How to Rotate your tires on Front Wheel Drive Car with Jack and 2 Stands
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ธ.ค. 2018
- Tired of paying for a shop to rotate your tires for you? Well, you can do it yourself, with a jack and 2 jack stands. It is possible to do, and once you get the hang of it, rotating the tires on your front wheel drive car (FWD) will be a breeze. It only needs to be done once or twice a year with normal mileage use (but more if you rack up high mileage). This will increase the longevity of your tires and give you the best traction possible. And save you some money along the way.
Looking for some of the tools in this video? Check them out here
Jack - amzn.to/32e7CoK
Jack Stands - amzn.to/34qAFbp
1/2 drive Torque Wrench - amzn.to/2Z7SBnN
Disclaimer
I assume no liability for property or vehicular damage or injury incurred as a result of any of the information contained in this video. I recommend safe practices when working with any and all tools, including but not limited to electrical tools, power tools, pneumatic tools, any lifting apparatus, including jacks, jack stands, and automotive lifts, manual tools, chemicals, lubricants, and any other instruments used within the video. Due to factors beyond my control, no information contained in this video shall create any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage or loss that may result from improper use of all above mentioned tools or equipment, or any other items mentioned above, and all information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not myself or Nexus Auto. Caution is advised and any practices by the viewer is at user descretion. Any tool or part recommendations or links are given for informational purposes only and it should be assumed to be bought at your own risk. I or Nexus Auto assumes no liability for any damages, premature part failures, or incorrect parts made from purchases made online, including but not limited to tools, parts, instruments, jacks, chemicals, lubricants, etc. - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
Awesome! This is exactly what I was looking for. Didn’t think to swap the two front after they came from the back. Thank you so much for this 🙏🤘
no problem at all. Glad it helped out, and thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it.
Thanks! Swapping each side and then the front is genius! I love learning stuff like this on YT. One of the best tutorials I've seen. You rule!
Thanks for that great feedback! Appreciate it! Sometimes the little things we find on TH-cam are life changing! Thanks again!
Their is an even better way. Just use the spare tire when taking off the first wheel no jack stands needed. And you only have to change five tires not six. Just an idea!!!
@@russelmartin8501 s
@@russelmartin8501 yeah but you have to jack the car up and down for each wheel saves time and energy to do it with jack stands
This is so obvious yet so clever I never though to do it this way, I’ve used 4 jack stands which is not a safe way to do it I know, the first set of stands you put down will tilt as you jack up the opposite side. I’ve done it anyway but always felt like I was this close to dropping the car. now with this genius approach I can rotate my tires safely in my driveway. thank you very much for the life lesson sir
No problem, I am glad to hear you found the video helpful. I really appreciate that feedback. Sometimes, it is the little things that make all the difference
I also liked how you showed that it takes some time and effort to do it. Also, things aren't so easy sometimes.
No problem. I try to show some of the struggles in this stuff. I edit for time, but it's not always easy. Thanks for the great feedback!
This gave me confidence to do it. Doesn't hurt save some dollars in these hard times
I'm with you there! Any money saved is a win for sure! Happy to hear the video helps out.
Thank you for this video! I definitely took notes haha. I am going to rotate my tires this weekend and I 'm doing a bit of research before I do.
It would probably be far easier and take less time to take it to a mechanic but I want to do it myself for the enjoyment of working on my own car.
Awesome...I'm all for that. Nothing wrong with working on your own car! Glad to hear you found this video too.
Funny thing is, in regards to time, I find waiting at a shop to take longer than just doing this myself..but it's the ease of not doing the work that is more appealing to people, I think. But either way, thank you for watching and the great feedback too!
Great video, thank you. Finally a straight forward to the point video, didn't drag it out with a bunch of BS throughout the process like every other video I tried watching before this, "check your brakes, look at your rotors for this, blah blah blah..." we're not watching for brakes or rotors. I didn't mind the bonus sledge hammer action in this one though, should've left more of that in. An actual problem that may come up as part of this process.
Thanks again.
No problem at all. Thank you for the great feedback! I'll keep the sledgehammer stuff in mind for next time!
I knew there was a way to do this without jacking the whole car up in the air which seemed too sketchy. Thank you!
No problem at all! Waaay better than jacking the whole car up.
Appreciate the walk-through. Doing this now!
Awesome, glad you found the video!
This is brilliant, exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!
No problem at all!
I've been rotating my tires for a few years now but never felt safe while I was doing it. Thanks for the tips and tricks...today's rotation was kind of enjoyable. Thank you!
No problem at all, glad the video was helpful. Thank you for watching and taking the time to leave feedback...appreciate it.
Hey Brian, can you tell how you were doing it before?
@@MrCool-qi7cy I was using both my jack stands as well as the jack to hold my van up at the same time. I never like to rely on the jack but I just did the swap quickly.
@@run4roxx thanks. I think I was thinking the same idea. That or i was going to buy 4 Floor jacks lol.
@@MrCool-qi7cy Right! This way was so much safer and probably faster too. I've also swapped in a snow tire but that's a pain too. I knew there was an easier way but I couldn't wrap my head around it until I saw this video. Best of luck to you.
Clear and to the point. Thanks.
No problem. Thanks for the great feedback!
Excellent idea. Thanks for posting!
No problem! Thanks for the feedback. Appreciated.
Thank you for the video. Very well presented.
Thanks for the great feedback. Much appreciated
Dude, this is genius! Thank you! I just wish you would have explained the whole thing from the beginning.
No problem! Thanks for the feedback too. Quick question...what did you mean by 'explained the whole thing from the beginning?' As in, list all the details at the beginning of the video? I like to always get feedback...makes the videos better. Just wanted to clarify. Thanks :)
This is the answer to my dilemma. Great idea!
Awesome news. Thanks, much appreciated.
I'm rear wheel drive... so i'll move the back forward and the forward back. Then swap the back.
Great method !
Absolutely. Same procedure, just swap at the rear, as you said. Glad to hear the video helped out.
Learned. Thanks bro!
No problem. Thanks for watching!
Excellent video, thanks so much!
No problem at all! Glad it helped!
Smart. I was going to use my spare (not full size) to use in-between swapping the tires but I like this more.
Glad you found the video and it'll be helpful!
If you car doesn't have a middle jack point (like mine doesn't) you can solve this with 4 moves (don't have to change a tire more than once) and only one stand ;) ....
This is for a Forward Cross Rotation (Front wheels go back on the same side, Rear wheels go front on opposite sides) but you can use all patterns by changing the sequence.
1. Lift FR - Put on stand - Remove FR wheel
2. Lift RR - Stay on jack - Remove RR wheel - Fit FR wheel - Unjack
3. Lift FL - Stay on jack - Remove FL wheel - Fit RR wheel - Unjack
4. Lift RL - Stay on jack - Remove RL wheel - Fit FL wheel - Unjack
5. Fit RL wheel to FR - Remove stand
Well, I have to give an official and unofficial answer here
Official, this is potentially a bad idea, and wouldn't recommend it, for the following reasons
1. When you lift the car and keep it on the jack, you run the risk of jack failure and the car crashing down
2. When you lift the car and drop it at each corner, it could potentially shift the weight on the jack stand, and it can actually slip out (have actually seen this happen to someone)
3. Particularly when you have the front right on the stand, and then lift the rear left, it's now essential able to pivot on the cross axis, particularly dangerous since the the front have more weight than the rear (unless your car has really good weight distribution)
Unofficially, I'm not going to knock this idea, and if it works for you, have at it. Just be cautious. This would be more effective on a BMW 3 series, let say, vs a Chevy Impala. It's a great tip for those who are in your scenario, but just because I have seen things happen in these situations, I do have to warn against it. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for this video my friend very heplful
No problem at all. Awesome to hear it was helpful.
For those who don't have a driveway to safely do this, There is a way to do it one side at a time in the city streets. You need to have two parking spots, one on either side of the street and use the spare tire to help with rotation, and of course one jack stand for safety. I just finished doing this. It took me about an hour.
1. Park on the right side of the street
2. Start with right front, replace it with spare tire
3. Then the right rear, replace it with the front tire. Store the rear wheel in the trunk
4. Move the car to Left side of the street
5. Take the front left, replace it with the wheel in the trunk
6. Then take the rear left and replace it with the front one. Store the wheel in the trunk
7. Finally move back to the right side of the street
8. Replace the spare tire on front right with the one in the trunk.
It is laborious but i feel safe doing this as I'm on the sidewalk all the time, not on the street.
Be sure to use jack stand for safety, you will need only one.
Hi Jai. This is great stuff. I really do like how you innovated with what you have to get the job done, while being safe and avoiding being in the streets (sounds like you may be in a tight area too). This is great stuff, and hopefully it does help a few people out who are in your situation too. Thanks, and take care
Sweet, thank you!
no problem at all. thank you for watching!
Thank you, sir.
No problem at all!
Very good 👍
Thank you!
Took me a few seconds to grasp it but god damn is this smart
Thanks! Appreciate that feedback! Makes rotation so much easier and doable!
What would be the most efficient way to rotate tires if I can’t get to the central location of the jack point on my honda fit since it’s very low profile? A low profile jack cannot even reach it, which sucks. Thanks a lot.
The main thing is getting the car higher. I am not sure how low your fit is, but if possible, you can always lay down some 2x4s or low bricks and drive the car up on to them, to get additional height for the low profile jack. I once had to stagger some wood to get a really low car up. Like a 1x8, then 2x8, then a couple of side by side 4x4s. It was tricky, but the only way I could get the car high enough to get a jack underneath. I am sure there are other ways to do it, but this is what worked for me. Hope this helps.
I like the short intro !
Thanks, much better than some of the long ones out there lol
Do you have a video about lug nut sizes? I'm thinking of getting a torque wrench and possibly a gun, but want to confirm how to figure out what is correct socket size to purchase ahead of time.
I don't have one, but I may look into making one, if it may helpful. In the meantime, I would recommend either looking for the specs on your car online, measure your lug nut (if possible), or if you have it available, measure the lug nut tool including with your spare tire in your car. If not sure, you can even bring the tool into the shop. I will see if I can make a video soon, but it may take a bit. Hope the other info helps.
For no more than 2 additional jack stands would cost you, it would save you so much time, they'd pay for themselves in no time!
I agree. Trust me, I know. I have 6 jack stands, 5 different jacks and a lift lol. But not everyone has the financial means or even the space (ie living in an apartment) to have it..or maybe they're new to cars and haven't invested in the stands yet. So I made the video to help them out. It's made a big difference for a lot of people
great job mate
Thanks,much appreciated
My tires are "directional" and I think I can only go front to back, and back to front as by crossing you change the directional pattern. Some people say that the "belts" are damaged when you run the tires in a direction that was opposite from the direction that they ran previously. As such, I only do front to rear and rear to front on the same sides. Thanks!
Yep, you got it. You would not do the last step with directional tires for sure. You can't cross over.
@@NexusAutohow do you know if your tires are directional?
@kornyque8081 there is a few ways to tell..some are easier to tell, some are harder.
1. Look on the sidewall of the tire. Often times, it'll have arrows pointing in one direction indicating it only goes in one direction.
2. The tires treads will be pointing in an arrow-like, pointed, one-way direction. See this link for an example images.app.goo.gl/V9xUw8t8jE3gVT1TA
3. Look up the tire you have online. The make and model of tire (also found on the sidewall), when looked up, should give you an indication of what type of tire it is.
This is an excellent video. But I'd like to mention that diy people check the tire and make sure it isn't directional before swapping the front tires in the final step. Directional tires are only meant to spin in one direction and will usually have a arrow and/or the word rotation or left or right behind the arrow. If your car has directional tires, don't do the last step of swapping the front tire sides.
Completely agree. Thanks for the feedback!
i was thinking the same thing thanks for posting this
Super useful video and I can't wait to do mine soon! Question: should I always spray some anti seize on the bolts every time? How much do I spray?
Thanks, much appreciated. Great question. First, I do not put any anti seize on the bolts. I only put the anti seize on the face of the rotor, where the rim bolts up to car.
I generally put it every time I change the wheels. But it is really only needed when you change your wheels in the fall, to protect against the snow and road salt. So if you will only put it once, the fall is most important. But I still put it both times, regardless.
@@NexusAuto thanks. What about bolts that are super tight? Is there something I can spray on it before loosening them up? My tires were rotated at the shop and I doubt they torque to spec given they prob only used the air gun.
@@superduperboyx I hear you there. I have worked on cars where the bolts are too tight from shops...drives me crazy!
Adding the anti seize wont help with overtightened bolts (if you are thinking of applying it proactively). Once someone overtightened the bolts, it gets stuck because of the pressure against the hub, not the bolts itself.
Hopefully they did not crack the wheel stud...it happens. The best bet, has worked for me 100% of the time, is using a breaker bar and slowly turning the lug nut counterclockwise. And sometimes its tough.
2 years ago, I was working on a Ford F150, torque spec is 140 ft lbs. And the lugs were way overtorqued beyond that. I used my torque wrench to check what they torqued it at, which has a 250 ft lb limit, and it was maxed out! Sprayed PB blaster, and used an impact gun to 'shock' the bolt and hopefully allow the PB blaster in a bit, to lubricate the threads. Then waited a few mins, and used the breaker bar and an additional pipe attached. Slowly turned counterclockwise, then a couple of degrees clockwise, and then counterclockwise. Did not break a stud (which was a huge win). But shows anything can happen. Hopefully your will not be too bad. Some use a heavy duty impact gun, but I find the shock can accidentally snap a stud.
When you are jacking is that a pinch weld or is the jack point you are using is somewhere on sub frame?
It would depend on the car. For this equinox, I lifted at a central pinch weld point that was thicker. Some cars can be lifted from the frame or subframe. All depends on the vehicle.
Is it dangerous because I just put the back straight in front and the front in the back straight without doing the cross over in front like this x? The car ride rough like as if the tires are squared. I didn’t do like you, I did not cross the front tires but just put them straight up. But the driving is rough is it dangerous?
It wouldn't be dangerous, no. Doing just a front to back tire swap is fine. The 'x' at the end is just a more thorough way of doing it. For example, some cars have directional tires...thos can't do the 'x'
If your car ride is rough, something else may be off. You may have a tire that is off balance, or something wasn't mounted correctly. A front to back tire swap shouldn't cause a rough ride
I was told on a front wheel drive vehicle you take the front right side put it on the back right side and the back right side on the front and that's it you do not criss cross
What you were told is correct if the tires are directional. If the tires universal, then the proper procedure is rear right goes to front left.
Should you chalk the wheels for the wheels that stay on the ground while you take the others one out?
It wouldn't hurt, and definitely adds more safety to the job. Especially if you are working on any sort of slight incline or decline of your driveway. And especially when doing the final switch of the front tires. I say go for it for sure!
Don't draw on the wheels 🖍
@@BusyB07 Lol. (Ba-dum-tsss)
Always, always always. Also put on the parking break too when lifting the front up. :)
But when you cross the rear tires to place in the front wouldn't that mean the tires would be rolling in the wrong direction?
That depends. Many, many tires are not directional...the tread pattern is designed to run forward or reverse. But some cars (and it's getting more and more these days) have directional tires. If you do, you do not need to do the crossover at the end of the video
Where do you put jack in the middle ? Would be good for a néwb like me to see
I didn't show jack points in the video as it can vary from car to car...some cars do not have center jack points, or some are at the edge of the car and others are closer to the middle. I did not include it as I did not want to mislead anyone. Too many options. definitely refer to your manual for jack points for your car.
Owner's manual usually shows the jack points.
Aren’t you not supposed to jack a car on a driveway that is slatted like that? I’ve been trying to figure out if it’s safe for me to jack my car up at my new houses driveway because it has a slant
That depends on your level of comfort, and of course, the slant lol. But almost all driveways have some sort of slant (for sewer drainage). This Driveway isn't much degrees of slant at all, but if you have a deep slant, then you definitely don't want to jack a vehicle up on that. Most times, for residential housing, you can chock the wheels and jack up safely. But unfortunately I can't tell you that for sure as I don't know what your drive looks like.
First step is to make sure the cars on level ground and to chock the wheels on the other side.
Second, you want to break the lug nuts while the wheels are on the ground with the vehicles weight on them, good luck breaking 80nm torqued lugs while the wheel can freely spin.
Then carry on with the video as shown.
Very true. Technically, these are very good points to mention. Level ground/chocks are a must, and if you don't have access to an impact gun, then breaking the lugs before jacking is a must too.
When I made this video, I more had the principle in mind, and didn't go through the couple of before and after steps (notice I didn't torque the wheels at the end, an absolute must as well). I made a separate video on how to jack up your car about a year ago that covers those finer steps. But I should have included them in here as well...just wasn'tin my head at the time. Great points! Will definitely help other viewers in the future! Thanks for sharing.
Is there a way to do this without having to deal with back tires twice each? I kind of thought you were going to show some clever jack stand trick....is it okay to have two jack stands on one side? And jack on otherside? Having three points of lift...or is that damaging to vehicle?
Sure, I can answer the few questions you have here
This is the only way to really do this safely with just a jack and 2 jack stands. There is very unsafe ways that can avoid having to swap the front, but I would not recommend. If you want to, you could invest into 4 jack stands...saves having to do the extra step. Just jack up the front and rear of the car, support on the jack stands, then just swap the tires, nice and easy.
For your other question, this is the unrecommended unsafe way I mentioned above. Before I go forward, I want to encourage that there is safety issues with the car dropping should a jack fail, and I am not recommending this in any way.
If you wanted to use a jack and 2 jack stands as you mentioned, you would not do it side to side. The length of the vehicle sitting on the jack for a length of time would be very unstable. Instead, depending on the car, the way to do it is to jack up the front, support the front with the 2 jack stands (so the weight of the engine is on the jack stands, not the jack) and then use the jack to lift the rear. This will give you the 3 points of lift, and have all 4 wheels off the ground. The surface has to be very level, or when you lift the rear, it can cause the jack stands up front to shift. However, should something go wrong (jack fails or falls off front jacks), it can damage the car or you get hurt. Please be cautious if you pursue this.
Hope this helps answer the questions above.
@@NexusAuto thanks! I will definitely not do it the unsafe way. Thanks for explaining its dangers. I've learned the hard too many times to count. Im taking your advice instead this time! Lol
how come when i have my car on lift, while spinning the one tire forward the other tire is going backwards ?
Great question!
That's perfectly normal. That happens through either the transmission on a front wheel drive car, or the differential on a rwd car. Nothing to worry about there.
@@NexusAuto thank you !!!! im subscribing also you were very helpful
@@falcongro that's awesome! Appreciate the sub! Thank you
Right front I read should go to left rear no?
That's rear wheel drive, 4wd, and awd. For fwd, the front tires move straight back, and the rear tires cross over (unless your tires are directional).
front wheel drive here. drivers front to the rear, drivers rear should go onto passenger front left.
Did you jack at the car frame?
Depends on the car. For the car in this video, I jacked it at the pinch weld, as it has a soft frame and would bend if I used a Jack on the frame rails. Some cars can be done at the frame if strong enough
What is the rating of the floor jack used in this video?
I believe that jack is rated at 3 ton.
I bought a 2.5 ton one for like 45€ last week. Those floor jacks work so much easier than the emergency tire change jack from the manufacturer. Those emergency ones tend to twist and bend in all the wrong directions, got to line up the bottom of them perfectly to the top part to prevent that. With a floor jack you can just shove it underneath the lifting point and start jacking it up without any worry 😎
Where do you put the jack?
it does depend, as it can vary from car to car. For most cars, you would jack it up at the pinch weld. Normally there is a reinforced section where you can jack up the car. Sometimes you can do it right in the middle, where other cars, you would have to jack up the front, put it on a jack stand, then jack up the rear, and put it on a jack stand. Definitely consult your owners manual for details, as most will say where to jack your car. In some cases, it actually tells you where to jack up your car right on the factory jack
Not bad video that you forgot one step you need to CHOC The Wheels on the other side
Never hurts to chock both wheels for sure
What if they're direccional tires?
You would do the first step on both sides (swap front and back tires), but not the last step of swapping on the front axle
Nice video. Wouldn't putting the jack in the middle of a side bend/damage the frame? There are only 6 reinforced lifting points on a car, two on each side, one in the front center and one in the rear center.
It varies from car to car. Many cars have more lifting points. Check vehicle by vehicle to be sure.
So I guess you designed every car in the world then? 🤦
Remember to use proper jack points or else you can damage your car
I am not taking advice from a Q-Tip LOL. Even if the advice is 100 correct!
Great tip. Always good to make sure you have the right jack points. Every car is different
I thought the backs go to opposite front side
They do. That is why the last step is to swap the front tires. This crosses them over and you get the back tires on the opposite front sides.
I just rotate front to back on all my cars and still get even wear.
It's true, and that is sufficient. Cars with directional tires can only use this method and it works fine, and when I first started learning about cars, this was kind of the standard. But industry standards changed and now it is better to swap over the drive wheels. RWD does the same, but you would swap the rear tires. Your method is just fine, but this method is considered 'better'
So you said don't use a gun to tighten but yet that is what you did in the video?
I think I should have clarified that a bit more.
A very common practice for diy/backyard mechanics and shops alike is to go nuts with the gun, tighten the bolts like crazy, and call it a day.
There is nothing wrong with using the gun to drive the bolts, but do not use it to tighten the bolts all the way. What I didn't film (and I should have, just for the visual example) is after I dropped the wheel, I brought out my torque wrench and tightened to spec. Notice, when using the gun, as soon as the bolt is tight and the gun indicates that, I pull away immediately.
Proper procedure should always be
1. Put lugs on by hand first, just to get a feel and make sure they do not cross thread.
2. either hand tighten or use a gun to zip them in the proper star pattern
3. drop the car and tighten to spec with a torque wrench.
Hope that helps answer the question. After rewatching it, i should have included the visual step.
@@NexusAuto you sir are so calm with your responses. You clearly said not to use the air gun to tighten the wheels; use a torque wrench. It’s clear that you didn’t tighten the nuts with the gun. Common sense people!
@@obrianthinline8514 Thanks Obrian! I appreciate that. Hopefully it did help clear things up for that individual.
😂 it is funny to see him kicking the tyre using back kicking
He needs to practice martial technique
🤣🤣🤣 I need to work on those leg sweeps LMAO
If is rusty.why didn't spray some WD- 40 😊
Are you talking about the rims being stuck on? I sprayed some PB Blaster on it. Very common on these cars when in the snowy areas lol
@@NexusAuto yes sir..👍😊
Make the video shorter and maybe wear a mic or have subtitles? Kinda hard to hear you when you walk further away from the camera
Thanks for the great feedback, definitely appreciate it. Both of these requests are in the works (the mic and shorter videos). I agree with the audio quality 100%!