How do you change a wheel?

[billyo]

This is something I think I know but havin just talked to someone now I'm not sure. Tell me if this is right.

Engage handbrake and put car in gear?!
Locate jacking points. Insert jack and raise the car.
Remove wheel covers and undo nuts.

This next bit contains the new found but confusing knowledge.
Swap wheel over and tighten nuts to finger tight.
Then lower the car and tighten up the nuts with the wheel on the ground. This bit seems pointless surely you could tighten up the nuts on the car?

How tight should the nuts be?

[DaveyL]

Dangerous to undo nuts while jacked up.

Handbrake on for from wheels, pref chock front when changing back.
Don't forget level ground.
Undo all nuts, maybe 2 turns each.
Jack up car.
Finish undoing nuts and remove wheel.
Put wheel under car sill, so if jack slips, brakes not damaged.
Put new wheel on and tighten nuts hand tight.
Lower car
Then tighten nuts in opposing order. Call the nuts 3, 6, 9 and 12 O'clock on clock face. Tighten 3, then 9, then 6 then 12 fairly tight. Then repeat until they are as tight as they should be. How tight that is, well, thats where I haven't got a clue.

Dave

[pgarner]

dont use the standard scissor jack you get in the boot get yourself a hydraulic jack makes the job so much quicker.
Daves right loosen the nuts in the same order as theyre tightened 3,9,6,12 to brake the seal. then raise the car.
its also a good idea to rotate the wheels front to rear. This keeps wear even all around also means that your wheels dont end up "welding" themselves to the hubs.

If its a 5 stud hub. Starting at top and working clockwise 1,2,3,4,5. loosen / tighten 1, 4, 2, 5, 1.

your handbook should tell you how tight they need to be. Normally this is around 110Nm so you should really have a torque wrench handy to do them up.

[waynne]

The guys at the local tyre place use air tools and the nuts are so tight that I bent my brace trying to loosen them!

I was told that if you are working on a rear leave it in gear with handbrake off, if it is the front take it out of gear with the handbrake on - anyone else do this?

When rotating the tyres from front to rear you should really use axle stands as 1 jack is not typically strong enough (apart from the fact the jacking points are to the rear) even if you used 2 jacks the car will be really unstable.

[pgarner]

air tools can be stripped the treads off the bolt / hubs

regarding leaving it in gear i would only do this if i had the whole rear in the air. when rotating wheels i jack and use the axle stand at the front and the jack at the rear. this way the other side of the car is still on the road and handbrake holding with the front wheel choked

[waynne]

One garage had to cut the spare wheel (in my Rover) from the boot with an air saw! (The bolt holding it in had siezed up so the cut through it! - I was not impressed when I got back to pick it up!)

Chocks are a good idea and it is something I do not have. Plenty of wood lying around so I might make myself a set!

[billyo]

Cheers guys. Ur help as ever is very much appreciated.

[HDi fun]

Using axle stands together with a jack can be a problem as you can tip the car with the jack and possibly cause the axle stand to tip over if you lift too much mass from the stands in the wrong direction.

Leave automatics in N, and not P, if they're being lifted from the ground. When they're dropped back down it can be a complete bastard to release P.

[pgarner]

ive never though about that normally i jack up the front then put the axle stand in, lower the jack and jack up the rear till the wheels off the ground.

other option is to use your spare wheel. jack up front and take it off, fit spare, jack rear take off and fit front wheel to rear. jack front again off with spare and on with rear wheel. then do the same on the other side