How to Change a Flat Tire

Changing a flat tire is a simple task, but if you're not sure how to do it, it can be overwhelming, especially on the side of a busy highway. You can't plan a flat tire, so you should be prepared for changing one if the situation arises.

The tools required to change a flat tire should be in your vehicle at all times.

• Spare tire and/or donut
  
• Car jack
  
• Tire iron or lug wrench
  
• Wheel clock or piece of wood to place behind the tire
  

When you get a flat, you know it—your car will start to "thump" as the uneven tire deflates.

1. Steer the car toward level ground, as far away from traffic as possible.

2. Put the car in park and engage the emergency brake.

3. Turn on your hazard lights.

4. Place your wheel clock behind the tire opposite the flat (i.e. if your right rear tire is flat, put the block behind the front left tire).

If your flat tire has a hubcap, remove it so you have access to the lug nuts.

Using your lug wrench, loosen the lug nuts by turning them counterclockwise, but do not remove them yet. Remove them in a star pattern if there are five lug nuts, as shown below:

If your wheels have four lug nuts, remove them as shown below:

Place your car jack beneath the car and start cranking until the wheel is high enough above the ground to remove the tire.

1. Remove the lug nuts completely from the wheel, placing them in your hub cap for safe keeping.

2. Remove the flat tire and lay it flat.

1. Take your spare tire and line up the lugs with the holes in the wheel.

2. Slide the wheel on.

3. Take your lug nuts and tighten them by hand until you meet a firm resistance.

1. Lower the car jack until the wheel is firmly on the ground.

2. Finish tightening your lug nuts with your lug wrench in the pattern you used previously to take them off. Continue to tighten until you can't anymore.

3. If you're using a donut, get your car to your mechanic as soon as possible so you can replace it with a new tire.