Right, I had the wheels off my MK2 Focus LX today while carrying out its annual service & I noticed the wheel nuts were not in the best condition. They had a step where the cone usually is. I was wondering if anyone had noticed this on their car.

The torque setting also seems a little on the high side at 96ft/lbs (130nm). I say seems high as the Mondeo, which uses the same hubs & 5 stud pattern, are only torqued up to 65ft/lbs.

Looks like they have been overtightened. Recheck the torque figure and set accordingly

Ford used 2 different types of wheel nuts for steel Wheels on the Focus MK2/MK2.5. The torque setting depends on the type of wheel nut that is used.

Focus 2004.75 (07/2004-), Focus 2004.75 Coupe Convertible (07/2006-) and C-MAX 2003.75 (06/2003-):

• Steel nut M12 golden coloured (*06/2003 - 06/2004) - 90 Nm.

• Steel nut M12 silver coloured (*07/2004-) - 130 Nm.

• 2-piece alloy wheel nut M12 with conical washer (*06/2003 - 08/2006) - 110 Nm.

• 1-piece alloy wheel nut M12 for alloy wheels and 5-spoke steel wheel (*08/2006-) - 130 Nm.

• 2-piece alloy wheel locking nut M12 with conical washer (*06/2003 - 03/2008) - 110 Nm (Do NOT use on Kuga 2008.5).

• 1-piece alloy wheel locking nut M12 (*03/2008-) - 130 Nm.

- * Installed in production:

Focus 2004.75 (07/2004-), Focus Coupe Convertible (07/2006-), C-MAX 2003.75 (06/2003-), Kuga 2008.5 (02/2008-)

Item Description:

1 = Steel nut M12 golden coloured

2 = 2-piece alloy wheel nut M12 with conical washer (06/2003-08/2006)

3 = 2-piece alloy wheel locking nut M12 with conical washer (06/2003-03/2008)

4 = Steel nut M12 silver coloured

5 = 1-piece alloy wheel nut M12 for alloy wheels and 5-spoke steel wheel (08/2006-)

6 = 1-piece alloy wheel locking nut M12 (03/2008-)

Mine are the number 4 in your picture, so are torqued up to 130nm (96ft/lbs).

They are the same as on my mates Mondeo which are only torqued up to 68ft/lbs. It just seemed odd to me to have the same hubs & nuts, but 2 different torque settings.

The golden coloured (C&P'd) I have never seen on any Ford, & I've had a few in the past.

I was also surprised just how expensive they are from Ford, turns out they are £5ea.!

The gold coloured wheel nuts for steel Wheels are quite common. These were factory fitted on many Ford models.

I own a set of original Focus MK2 15 inch steel Wheels for the winter. When I bought these Wheels (brand new) they also came with the gold coloured wheel nuts.

Note that after a few years the gold ans silver coulored wheel nuts look identical as a result of dirt and rust. This makes it very difficult to determine the exact type of wheel nut.