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How to Change Your Car's Flat Tyre
There may soon come a day when all of us will be flying high and fighting for space in the air. We would all drive flying-cars. But, until then, we would still have to manage with those plying on roads. Add to it the trouble of those rubber tyres going flat. Uff! Tyres on our new cars ride smooth, but one fine day when we set out on a mission to accomplish the most important task, they lose air and leave us stuck in the middle of the road. Without air, they become deflated and are virtually useless.
If your car has a low tyre-pressure warning system, consider yourself lucky. But, if it doesn't you could still consider yourself lucky if you know how to change the flat tyre. In this article, we teach you how to be lucky, how to change a tyre properly, step by step. Read on!
While driving, you may suddenly hear a loud thud. It will most probably be the last cry of your dying tyre. Don't panic. Carefully move your automobile off the road and inspect the all the car tyres. If it's the problem of a flat tyre, do the following.
Take out the spare tyre which is most of the time underneath the floor mat in the trunk. If you've been driving an SUV, minivan or a pickup, you may find the spare tyre on the back of the tailgate or underneath your car itself. Also keep the jack and tyre iron ready.
Next, you will have to remove the flat tyre. Is your car parked on a steep road, or has it perched on dirt? To change a flat tyre, your car needs to be on a flat road. The emergency brake needs to be set. Block the tyre opposite the flat tyre to avoid risk of movement while raising the vehicle. If the left front tyre is flat, place a heavy object behind the right rear tyre.
Loosen the wheel lugs with the L-shaped tyre iron bar that fits over the wheel lugs. The wheel lugs will be very tight and that's how they need to be. Try hard and you'll be able to loosen them. How? Turn them counter-clockwise. However, just loosen them and don't remove them completely.
If your car has a low tyre-pressure warning system, consider yourself lucky. But, if it doesn't you could still consider yourself lucky if you know how to change the flat tyre. In this article, we teach you how to be lucky, how to change a tyre properly, step by step. Read on!
While driving, you may suddenly hear a loud thud. It will most probably be the last cry of your dying tyre. Don't panic. Carefully move your automobile off the road and inspect the all the car tyres. If it's the problem of a flat tyre, do the following.
Take out the spare tyre which is most of the time underneath the floor mat in the trunk. If you've been driving an SUV, minivan or a pickup, you may find the spare tyre on the back of the tailgate or underneath your car itself. Also keep the jack and tyre iron ready.
Next, you will have to remove the flat tyre. Is your car parked on a steep road, or has it perched on dirt? To change a flat tyre, your car needs to be on a flat road. The emergency brake needs to be set. Block the tyre opposite the flat tyre to avoid risk of movement while raising the vehicle. If the left front tyre is flat, place a heavy object behind the right rear tyre.
Loosen the wheel lugs with the L-shaped tyre iron bar that fits over the wheel lugs. The wheel lugs will be very tight and that's how they need to be. Try hard and you'll be able to loosen them. How? Turn them counter-clockwise. However, just loosen them and don't remove them completely.
Next, move the jack underneath the car. If you do not really know where the proper jacking points are, look them up in the owner's manual. Now, move the jack underneath the jack point and slowly raise the jack. These days, most car jacks are a screw-type scissor jack. If you have one of that sort, just turn the knob at the end of the jack using the provided metal hand crank. Raise the jack until it gets in touch with the car's frame and continue expanding the jack.
You need to raise the car with the jack until the flat tyre is completely raised off the ground. Once this task is accomplished, you may remove the wheel lugs completely. However, do not throw the lugs away. Keep them aside in a secure location; you'll need them later.
Position the spare tyre over the wheel studs. Hold up the tyre and try to line up the holes in the wheel with the protruding wheel studs located on the brake hub. It is going to be a little easier said than done. But yes, a little more effort will do it. Balancing the tyre on your foot while you move it into position could be one trick that can come handy.
After you have the spare tyre hanging on the wheel studs, screw each of the wheel lugs back on. Start with the hand tightening them on the right thread. Tighten them as hard as you can with your hands first, followed with tyre iron to finish the job. You needn't really struggle with tightening them at the moment though. Just ensure that the wheel is fitting flush against the brake hub.
You will now have to lower the jack slowly and carefully. Pull the jack away from the vehicle. You may at this step tighten down the lugs completely. Since the tyre is now firm on the ground, tightening the lugs won't allow rotation of the tyre like earlier when it was still hanging in the air.
Wheel lugs actually have a specific torque rating that they are supposed to be tightened down to. However, a simple tyre iron will not help determine the required rating. So, tighten them as hard as you can and you are done with replacing the flat tyre.
Place the loosened flat tyre in the spare tyre's place and you may drive away happily after putting back the jack and tyre iron in the car. With the spare installed, you should be able to reach home or the nearest service station. With this complete yet very simple process in mind, you can be sure that you can easily face an emergency breakdown with the least worry.
You need to raise the car with the jack until the flat tyre is completely raised off the ground. Once this task is accomplished, you may remove the wheel lugs completely. However, do not throw the lugs away. Keep them aside in a secure location; you'll need them later.
Position the spare tyre over the wheel studs. Hold up the tyre and try to line up the holes in the wheel with the protruding wheel studs located on the brake hub. It is going to be a little easier said than done. But yes, a little more effort will do it. Balancing the tyre on your foot while you move it into position could be one trick that can come handy.
After you have the spare tyre hanging on the wheel studs, screw each of the wheel lugs back on. Start with the hand tightening them on the right thread. Tighten them as hard as you can with your hands first, followed with tyre iron to finish the job. You needn't really struggle with tightening them at the moment though. Just ensure that the wheel is fitting flush against the brake hub.
You will now have to lower the jack slowly and carefully. Pull the jack away from the vehicle. You may at this step tighten down the lugs completely. Since the tyre is now firm on the ground, tightening the lugs won't allow rotation of the tyre like earlier when it was still hanging in the air.
Wheel lugs actually have a specific torque rating that they are supposed to be tightened down to. However, a simple tyre iron will not help determine the required rating. So, tighten them as hard as you can and you are done with replacing the flat tyre.
Place the loosened flat tyre in the spare tyre's place and you may drive away happily after putting back the jack and tyre iron in the car. With the spare installed, you should be able to reach home or the nearest service station. With this complete yet very simple process in mind, you can be sure that you can easily face an emergency breakdown with the least worry.
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