How to Change a Flat Tire

It's scary when your tire goes flat and you don't know what you're doing. You could have to sit there for hours before someone is able to come help you. It's even worse if you're trying to change a flat tire in the middle of the night on a highway. To avoid being scared or having to wait for someone this is how I change my flat tire by myself.

Step 1: Pull Over

Pull over to a safe spot on the side of the road, turn your car off, and put the hazard lights, and parking brake on.

Step 2: Grab the Supplies

Go into the trunk and lift up the floor carpeting, and locate the spare tire, the jack, and the lug wrench. (Each car can provide a different type of jack and lug wrench). Bring those three items over to the tire that needs to be changed.

Step 3: Removing the Lug Nuts

Take the lug wrench, and figure out what end of the lug wrench fits onto the lug nuts the best. Keep turning the lug wrench counter clock wise, until the lug nut is almost off. Repeat that on every lug nut until they are all almost off. (You may need to put a lot of weight in turning the lug wrench clockwise if the lug nuts are on tight, or if they are rusty).

Step 4: Place the Jack

Then Put the jack under the car where the car is reinforced. You can find where the car is reinforced in the owner's manual in the glove box. Put the crank handle into the loop of the jack, and rotate clockwise until the vehicle tire is just off of the ground.

Step 5: Switching the Tires

Then remove all of the lug nuts the rest of the way, and pull off the flat tire, (Sometimes the tire is hard to get off, and giving it a small kick on the bottom of the tire helps get it loose). Grab the spare tire and line up the holes and the lug bolts, and push the spare tire on. Put all of the lug nuts back on the lug bolts and tighten them all of the ways by turning them clockwise. Grab the crank handle on the jack and turn clock wise, until the tire is barely resting on the ground. Then take the lug wrench and put it on the lug nut and turn clockwise until the lug nut is on their firmly. Repeat that to all of the lug nuts.

Step 6: Clean Up

Go back to the crank handle and turn clock wise until the jack is all the way to the ground. Remove the jack from under the car, and remove the jack handle from the jack. Finally, put the jack, lug wrench, and the flat tire back in your trunk under the floor carpeting.

Step 7: All Done

Now if you don't have a phone to call somebody and you are stuck, you have the knowledge of how to change a spare tire by yourself. You may never need this knowledge but it is good to have just in case. Better safe than sorry. Remember to turn off your hazard lights, and emergency breaks.