How Much Torque Does an Impact Wrench Have?

The impact wrench is used to lose or tighten the lug nuts due to its high torque production and impact rate. There are dozen of impact wrenches available in the market. But its impact rate and torque are varied with the brand. When you buy an impact wrench, you must know how much torque does an impact wrench have?

Normally, impact wrenches have 500Nm-600Nm torque, which is sufficient for general purposes. But for the heavy-duty tasks, we can use a Makita impact wrench with a maximum of 2,050 Nm nut-busting torque and 1,800 Nm fastening torque which is a special design for heavy-duty works.

Normally impact wrenches are mostly used in domestic or DIYs. Hence it will not need high torque impact wrenches. The mid-range impact wrench is really useful for these projects. So let’s see what the torque that each impact wrench have and more detail about the torque is? Keep reading on!

What is the Torque of the Impact Wrench?

The torque in an impact wrench is the force that the wrench uses to rotate an object around an axis or pivot point. It is typically measured in Newton meters (Nm) or foot-pounds (ft-lb). A general-use impact wrench has 500Nm-600Nm torque. You can use 1500Nm – 2500Nm impact wrenches for the heavy-duty lug nut tasks.

Impact wrench has a specific mechanism for torque generation. It is called an epicyclic gear system. There is a sun and planetary gears. When the sun gear is rotated, planet geares also rotate at a different speed. As a result of this, torque has increased more than impact drivers. There is no high noise. Some impact wrenches combine these two mechanisms in order to have the best user experience.

For light vehicles and DIY, you can use an electric, cordless, brushless impact wrench with a suitable tool head and torque.

How Much Torque Do Lugnuts Need?

Impact wrenches are used to tighten or lose the lug nuts. In order to properly tighten the impact wrench should have sufficient torque for the tightening. Below is the typical torque range for the lug nuts.

Hardware bolt or
Stud Size
Typical Torque Range
ft/Lbs
Minimum Number of turns
of hardware engagement
12 x 1.5 mm70-806.5
12 x 1.25 mm70-808
14 x 1.5 mm85-907.5
14 x 1.25 mm85-909
7/ 16 in70-809
1/2 in75-858
9/16 in135-1458
Lug Nut Torque Specs

How Much Torque Does an Impact Wrench Have?

How Much Torque Does Dewalt Impact Wrench Have?

Dewalt DCF899HB impact wrench has a maximum of 950 Nm (700 ft-lbs) max fastening torque and 1630 Nm (1200 ft-lbs) breakaway torque. More than that, Dewalt impact wrenches have been designed for different torque range and different tasks. Those can be easily used for the suitable torque range.

Model NumberCollet SizeTorque
DCF880M21/2″203 Nm
DCF897N3/4″950 Nm
DCF894P21/2″447 Nm
DCF899P21/2″135/400/950 Nm
DCF902D23/8″168 Nm
DCF813D23/8″130 Nm
Dewalt impact wrench tools

How Much Torque Does Milwaukee Impact Wrench Have?

Milwaukee high torque impact wrenches have 1000 ft-lbs fastening torque and 1400 ft-lbs breakaway torque with a maximum 2100 impact rate. It is the highest torque impact wrench that Milwaukee has. Milwaukee has different levels of impact wrenches designed for different tasks.

Model Number Collet SizeTorque
M18  ONEFHIWF1-802X1″530/1020/1800/2033 – 2400 
M18 ONEFHIWF34-502X3/4″702/1138/1627/1627 – 2034
M18 ONEFHIWF12-502X1/2″130 / 400 / 1356 / 1356 – 1898
M18 FMTIW2F12-502X1/2″475 / 610 / 745 / 47
M18 ONEIWP12-01/2″40/120/220/300
M18 ONEIWF12-502X1/2″40/120/220/300
M18 FIW2F12-502X1/2″102 / 203 / 339 / 34
M18 FIW2F38-502X3/8″102 / 203 / 339 / 34
M18 BIW12-01/2″240 Nm
M18 BIW12-202C1/2″240 Nm
M18 BIW38-03/8″210 Nm
M18 BIW38-202C3/8″210 Nm
M18 BRAIW-03/8″40 / 76 Nm
Milwaukee Impact wrench tools

How Much Torque Does Bosch Impact Wrench Have?

Bosch impact wrenches have a maximum 1000 Nm (740 lb-ft) fastening and 1600 Nm (1200 lb-ft) breakaway torque with a 2,100 impact rate with 1,750 RPM. Bosch has introduced a wide range of impact wrenches with 18 Nm-300 Nm impact wrenches.

ModelCollet SizeTorque
GDR 18V-1601/4″160 Nm
GDS 18V-200 C1/2″200 Nm
GDS 18V-3001/2″300 Nm
GDX 18V-1801/4″180 Nm
GDX 18V-200 C1/4″200 Nm
GSR 12V-20 HX18/20/- Nm
Bosch Impact wrench tools

How Much Torque Does Makita Impact Wrench Have?

Makita impact wrench has maximum 2,050 Nm (1,510 ft-lbs) nut-busting torque and 1,800 Nm (1,330 ft-lbs) fastening torque. It is the most powerful impact wrench that we can see in the market. Makita series of products are with 60 Nm- 1,800 Nm torque for different kinds of tasks.

Model Collet Size Torque
TW001GM2013/4″1,800 Nm
TW007GZ1/2″730 Nm
TW004GM2011/2″350 N·m
DTW1001RTJ3/4″1,050 Nm
DTW1002RTJ1/2″1,000 N·m
DTW800RMJ7/16″800 N·m
DTW700RTJ1/2″700 N·m
DTW450RTE1/2″440 N·m 
DTW300RTJ1/2″330 N·m
DTW251RTE / RFJ / SYE / Z1/2″230 N·m
DTW181RTE / RFE / Z1/2″210 N·m
DTW190JX6 / RFE / SYE / RTE / Z1/2″190 N·m
DTW180RTE / RFE / Z3/8″180 N·m
TW160DSAE / DSME / DZ3/8″160 N·m
TW141DSAE / DSAEX / DZ1/2″145 N·m
TW140DSAE / DSAEX / DZ3/8″140 N·m
TW060DSAE / Z1/4″60 Nm
Makita impact wrench tools

How Much Torque Does Ryobi Impact Wrench Have?

Ryobi 18V ONE+ impact wrench has 1,170 ft-lbs. of Breakaway Torque and 700 ft-lbs. of Fastening Torque. It is with 4 mode speed and the most powerful impact wrench that Ryobi has. For the wide usage, Ryobi has a 150 Nm – 300 Nm range of torque products with different collet sizes.

Model Collet Size Torque
Ryobi P261K 18V1/2″300 ft-lb
RYOBI 18-Volt ONE+1/2″300 ft-lb
Ryobi R18IW3-0 ONE+1/2″400 Nm
Ryobi 18-Volt ONE+  P2633/8″150 ft-lb
Ryobi P1833 3-Speed 1/2″300 ft-lb
RYOBI P261-P163 3 Speed1/2″300 ft-lb
Ryobi P263K 18V3/8″150 ft-lb
Ryobi impact wrench tools

Why Is an Impact Wrench Torque Reduced?

An impact wrench torque is reduced due to these 5 reasons such as,

  1. Wear and tear in the tool – The internal components, such as gears, bearings, and other parts, can wear down over time. This causes a decrease in performance.
  2. Lack of lubrication in the impact wrench – If the impact wrench is not properly lubricated, it can cause friction and heat, which can reduce the torque. Prolonged lack of lubricating cause to overheating the impact wrench as well.
  3. Poor quality impact wrench – Not all impact wrenches are created equal. Some are simply made with inferior parts or poor craftsmanship, which can lead to reduced torque.
  4. Damaged or dirty components – If the components of the wrench are damaged or dirty, it can affect the performance of the wrench. Regular cleaning and inspection can help to prevent this.

Tom Mackency

Tom Mackency

Hi, I am Tom Mackency. It has been 10 years that I have been working as a professional woodworker since 2013. I am really enjoying my carrier by creating many kinds of projects in my workshop. But mostly I like for home improvement projects. Home improvement and DIY projects are the most interesting things for me. More than that, the coolest things are power tools. Those are very precious and efficient than a decade ago. So I try to introduce so many things about power tools, woodworking, DIY projects, home improvement and many more interesting topics here.


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