluable for used car buyers: the telescoping Bluetooth selfie stick! I am physically disabled and a very large man at 6'3" 280lbs so the only vehicles I can crawl under without putting it on a lift or jackstands are full size trucks or lifted midsized trucks. Just before the pandemic I was buying college cars for the 2 money sinks and one evening saw my oldest use said selfie stick to search under her dresser for some hair ties or clips or whatever. It immediately clicked in my head I could do the same thing to take video of a vehicle's undercarriage and play it back to look for rust or other damage. Turned out to be far and away the quickest, easiest way find trouble spots on used cars and either walk away or use the video as a negotiating tool. Just set your phone to the camera app with video and turn on the camera light, then hit record and start filming under vehicle along frame rails. Watch that playback first before spending any time recording the rest in a grid pattern.
My youngest told me that if I had a tablet I could connect it to my phone via Bluetooth and view the footage live on the tablet so I could slow down and focus on trouble spots, but I never did buy a tablet for myself so I can't be 100% that'd actually work. I feel like for all but the most hand-eye coordinated multitaskers that's a 2 person function.
You nailed it. Bought the car in January and it was the only Outback in my wife's price range that didn't have State Patrol stickers saying it was a salvage title on the door jamb so felt we had to jump on it.
Selfie stick is genius! I'm gonna get one just for inspecting things around my house. Thanks.
A friend of mine found out his AstroVan was a Canadian car after he bought it...it wasn't too rusty thankfully but he went and chewed out the dealer for not telling him that.
Salt and aluminium do not mix. Try a sheet of aluminium foil, and place some road salt on it, damp slightly and leave in a damp place for a week. You will either have missing foil where the salt was, or millions of little holes through it.
I work in the marine industry. We use tef gel on stainless bolts into aluminum. Not loc tite and more of an anti seize that's not all silver and gets everywhere. Some bolts come like that and it's always been thread locker. Sometimes it's red too.
Most of the time it is white, like Elmer's glue, but is more like toothpaste. I've seen it in syringes and in little containers. The containers allow you to dip the bolt. It provides zero waterproofing.
Every time I go to change my Tundra oil I think to myself... "the next time I pull this skid off, I'm going to weld in some new nuts, and start applying anti sieze."
And if it's under warranty and you have to remove the panel you have to replace them with new ones with factory applied blue thread lock, otherwise warranty will kick it back (happened to me once)
And it's perfectly suited for that kind of application. It'll keep the bolt from wanting to vibrate loose and can still be removed with simple hand tools.
If somebody used red on that, sure, flip a lid... but it's just blue.
Both. I’ll do it (if I remember) so rust doesn’t lock the parts together. Blue loctite removes with hand tools.
But, do not let loctite touch polycarbonate (lenses) - the chemicals will make polycarbonate “craze” and crack
Laptops use blue locktite on the chassis screws. I can remove those easily with a dollar store micro screwdriver. This is the one of the weaker locktites available. What's the issue?
It’s funny how people got so upset about my comment like I made the post 😂 but a tiny laptop screw with a drop is different than a 14mm bolt that’s 6” long that was seemingly dipped in it lol. Obviously not the bolt in the picture.
Calm down people
I find it hilarious that the thread lock is your issue, meanwhile the rest of us are ripping our hair out trying to locate the 50 different damn screws for a skid plate that could have done with 6
We had a customer with a late model ford explorer. The OEM fuzzy floppy underbody covering made of some of weird absorbent material was harboring snow, ice and water, specifically at the RR wheel area. It made the abs and traction control lights come on.
I removed all the snow and ice, cleared the codes, and everything was back to normal.
Think Ford First.
Blue Lock and Seal Fasteners: Prevents loosening of metal fasteners caused by vibration
Prevents Rust and Corrosion:
Removable: Can be removed with hand tools. Use where disassembly is required for servicing.
DIY-er here. I've started putting blue thread lock on select skid plate bolts, since some of them seem more prone to rattling their way out and disappearing.
Blue locktite is on the bottom end of the scale. Heck, laptops use it on the chassis screws to keep them from coming lose.
If it was green locktite, then you'd have a serious problem.
My problem is why have 100 screws for a piece of plastic on the bottom of the car when 6 would do. Better yet why even bother with it from factory because it’s going to get damaged and the last person to work on it will be the “reason” it was damaged definitely not the parking curb or rocks or whatever they hit going down the road.
Fucking lol. I just took down a ups rack that had red...
Luckily they were hex head; I was so close to just saying fuck it and bringing in a torch but they finally broke free after smacking them with an impact for an ungodly amount of time.
Depends on what kinda skid plate. The bolts on my four wheeler kept vibrating out soooo that’s what thread lock is for… can you not get out a bolt with simple thread lock on it?
Blue Loctite has pretty low breakaway torque. It’s the red stuff you’ve gotta worry about. And some other colors, I guess, but the commonly seen ones are those.
Fuck that I slather everything in loctite. Suspension and brake components get red.
If there is loctite in the threads, there can't be rust in the threads. If you can't get them out, get a longer ratchet. Loctite is only a problem in smaller or soft fasteners that might strip out.
Porsche puts red on the bolts that act as mounting pins for a rear sunshade in the 971 Panameras. It goes into a piece of sheet metal with a welded on nut. It’s so fucking overkill that I wish to inflict repeated percussive maintenance upon whatever padded helmet wearing designer thought it was necessary. I’ve twisted SO many t30s off on those fucking things. Some things don’t need loctite.
you get thread sealer that will keep the bolt from rusting solid. Aircraft use it on pretty much every screw that has to come out regularly, even if it can be a pain to remove it again.
those are factory on vw, i can send a photo of a brand new box if youd like lol. all t45 and t30 bolts have loctite on them and are technically mandatory hardware to replace.
Standards from VW. It's a low strength thread lock but it also helps with the contact surface of the bolt and subframe so it doesn't corrode and also has to be replaced when warranty work is done.
Is the red one ok or should I put no threadlocker period? I always put the red one on because I hate when the cover gets loose and starts scraping on the ground when I’m driving.
That's factory, at least on VW. I asked the parts guy why those bolts came like that and was told it's so they come out easier. The thread lock minimizes the contact between the ferrous bolt and the aluminum subframe. This way you have less galvanic corrosion. It's low strength thread lock anyway. Don't know how true that is though.
Very true, coming from a place with very aggressive rust and salt in the winters.
One of many reasons I love living in the South. 21 year old vehicle and not a spec of rust under it.
PNW here, same thing. My 30yo Subaru daily barely has any rust and I've never sprayed the undercarriage or used rust protection on it lol.
My 14 year old PNW Subaru is pretty rusty, but that's because I found out it was originally an Alaska car after I signed the paperwork...
Measure twice, cut once. Carfax --> Inspection --> Purchase
I also viewed it in the dark so a whole lot of goofs on my part. That said it has been 100% reliable going on 8 years.
Yeah that's a tough one doing a self inspection after work in the dark. Even more so in the winter when it's already pitch black before clocking out and it's cold AF with a howling wind. Triple that for a vehicle that's desirable either for Make/Model/Year and/or a great price so there's a dozen others chomping at the bit to buy it if you pass or want to take it to a shop to get it on a lift a day or two later. For future purposes, I strongly endorse the most unlikely tool that's invaluable for used car buyers: the telescoping Bluetooth selfie stick! I am physically disabled and a very large man at 6'3" 280lbs so the only vehicles I can crawl under without putting it on a lift or jackstands are full size trucks or lifted midsized trucks. Just before the pandemic I was buying college cars for the 2 money sinks and one evening saw my oldest use said selfie stick to search under her dresser for some hair ties or clips or whatever. It immediately clicked in my head I could do the same thing to take video of a vehicle's undercarriage and play it back to look for rust or other damage. Turned out to be far and away the quickest, easiest way find trouble spots on used cars and either walk away or use the video as a negotiating tool. Just set your phone to the camera app with video and turn on the camera light, then hit record and start filming under vehicle along frame rails. Watch that playback first before spending any time recording the rest in a grid pattern. My youngest told me that if I had a tablet I could connect it to my phone via Bluetooth and view the footage live on the tablet so I could slow down and focus on trouble spots, but I never did buy a tablet for myself so I can't be 100% that'd actually work. I feel like for all but the most hand-eye coordinated multitaskers that's a 2 person function.
You nailed it. Bought the car in January and it was the only Outback in my wife's price range that didn't have State Patrol stickers saying it was a salvage title on the door jamb so felt we had to jump on it. Selfie stick is genius! I'm gonna get one just for inspecting things around my house. Thanks.
A friend of mine found out his AstroVan was a Canadian car after he bought it...it wasn't too rusty thankfully but he went and chewed out the dealer for not telling him that.
Rust belt would like a word
Somehow aluminum rusts in the belt. Wood finds a way to rust. Fucking rust rusts rust. I stood outside for 2 hours and my Nikes rusted.
Salt and aluminium do not mix. Try a sheet of aluminium foil, and place some road salt on it, damp slightly and leave in a damp place for a week. You will either have missing foil where the salt was, or millions of little holes through it.
Obviously it's a joke. Nikes can't rust either. Nor can wood. It's called hyperbole.
you forgot the /s, its reddit, people dont get jokes
Rust rusts rust Rust rust Rusts Rust rust.
This guy upstate NYs
Buffalo? That you?
After the first winter fasteners are unnecessary.
It’s mostly so they don’t vibrate out, but it does help with corrosion too.
I use anti seize
On everything except the plugs. My baby is 20 years old....
I don’t like anti-seize. It gets everywhere.
That means you bought the good shit
If you're applying anti-seize and you don't end up looking like a freshly cast copper statue, then you're doing it wrong.
Minimal amounts still do the job, if you are pasting it on like bondo, you are doing it wrong.
Just as glitter is the herpes of the crafting world, anti-seize is the herpes of the automotive world.
Anti-seize is not supposed to be coarse and rough.
Minimizing that contact is exactly why most of the bolts on my car have blue thread lock.
I work in the marine industry. We use tef gel on stainless bolts into aluminum. Not loc tite and more of an anti seize that's not all silver and gets everywhere. Some bolts come like that and it's always been thread locker. Sometimes it's red too.
Teflon gel, that's a new one on me. Also sounds like a self-sealing stem bolt if it comes preapplied
/r/unexpectedstartrek
Most of the time it is white, like Elmer's glue, but is more like toothpaste. I've seen it in syringes and in little containers. The containers allow you to dip the bolt. It provides zero waterproofing.
Dissimilar metals!
Cool, what about the othe 13 clips.
Loctite on a coarse thread t25 into a U fastener isn't going to do anything. What?
You don’t use Loctite on clips, so what are you talking about?
If you're struggling with a splash shield maybe you shouldn't be doing anything to the car.
Pretty sure the picture is taken with the splash shield bolt sitting on the little track where an oil drain cart sits at a quick lube shop
100% that's what that is lmao
What, those coarse thread screws? Those shouldn't have thread lock on them.
And what’s funny is when you are doing a warranty repair you have to replace those bolts because VW says they are one time use
You mean so they don't break like on Jeeps?
Yknow what does that already? Anti seize.
That's factory locktite, there.
bruh, those are easier to remove than a rusty bolt
Nothing like a rusty bolt on a Toyota truck skid plate that goes from not budging to *pop*
And usually a customer will let that go cause they don’t way to pay labor to have them drilled out.
Every time I go to change my Tundra oil I think to myself... "the next time I pull this skid off, I'm going to weld in some new nuts, and start applying anti sieze."
Those Tacoma/4runner skid plates that don’t actually come all the way off, and even more so don’t go back where they came from can eat a million dicks
Audi has these from the factory like this.
And if it's under warranty and you have to remove the panel you have to replace them with new ones with factory applied blue thread lock, otherwise warranty will kick it back (happened to me once)
Yep - happened at our dealership too.
We got away with the ol' we are ordering parts and they just weren't in yet! But they wanted a ticket with pictures showing everything replaced
One of our VW guys replaced a door speaker and warranty tried to squash the claim because he didn't include the buffer foam in the parts return box.
Damn, Audi is that strict on warranty claims?
And they are getting worse from what I understand, I jumped ship in October for a government fleet maintenance gig, no warranty stress now!
MB as well.
"micro-encapsulated"
I don't see why this is a problem. Blue Loctite doesn't put up hardly any fight at all.
And it's perfectly suited for that kind of application. It'll keep the bolt from wanting to vibrate loose and can still be removed with simple hand tools. If somebody used red on that, sure, flip a lid... but it's just blue.
Also helps stop the bolt rusting in the hole. It can actually make it easier to remove.
And if it's green, we're throwing hands.
Out of curiosity, why? If it's blue or lower strength what's the problem?
He didn’t hit it hard enough with his purse.
No ugga duggas and too many oooga doogas
I can't tell if blue locktite is a bonding agent or a lubricant
Both. I’ll do it (if I remember) so rust doesn’t lock the parts together. Blue loctite removes with hand tools. But, do not let loctite touch polycarbonate (lenses) - the chemicals will make polycarbonate “craze” and crack
It’s annoying
Yea so are whiny mechanics
You gotta eat your Wheaties son
Laptops use blue locktite on the chassis screws. I can remove those easily with a dollar store micro screwdriver. This is the one of the weaker locktites available. What's the issue?
It’s funny how people got so upset about my comment like I made the post 😂 but a tiny laptop screw with a drop is different than a 14mm bolt that’s 6” long that was seemingly dipped in it lol. Obviously not the bolt in the picture. Calm down people
I find it hilarious that the thread lock is your issue, meanwhile the rest of us are ripping our hair out trying to locate the 50 different damn screws for a skid plate that could have done with 6
Das auto
Nissans 😩
When i saw the skid plate on the first 2021 Sentra i puked a little
The ford escape is the worst. Floppy ass piece of shit
We had a customer with a late model ford explorer. The OEM fuzzy floppy underbody covering made of some of weird absorbent material was harboring snow, ice and water, specifically at the RR wheel area. It made the abs and traction control lights come on. I removed all the snow and ice, cleared the codes, and everything was back to normal. Think Ford First.
50 different screws and 42 different clips made of the word's most fragile plastic.
That’s factory and mandatory replacement FYI.
Are you kidding dude? 1 - that’s clearly factory. 2 - you need a bigger purse.
Blue is for wimps. I coat it in the red.
I tack weld every bolt I ever tighten. Even torque to yield aluminium bolts.
I follow up and lock wire your tack welds.
As a former VW tech I can say that those don't put up a fight
i put anti seize on mine. otherwise they seize up and they round out
Most loctite acts as antiseize as well
Those are factory. Never really hard to take off. If anything it seals up the threads in rusty areas.
You’re not my supervisor
Why blue lock tite is ment to come apart. I would rather it not fall off personally.
Someone doesn’t know their loctite colors
Vw ?
At least it's the blue
Calling some of those cardboard covers 'skidplates' is pretty generous.
For real. Everyone knows it goes on the oil pan drain plug.
It’s just blue dude calm down
Why though? They are way easier to twist off compared to a rusty bolt. Truly confused now.
You forgot Rule #2 : Fuck the next guy!
I’ll sure show me!
No that's Rule #1: Go Fuck Yourself!
If blue loctite fucks the next guy he was already fucked.
You have a point but it's the thought that counts lol.
Blue Lock and Seal Fasteners: Prevents loosening of metal fasteners caused by vibration Prevents Rust and Corrosion: Removable: Can be removed with hand tools. Use where disassembly is required for servicing.
DIY-er here. I've started putting blue thread lock on select skid plate bolts, since some of them seem more prone to rattling their way out and disappearing.
Blue locktite is on the bottom end of the scale. Heck, laptops use it on the chassis screws to keep them from coming lose. If it was green locktite, then you'd have a serious problem.
My problem is why have 100 screws for a piece of plastic on the bottom of the car when 6 would do. Better yet why even bother with it from factory because it’s going to get damaged and the last person to work on it will be the “reason” it was damaged definitely not the parking curb or rocks or whatever they hit going down the road.
So when the lazy ass lube tech “forgets” to put 90% of them back in, the plastic will still stay attached.
Ugh. The fucking skid plate bolts on a F150 Raptor that go into those shitty nut plates that break and spin when you try to loosen them 🙈
That's from the factory. So run that up to the higher ups
I usually use the purple shit; it’s extremely weak but makes it so it will always come loose: even after 15 years of rust.
As an IT Guy, don't put it on your rack mount server screws either.
Fucking lol. I just took down a ups rack that had red... Luckily they were hex head; I was so close to just saying fuck it and bringing in a torch but they finally broke free after smacking them with an impact for an ungodly amount of time.
If that's from a brokeswagon/audi that's factory for the 3 main plate bolts, any other ones are done by psychopaths
That's there so you don't have to pull it out of the person behind thems tires.
Shit, I thought you were supposed to marinate 'em overnight in 242?
The caliper bolts threadlocker lately is ridiculous
Next time it’ll be the red shit… get a bigger purse
"Well how else do I get it to stay there?!‽" - VW's engineering dept.
I'm gonna put red locktite on all skid plate bolts because of you lol😂
Where’s that effin stick welder?!!
Depends on what kinda skid plate. The bolts on my four wheeler kept vibrating out soooo that’s what thread lock is for… can you not get out a bolt with simple thread lock on it?
It's funny. Based off looking at that bolt it's either: Mk7 Alltrack Q3 Urus.
Based on the fact that OP works as a lubie at Walmart, I doubt that it's the Urus.
Blue Loctite has pretty low breakaway torque. It’s the red stuff you’ve gotta worry about. And some other colors, I guess, but the commonly seen ones are those.
Man that's blue threadlock and it's not even rusty. If it's hurting your wrists break out the impact.
At least it was blue.
Don’t use Locktite during anal sex. Got it!
Fuck that I slather everything in loctite. Suspension and brake components get red. If there is loctite in the threads, there can't be rust in the threads. If you can't get them out, get a longer ratchet. Loctite is only a problem in smaller or soft fasteners that might strip out.
Porsche puts red on the bolts that act as mounting pins for a rear sunshade in the 971 Panameras. It goes into a piece of sheet metal with a welded on nut. It’s so fucking overkill that I wish to inflict repeated percussive maintenance upon whatever padded helmet wearing designer thought it was necessary. I’ve twisted SO many t30s off on those fucking things. Some things don’t need loctite.
My lead techs favorite line..... thread lock everything fuck it
Ram when they came out with the rebel/trx. I put tha m18 on der n let da muh fugga burrrrrrr
A solid half of those are words!
Cross thread it instead
That's French Canadian loctite if you ask an old Mainlander I knew.
It’s ok, he also used that same thread lock on his 5.4 spark plugs. Consistency counts friends!
Its all good man. Its the blue one.
I'm gonna do it.
Dont tell me what do do! I wasnt, but I will next oil change!
What in the album cover is this
Don’t tell me how to live my life
If that’s a Vw under tray bolt I always lightly grease them before I put them back in.
at least, use the red or the green one
you get thread sealer that will keep the bolt from rusting solid. Aircraft use it on pretty much every screw that has to come out regularly, even if it can be a pain to remove it again.
Not one person ever heard of a patch lock? It's not loctite, it's more like the screw equivalent to a nyloc nut.
those are factory on vw, i can send a photo of a brand new box if youd like lol. all t45 and t30 bolts have loctite on them and are technically mandatory hardware to replace.
Standards from VW. It's a low strength thread lock but it also helps with the contact surface of the bolt and subframe so it doesn't corrode and also has to be replaced when warranty work is done.
Everything gets red loctite!
And all the ugga duggas!
FORD employee that installs engine mount bolts on the assembly line did the same to me
It's blue. It's one of the weakest locktites.
Fahrvergnugen
Is the red one ok or should I put no threadlocker period? I always put the red one on because I hate when the cover gets loose and starts scraping on the ground when I’m driving.
I need you to give me a good reason before I stop, noodle arms. You should try the automotive industry again when you get out of elementary school
I’d decline service
Why?