Seven steps to change a wheel

Motorists have been offered a guide to follow should they ever need to change a wheel at the side of the road.

Driving experts from LeaseCar.uk have offered a seven-step guide should a blowout or puncture ever occur.

Most vehicles come with their own spare tyre or replacement wheel is a situation like that ever occurs where it needs changing.

It is important that once this has been sorted roadside, a mechanic or tyre expert is seen as soon as possible afterwards to help rectify the situation properly.

A spokesperson from LeaseCar.uk said: “Chances are that every driver is going to experience a flat or blown tyre at some point in their life, so knowing how to change one and fix your car’s replacement wheel is imperative. 

“The thought of changing a wheel on your own can be quite intimidating and look complicated, but in actual fact it’s a fairly simple task that once you know what you’re doing, you should be able to do it for the rest of your life.

“Once you’ve mastered this, it’s essentially the same process on every vehicle, with only the jack points and tyre pressures changing.”

This is LeaseCar.uk’s guide on how to change a wheel:

1. Pull over

Ensure that your vehicle is to the side of any road and you won’t be in danger whilst changing the wheel. All the passengers should also be out the vehicle and it should be in a stationery position with the ignition off and the handbrake on. 

• Loosen nuts

Lever off the plastic wheel trim, if this applies to your vehicle. Then turn the wheel wrench anti-clockwise and loosen the nuts until they can be turned by hand. It may take a bit of pressure to first loosen them

• Jack

Use the jack to jack the vehicle up on its side. Each vehicle has dedicated jacking points, which should be clearly labelled in your handbook. You should aim for the flat tyre to be around 15cm off the ground. 

• Remove

Finish removing the wheel nuts with your hand, then you should be able to take the wheel off by pulling it towards you. Make sure you then place it flat on the ground – you don’t want to put it tyre side down in case it runs away from you. 

• Mount

Repeat what you’ve just done to remove the punctured wheel in reverse, with the spare wheel. Place it in line with the wheel nut slots and push it away from you. Replace the wheel nuts and use your hands to tighten them as much as possible.

• Lower

Use the jack to carefully lower the vehicle back down until the tyre just touches the ground. You can then use the wrench to fully tighten the bolts. Once this is done you can then return the vehicle fully to the ground. 

• Pressure

Pack everything away into the boot of your vehicle and check the tyre pressure. You should then go to the nearest petrol station if it needs inflating more. It’s also important to get the punctured tyre to the garage as soon as possible, and they will tell you whether it should be repaired or replaced.