So I was thinking of different ideas for posts today and a small light bulb (very small light bulb, like microscopic) suddenly appeared above my head turned on and then short circuited and cracked the side of the bulb. Most likely because of my cerebral potential XD. Anywho, it came to me that it might help some of my readers that are just “2 cool 4 school” to elaborate on changing a tire. I know it sounds somewhat mundane but to be honest I’ve never replaced any of my tires let alone cared to figure it out. So hopefully with this post I will help enlighten us to be a little more self reliant. Let’s get greasy.
The Art of Tire-Swapping
What You Will Need:
- A flat tire.
- Spare tire.
- Tire Jack.
- A safe workspace.
- The Force (i.e. willpower).
step ONE: So before we can switch the tires we need to make sure nobody will run you over. Therefore, now would be the best time to situate yourself in a stable work environment such as the side of the road, preferably far enough away from oncoming traffic and somewhere flat and solid.
step DUO: When situating yourself into your safe workspace ensure the car stays where you park it and let other people know you’re busy working on your car. In order to be sure the car does not roll over you while changing the tire apply the parking brake, usually located in between the driver and front passenger seats. In order to let others know you are busy fixing your tire turn on your hazard lights by pressing the red triangular hazard button (Δ, sort of looks like this except it is red.)
step TRES: Now we are getting into the duurty details! Take out your spare tire and jack. Place the tire jack under the *metal portion of the frame of your car in *front of the tire you wish to change. If your car has molded plastic on the bottom you can crack it by misplacing the tire jack, so use the force or your car’s owner’s manual.
step VIER: After getting the tire jack in place we are going to pump the jack until it *supports the car. Make sure it does not lift the car but supports it and also that the jack is completely vertical.
step SIX (The French six, not the English one): Now we are going to take off the hubcap of your flat tire in order to remove it. First you will need to turn the take the hubcap off. Next turn the nuts counter clockwise in order to loosen them from the tire and eventually remove them completely after they are all loose (The tire needs to be off the ground, f.y.i.). Oh and make sure you use a wrench to loosen the nuts, your hands probably won’t work. Your car should have a wrench stored somewhere check your owner’s manual or just keep a cross wrench handy in your glove compartment.
step SETE: Remove the tire. This is the easy part. For added protection against your car place the old tire directly under the frame next to the jack in case something goes horribly wrong and the jack pops out of place.
step HACHI (eight in Japanese): Now you can firmly place the new tire onto the axle by aligning the wheel bolts with the holes in the rim. After the tire is in place replace the lug nuts you removed earlier by using more of your muscle…and the wrench.
step NI: Lower the car back to the ground but not all the way. This is because you need to continue tightening the lug nuts the tightest you possibly can.
step TIEN: Finally we are almost done! I feel more accomplished already. Now you will lower the tire jack all the way and take it out from under your car. Then triple check your nuts (lug nuts that is!) and make sure they are securely fastened.Lastly rpelace the hubcap firmly onto your wheel.
FINAL step: Well I hope you have enjoyed this interesting take on a typical step by step guide on how to change a tire. To wrap up this tutorial, make sure you get rid of your old tire by throwing it away *properly (i.e. give it to a recycling center) or get it repaired by a mechanic for around 10 dollars (USD).–EZPC Recycling, Inc. CEO, Miguel Bautista Mzuniga@EZPCRecycle.com