Changing a car tyre is a basic skill that every driver should know. It doesn't take much time and you don't have to have the strength of a giant to do it. However, knowing how to change a car tyre could potentially get you out of a sticky situation and save you a lot of time.
Changing the wheel:
Find a flat and reasonably level part of the road and pull over. Make sure you're parked in a safe place away from any traffic.
Make sure the engine is turned off and apply the hand brake. Make sure the car is in the "Park" gear before getting out.
Remove the spare tyre, car jack and wheel nut wrench from the boot.
Loosen the wheel nuts with by turning the wrench anticlockwise. ( do not completely remove the wheel nuts).
Once the wheel nuts are loose, position the jack under the car and jack the car up slowly. The wheel of the car should completely be off the ground at this stage. Have a look at your cars handbook to see where exactly the jack needs to be place. Usually the jack is placed against the underside of the car, perpendicular to the ground.
Now remove all the wheel nuts completely and place them to the side.
Remove the flat tyre and place it to the side with care - the wheel is often heavy so take extra care.
Place the spare tyre on and replace all the wheel nuts and slightly tighten them. At this stage do not fully tighten the wheel nuts.
Lower the car slowly until the wheel is firmly back on the ground. Now tighten the wheel nuts completely by using the wheel nut wrench.
Make sure the wheel is securely fitted and place all the tools and tyre back into the boot.
Make sure you replace or fix the punctured tyre as soon as possible.
