Nathan L

HKS this one mate.



Rallytech Carbon blade spoiler.

[Edited by Nathan L - 9/7/2002 10:59:48 PM]

Nathan L

Oooops !

When fitting my high spoiler one of the bolts felt a bit dodgy, gave it slghtly too much torque when tightening and snap. The bolt sheared.

I now have the back bolt of two on the nearside only, the spoiler is taped all round and feels solid enough. Will it come loose at high speed or is three bolts and tape all round enough to hold it?

If it's not enough how the hell am I going to get it off without damaging it ?

Thanks

Nathan..

Elmer Fudpucker

is there any thread from the broken bolt protruding out?
if so,it may be possible to remove it with some 'molegrips'.
otherwise you will need to carefully drill it out.the tapping drill size for an m6 thread is 5mm,so use a smaller drill and work up......my spoiler has 8 bolts fixing it!!!!

Nathan L

Thanks for the reply.

The bolts are moulded into the spoiler and protrude down through the boot lid.

There is no thread left at all to get hold of.

Nathan..

HKSubaru

what wing do you have?

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Hmmmmmm. They're supposed to produce down force aren't they? Does this mean they'll be pushing themselves "on" to the car at speed?
Personally, with a beaut spoiler like that, I wouldn't risk it. Take it off again, drill the centre of the bolt with a good quality, new, SHARP drill, and use a stud remover. Or get it to a bodyshop and ask them to do it, they'll have all the kit, and will prob do it for cheap, cash money.
Mine is an old "Demon tweeks" jobby, not the dog's like yours, but is held on with 6 bolts.

Alcazar

mega_stream

Yup I agree, these mahoosive rear spoilers are going through some pretty serious force when travelling at high speed

Could cause some serious mischief to any poor bugger behind if it came off...

I used some double sided car body tape on the base of mine as a bit of extra holding strength, when I took mine off to fit the 2 remaining bolts that wern't on before I had all the bolts removed and the tape was holding the spoiler on very tight (had a job getting it off infact..)
It didn't mark the paint though, I got it from a motor factor place that sells to the trade, in Maidstone.
Good stuff
J

Nathan L

Having left the spoiler overnight the side with the missing bolt is already starting to lift slightly, even though it's taped. Worse than that, the boot leaked.

I think your all right, I'm going to have to take it off and start again.

At either end of the spoiler are an additional 4 holes with nuts in them, would it be worth drilling the boot and using these as well, for peace of mind?



My thoughts exactly.

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Yes, I'd drill the boot, in fact I did for mine, as it only had 2 bolts each side OE.
When you put it back, after drilling, remember to:
a) touch up the damaged paintwork -any colour will do, as it's under the spoiler.
b) use clear silicone sealant under the spoiler in the vicinity of the bolts, then put a smear over the bolt heads on the inside of the boot to avoid leaks. Did mine this way, and no probs so far.

Nathan L

Well after much hard work, stress and blistering of the fingers the spoiler is backoff the car

That bloody tape is sooooo sticky. Still haven't started trying to get it off the boot yet. Does anyone know a product that will disolve or loosen it ?

Drilled out the bolt and have fitted a stainless steel one in it's place. I've also drilled a couple of extra holes along the back edge to take out a small bow in the spoiler.

Nathan..

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Good for most sticky residues, is: spray it with WD40 or similar, rub it gently with a finger tip to ensure that it's all covered, leave for 15 mins or so, wipe off with a paper towel/loo-roll. Repeat if it doesn't all come off.

Nathan L

Cheers

Will give it a go.

Nathan..

BRR

Might be better off using single-sticky-sided foam sealing tape (the stuff they use in glazing). It gives you a seal without being stuck onto the boot lid. (easy to remove and refit the spoiler)

I drilled two additional holes in my boot to use the two threads that were on the spoiler but not bolted. Worked well.

The other thing I noticed is that if you use sealant all the way around, you get pooling of water behind the spoiler on the window side. The way around this is to make a "path" for the water at the lowest point on each side (where the crease is in the boot lid) which provides a means for the water to drain out the back.

Hard to explain, but you make three sealed areas under the spoiler and two gaps to allow the water out under the spoiler to the back of the car.It means that there is no water sitting against the seal which avoids leaks.