That Newark junkyard trip made me stop trusting factory torque specs

Went to a pick-and-pull off Route 21 last month to grab a starter for my 2002 Civic. The bolts on the old one came off way easier than they should have, so I checked the manual when I got home. Factory spec said 32 ft-lbs, but the junkyard one was barely snug at maybe 15 ft-lbs. After three weeks of driving, the starter started rattling, and I had to redo the whole job on a Sunday morning in my driveway. Now I always add 5 ft-lbs to anything I pull from a salvage yard, especially if the car sat for a while. Has anyone else had luck trusting junkyard bolts, or do you replace every fastener too?

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ellis.diana7d ago

The 32 ft-lbs in the manual is for clean, dry threads on a factory part. That junkyard starter had been heat cycled for 15 years and the aluminum housing was probably corroded around the bolts. I pull a lot of parts for my own cars and I always run a tap through the threads and use new bolts if they show any rust or wear. Adding 5 lbs is fine but the real fix is cleaning the holes out first. If the bolt came out that easy, it was already stripped or the housing was worn, so a fresh bolt at 32 would've been loose too.