Of course I had to get a flat tire before I had to go to work. Unfortunately, I had never changed a tire before and didn’t even know where to start. There were directions in the trunk of my 1992 Saturn S series, but that didn’t really help me much; they were dirty and kind of confusing. I once again thought about finally putting the thing out of its misery and leaving it back at the junk yard where I found it, but then I wouldn’t have a ride to work. Fervently, I took the wrench and jack out of my trunk, and prepared to change my tire.
Luckily, I was already parked on a level surface in the parking lot so I didn’t need to turn on my hazards, and the car was already set in park. I set the directions next to my tire and hoped that, by some magic, the tire would fill with air and I could get to work on time. That didn’t happen so I loosened all the plastic caps from the cover of my tire with my wrench, without taking them completely off, and pulled off the cover. Progress.
The next step was to loosen the wheel nuts. This was easier said than done. Those things seemed to be welded on. I pushed and pushed, but they just wouldn’t come off. People kept walking by, and I cursed myself for parking so close to the road where people could see me. Finally, someone came by and instead of gawking at the downhill battle with my car, he offered to help me. “Of course!” I shouted, maybe a little too enthusiastically. With one swift movement, he had the wheel nut loosened. The other three came just as easily. I like to think this was because my car prefers men with accents and not because I need to go to the gym or anything silly like that.
Next, he set up the jack. In some cars, such as mine, the wrench can be attached to the jack. He positioned the jack under the car, nearest to the flat tire and then lifted the car slowly with the jack by turning it clockwise. He did this until the tire was off of the ground. It is important to keep the jack in the right position so it doesn’t damage the car. After taking off the tire and putting on the spare, he replaced the wheel nuts with the cone shaped ends facing towards the wheel and then tightened them.
Finally, he lowered the jack by turning it counter-clockwise. I tried to shake his hand and thank him, but because his hand was dirty from turning the wheel nuts, he gave me his sleeve instead. I couldn’t thank him enough. Though I was still late to work, I learned a valuable skill that every car owner should learn. I was lucky because I was able to find someone to help me. Sometimes, a tire can flatten during the most inopportune times, and it is necessary to hone these skills in a situation like this so you don’t cause any damage yourself or your car.
Steps to Change a Tire:
Before changing your tire:
Make sure you are on a level surface and your car is shifted to park.
Turn on your hazards.
Take spare tire, jack and wrench out of your car.
Changing the Tire:
Remove the wheel trim by loosening the four plastic caps through turning them counterclockwise. (Do not take them off)
Pull off plastic cover.
Remove the plastic caps.
Loosen wheel nuts without removing them.
Put jack under car at the jack location close to the flat tire.
Raise the car until the tire is completely off the road.
Take off wheel nuts and tire.
Put on spare tire.
Put wheel nuts back on with cone shaped ends toward the wheel, then tighten them.
Lower the jack by turning the wrench counterclockwise.
Tighten the wheel nuts.