while taking off my winter wheels today i noticed that one of my front stud is stripped and needs to be replaced.

is it true that the only way to replace the front stud involves taking apart the hub assembly?

i saw some threads saying that you can spin the hub and if you look through the backside there should be a cut out or some kind of gap/hole in the backing plate and then you can line up and then hammer out the stud. Can this be done instead?

 

Stripped or cross thread? If the latter, a die can be used to renew the threads, but if actually stripped, needs replacement.
Never tried this, but:
https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-problems-fixes-114/quick-way-changing-broken-wheel-studs-790653/

 

This was a discussion that came up recently between a buddy of mine and myself. He claims he had to remove the whole assembly while I distinctly remember they guy ay the tire shop just replacing mine without doing so. I'm hoping someone else will chime in their 2 cents.

 

i had to do this on an older car once everything had to be removed all the way down to the hub to replace the stud

 

thanks for the replies. We ended up grinding the new stud a bit (turbonut - thanks for the link above).. and also snipping a small part of the shield that was in the way. After that, there was enough room to install it.

 

^ great, glad it all worked out for you