How to change a tyre
Don't call a recovery service yet: here's how to change a car tyre safely and get back on the road in as little as 15 minutes...
It’s easy to think that it won’t ever happen to you, but getting a puncture is a pretty common occurrence. In fact, it’s the second most common reason for calling out a breakdown service, according to the AA, whose patrols attend around 620,000 puncture-related incidents every year.
There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, most people don’t regularly check the condition of their car’s tyres, so a puncture will be an unwanted surprise. Secondly, spare wheels have been phased out in favour of tyre repair kits on many new cars because repair kits are easier to use and lighter than a fifth wheel, so they help reduce fuel consumption.
However, the spare wheel isn’t dead, and some new, and many used cars still have either full-size ones or space savers. So what should you do if you get a puncture? Here’s our step-by-step guide to changing a tyre.
What tools do I need to change a tyre?
It’s worth checking what is in the boot of your car before you get a puncture. That’s because if your car is kitted out with a spare wheel, jack and toolkit, you’ll have everything you need. However, if it isn’t, it’s worth carrying a few things in the boot, just in case.
You’ll need a suitable jack, plus a wrench to remove the wheel nuts or bolts, and you may also need a screwdriver and a set of thin-nosed pliers. If your car has wheel trims, you can use the screwdriver to prise them off, and if there are decorative covers over the wheel nuts or wheel bolts, the pliers will make it easier to pull these off.
Position the car safely
Before you start to change the tyre, it’s important to try to get the car to the safest place possible. Although it’s not advisable to drive a long way on a punctured tyre, rather than just stop at the roadside, pull off the road or find a layby if you can. If you have to stop on the road, make sure you’re not at the exit of a blind corner, and aim to stop on flat ground.
If your car has a warning triangle in it, position it at least 50 metres behind your car to warn approaching traffic, and if you have a passenger, get them to stand in a safe place and warn other traffic that you’re stranded just down the road.
Once the car is in a safe position, switch on the hazard lights, apply the parking brake and put the car in first gear if it has a manual gearbox, or leave it in Park with the handbrake on if it’s an automatic. This should stop the car rolling unexpectedly and falling off the jack.
How to get started
Whether your car has a full-size tyre or a space saver spare wheel, the procedure for fitting it to your car is the same.
Place the wheel and tools and place them on the ground next to the wheel you’re going to replace. If your car has wheel trims, use the screwdriver to prise up the edge, then pull them off, and if you have alloy wheels with wheelnut protectors, use the pliers to pull these off.
Next, use the wrench to loosen each wheelnut or wheel bolt by one turn only, making sure that once you’ve loosened the first nut/bolt, you loosen the one diametrically opposite, not the one next to it.
How to jack up a car
The jacking points are usually on each side of the car’s sills, either just behind a front wheel or just ahead of a rear wheel. The owner’s manual should state where they are, and there is also often a notch or arrow on the bodywork denoting their position.
Place the jack under the reinforced metal plate of the jacking point and turn the jack handle until the tyre is well clear of the ground. Remember that you’ll need to raise the car further than you think, because you’ll be putting on a fully inflated spare tyre, which is likely to have a larger diameter.
How to change the wheel and tyre
Once the tyre is clear of the ground, undo the wheelnuts/wheel bolts completely and remove the wheel. Make sure you lift it properly to avoid injury, and place it out of the way.
Then lift the spare wheel and tyre into place on the wheel hub, and start to screw in the wheelnuts/wheel bolts. Tighten these only until they are difficult to turn, but don’t overtighten them yet because this could risk pulling the car off the jack.
Lower the jack fully and remove it, and use the wrench to tighten all the fastenings fully.
After that, all you have to do is re-attach the wheeltrim or wheelnut covers, and tidy everything away into the boot - don’t forget the warning triangle that you placed in the road earlier. It's also worth checking that your spare tyre has the correct pressure, especially if you've not checked it with a tyre pressure gauge recently.
Get the puncture fixed
Once you’ve replaced the tyre, you should head straight to a tyre repair outlet to get the punctured fixed or the tyre replaced. If there’s only a small hole in the tread area of the tyre, not on a sidewall, there’s a good chance it could be repaired, which will be a lot cheaper than replacing it.
FAQs
Can you change a tyre by yourself?
If your car has a spare wheel and a jack, these are all designed to be used by one person acting alone. Obviously, it’s easier if you happen to have a passenger who can help out, but you can easily do the job on your own.
Will a breakdown company change a flat tyre for you?
All breakdown services are fully equipped to change a car tyre. Indeed, 20% of all motorway and A-road breakdowns are caused by tyre issues, so patrols are well-versed in changing defective tyres.
How long does it take to change a tyre?
Every scenario is different, but you should be able to change a tyre and be back on the road within about half an hour. That said, even if you’re in a hurry, don’t cut corners when changing a tyre – it’s always better to arrive late than end up in A&E.
What to do if your car doesn’t have a spare wheel?
Many new cars have tyre repair kits instead of spare tyres. In this case, follow our guide on how to use a tyre-repair kit and you’ll be on the road before long.
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