Unfortunately, we still regularly see standard nuts used for applications requiring a higher hardness.
It's very unwise to fit a nut with a different hardness, Volkswagen used it for a reason, in fact, it can be downright dangerous to use a nut and bolt assembly with an incorrect hardness.
The M14 class 10 nuts shown here are Dacromet-treated. Dacromet nuts and bolts are more resistant to corrosion than electroplating. They are therefore identical to the original supplied by Volkswagen in the 1990s.
The nuts were only used to attach the front shock absorbers to the underside of the Volkswagen Vanagon and to mount the spring plates on the bearing housing of the VW Bay Window Bus.
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