How-To Change a Flat Tire (Without Breaking a Nail)

There are a lot of reasons why a collegiette would prefer not to change her own flat tire: The greasy, black oil. The pungent, metallic stench. The possibility of a broken nail. The risk of breaking a sweat. The chance that a sexy frat boy may show up and save the day…

                                                                                                     *Image from The Budget Fashionista 

But ladies, just because we don’t want to do it, doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t know how. Flat tires often come at the worst possible time and can lead to dangerous and desperate scenarios. Waiting helplessly or accepting aid from a stranger (even if by some miracle he does turn out to be a hot repair man) should never be your first option. Instead, follow these How-To tips to change your tire, by your self.

What You’ll Need:1. Spare Tire (Most cars come with one, usually found under a felt cut-out in the trunk)

2. Lug Wrench (It comes with the car and looks like a giant wrench)

3. Car Jack (This also comes with the car. Make and model vary with vehicle, so check your Owner’s Manual for exact instructions)

1. Pull Over

As soon as you become aware of your flat (cue the obnoxious hissing noise) pull your car as far away from traffic as possible. If it’s late at night, try to park in a well-lit area. Make sure to put on your emergency brake so the car doesn’t roll away while you’re operating on it.

2. Extract the Hubcap

If your car has a hubcap, you’ll need to remove it so you can access the lug nuts that hold the tire in place. You can do this by using the bottom of your lug wrench to gently pry off the silver circle in the middle of your deflated tire.

                                                                                                        *Image from EHow.com 

3. Be a Nut Cracker

Now that the lug nuts are exposed, you’ll have to loosen them a bit to get the tire off. Using the wrench, turn each lug nut counterclockwise. Don’t get discouraged if it takes a while.

4. Jack It Up

This part sounds harder than it is. To change the tire, you’ll have to lift the car into the air using your car jack. First, check your owner’s manual for the correct placement of the jack. Then, pump the hand crank at the end of the jack to raise it up until it is level with your car. Warning: your car may look like it’s floating or about to tip over (that’s why you put the emergency brake on earlier!)

6. Out With the Old

Give the lug nuts one last turn and take them off. Remove the flat tire (make sure to lay it flat on the ground so it doesn’t roll away).

7. In With the New

Line up the holes in your spare tire’s frame with the lug nut’s pattern. Slide the wheel in to place and then screw your lug nuts back on top (you can do this by hand). Screw them in as tight as possible because you don’t want your new wheel to pop off while driving!

8. Zoom Zoom

Crank the jack handle in the opposite direction until your car is lowered firmly on the ground. Put your spare in your trunk and head to your nearest tow shop or car dealership. REMEMBER: You can only drive for 50 miles on a spare, and can’t go any faster than 50 mph.

Imagine the impressed look on your mechanic’s face when you tell him that you changed your spare tire yourself…and didn’t even break a nail.

Safe driving, collegiettes!