This document provides instructions for rotating the tires on a vehicle. It lists the necessary equipment which includes a floor jack, lug wrench, jack stands, and wheel chocks. The instructions describe how to chock the wheels, loosen the lug nuts, jack up the car and place it on jack stands, remove the tires and remember where they came from, rotate the tires to a new position following the illustrated pattern, snug the lug nuts, lower the car and firmly tighten the lug nuts, and the vehicle is then ready to drive with its rotated tires. Safety notes caution to never crawl under a vehicle without jack stands or jack up a vehicle without chocking a wheel.
2. Equipment and Materials Needed
Floor jack suitable to
vehicles rated weight
Appropriate size lug
wrench
Four jack stands suitable to
vehicles rated weight
Two wheel chocks
3. Chock the Wheels
Make sure the vehicle is
on level ground and
chock both sides of one
rear wheel.
The provided illustration
shows the correct
positioning of wheel
chocks to prevent the car
from moving.
4. Loosen Lug Nuts
Once the wheels have been
chocked, break loose each
lug nut on all four tires with
the lug wrench by turning
them counterclockwise.
Failing to break loose the
lug nuts will make it difficult
for them to be removed
later.
5. Jack up the Car
Elevate the front of the vehicle using
a floor jack and support it with two
jack stands. Refer to the owner’s
manual for jack points, and where to
locate jack stands.
Once the front of the car is
supported by jack stands, elevate
the rear of the car with the floor jack
and support it with the remaining
two jack stands.
Be sure to refer to the owner’s
manual again for where to place the
jack stands.
Note and Caution: An individual should never crawl under a
vehicle that is not supported by approved jack stands. Also,
one should never jack up a vehicle without one wheel being
chocked. Failing to recognize these cautions could lead to
serious injury.
6. Remove Tires
With the appropriate size
lug wrench, remove the lug
nuts from each wheel by
turning them
counterclockwise.
Remove each of the tires,
but be sure to remember
which point of the car they
came from.
7. Rotate Tires
The illustration provided outlines the general rotation
patterns to be used when manufacturer specs are not
provided.
9. Lower the car
Begin by jacking up the rear
of the vehicle and removing
the jack stands.
Once lowered, chock one of
the rear wheels and proceed
to lower the front of the car.
Use the lug wrench to firmly
tighten each lug nut.
