Omg help messed up my door hinge torx bolt

[Jebiruph]

I'm not sure this is as bad as it looks. It looks like you may have used the wrong bit (too small) and the bit was not held perpendicular as force was applied. On a painted head like these, the correct size bit will be a very tight fit and will very likely damage the paint due to the tight fit. Once you get the bit firmly in place, use one hand to apply pressure to the bit to keep it seated in the bolt head while the other hand turns the ratchet to loosen it. Make sure you have a long enough ratchet so you can apply adequate force with one hand.

At 5:02 mark in this video, they show how to remove painted tailgate hinge bolts.


From the picture of the damaged bolt, it looks like there may be enough undamaged area deep down in the bolt head that the correct sized bit, properly seated, will be enough to get the bolt out.

You probably don't have anything to lose by trying another bolt. If it get's messed up, it's an easy enough job that I don't think you'll get charged any more for extracting two damaged bolts than you would for one. And after you are successful at getting the rest of the bolts loose, you may have some luck getting the damaged one out.

@LLRubylady, at the risk of repeating myself, I'm repeating myself. Before you do anything else, watch the video starting at 5:02. They do a good job of explaining how to remove the painted bolts. Watch how he uses the ratchet, one hand holding it in place and the other hand turning it. If you decide not to try again, fine. If you decide it looks easy (with the right tools and right technique, nobody can remove those bolts with the Jeep toolkit), go buy some torx bits and a long handle 3/8" ratchet. Try the undamaged bolts first and after you get good at it, try the damaged bolt again with the correct torx bit.

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[Courtjester69]

Just buy a new Jeep. Problem solved

 

[Jondrew]

Just buy a new Jeep. Problem solved

Best advice yet!

 

[WillDo559]

What's worse than giving up? DIY = risk losing money, gain experience. Dealership = already lost money, gain a receipt. Plus the fact that it's just a bolt, everyone gave advice that the dealership would probably use as well. Everyone seems to be counting the lady out, I say try and try again! It was only one speed bump. I do apologize if you have to replace your door after trying too hard.. Have the husband do it so you can blame someone else lol

 

[MOPAR Boy]

Uh, duh, by making it that much more difficult to back it out, by now even more severely damaging the bolt head, thus limiting the options. An amateur may not be able to successfully back it out, whereas the seasoned Pro very likely might be able to. Sure as heck won’t hurt her to get a free repair estimate from her Jeep dealer, and make an informed choice from there. The professional repair may be less than she thinks.

If you are still confused at this point, your homework assignment for today is to visit your local Jeep dealer, and kindly ask the Service Manager to explain this to you.

 

[NathanG]

I really hope OP stopped reading after page 1. This is hilarious!

 

[Jondrew]

I really hope OP stopped reading after page 1. This is hilarious!

Could be the next Rubicon vs Moab thread

 

[MOPAR Boy]

Or, better yet, the next 3.6 vs/ 2.0 thread!

 

[MOPAR Boy]

#73, and counting!

 

[iznthesky]

STOP everything right now, and take your car to your Jeep dealer for repairs. The Service Department or Body Shop can hopefully handle this. At this point, this is no longer a DIY project. You need to let the Pros intervene here, and straighten things out.

Get a grip Mopar boy. This has ALWAYS been a simple DIY repair. Some members are slightly more “capable” than others with DIY skill. LLRubyLady is expanding her DIY skill set just like most other members here on the forum. That is precisely why this forum exists. We the Jeep JL forum collectively have a Vast knowledge of experience and we know that in order to LEARN; we have to TRY...perhaps sometimes stressful projects that we have no experience with. This “partially” stripped-out door hinge bolt is not one of those .....”Drop everything and run to the dealership” events. At worst it is a MINOR inconvenience. Apart from Mopar Boy’s advice.....Almost all the forum members here are giving her good sound advice....that is well within her ability to perform. Unfortunately we all at one point or another feel nervous about our precious JL’s and take it to a Fairy God Mother in hopes that with a wave of the magic wrench that they will make it as good as new again......and that’s okay. That said; this fix can be done for much less $$$ and much less time than taking it to a mechanic or dealership. This forum is about collective knowledge, experience and fun. Thrrowing up the white flag and surrendering on such a minor inconvenience serves no one any good except the Dealership or the Repair Man who removes the bolt......and even then....there is NO guarantee that they are not going to botched up the job in the process. If you fantasize that they are going to assign a “qualified-certified” mechanic to do this “bolt-out” your sadly mistaken. Point that I am making here is that this is an easy DIY fix.....and NO one is going to give your JL the TLC it deserves like you the owner....and you walk away with the pride and confidence that YOU did it...and did it right. Perhaps you might even leave that little “unnoticeable” bolt head black or chrome.....no one will ever notice it....except you, and it will remind you of the event, the learning experience, and the pride of having overcome the stress....and fixing it yourself. Yes it will be a tiny badge...unnoticed by others, but meaningful to you. This is the perfect repair....to go forward with courage ! No surrender !

 

[mwilk012]

If you are still confused at this point, your homework assignment for today is to visit your local Jeep dealer, and kindly ask the Service Manager to explain this to you.

Yea, I think I wont, thanks. Dealership service managers are some of the least competent people I have ever interacted with in my life.

I get the feeling that you are one of two people.
1. Never worked on anything yourself.
2. A Jeep service tech or service manager.

 

[GreyFox]

Well this thread went to shit

 

[MOPAR Boy]

A good, trusted 4-wheel shop may also be a good route to go, if that’s your preference over a full-blown Jeep dealer. Anything but DIY. A repair estimate should be a no cost event. This way, you can make an informed decision to either have a Pro fix it, or proceed, at your own risk, with a DIY venture.

 

[Adam 4248]

For those of us that have a mig welder, have the skills, and are in a similar situation: buy a T-55 drive bit and quickly weld it into the stripped (prepped) bolt head. The heat will loosen the locktite and it will come right out.

Of course you should mask the surrounding area, and use a wet shop towel to cool the painted hinge area.

I used this method on a stripped torx bolt on a very nice, old Bronco, after the easy out failed. It did cost me seven dollars for the sacrificial torx bit.

 

[iznthesky]

Someone posted here correctly that there is still sufficient “contact surface” inside the bolt head to remove this bolt without resorting to “bolt-out”. It is NOT completely stripped. It is only the surface area that was striped off. The EASIEST attempt at this would be to first gently heating the bolt head with a soldering iron......then; insert the proper sized TORX bit and gently tapping it until it is fully inserted into the bolt head....just like in the Litebrite video. It should come out properly . This attempt would not require any special tools, cost or time......nor would it make it any worse if it fails.
Best of luck to you.

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