As any driver, you want your ride to remain smooth and calm whether you are heading towards a supermarket or commuting to work. However, you may never know what is waiting for you on the road. Experienced drivers who spend a thousand miles behind the steering wheel are also not secured from everything.
One of the most undesirable road issues which can occur is a flat tire. With the necessary tools and a spare tire, you can solve it relatively quickly.
But what if you don’t have any lifting tools with you? How to change a flat tire without a jack?
A good car owner has to be prepared for most unexpected events on the road. Your vehicle should contain the necessary equipment just in case. If you face a flat tire but there is no jack in your trunk, here is a guide below on how to change it without a jack.
Equipment required for the operation
- A spacy place for work
- Tools for burrowing (shovel, gardening tool, stick, or hands)
- Items for obstruction (wooden blocks, bricks, logs, etc.)
- Wheel wrench and metal bar
- Spare tire or donut
- Two big rocks
Other items can come in handy: gloves, flashlight, rags, towels, tire pressure gauge, tire ramp, and road safety reflectors.
How to Replace A Flat Tire With No Jack?
When you find out that you have a flat tire, the first thing you need to do is to lower your speed and start looking for an area where you can address the issue. It can be a dry terrain or ground with a flat surface and enough space to get to a flat tire.
Searching may be annoying, but if there is no tire service nearby or you don’t have towing service contacts, it is better to spend some time on it.
When you don’t have a jack with you, it is much better to perform the flat tire replacement on a soft surface.
Burrowing method
- Place your vehicle, turn off the engine, and put the car on the handbrake, so the wheel won’t spin while you are going to take it off.
- Find some items that can be used to support the axle or threshold of the car so that they take up as much space as possible from the ground to the point on which the car will rest.
These can be bricks, wooden blocks, logs, tree stumps, etc. Pile these items up carefully under the axle or threshold of the vehicle.
- Loosen nuts (or bolts, depending on the vehicle) with a wheel wrench, and use a metal bar if needed.
- Next, begin to burrow the ground beneath the flat tire with the help of some tool, or if you don’t have it use a thick tree branch or anything around that can be used as a shovel. If there is nothing useful nearby, use your hands.
- Go on digging until the items firmly back the axle or threshold. Now remove some soil from all sides of a flat tire so you can easily remove it.
- Unscrew the nuts (or bolts) on the wheel entirely, take off the flat tire and replace it with a spare one.
- Screw nuts (or bolts) with your hand. After it’s done, tighten them with the wheel wrench. It is recommended to tighten nuts and bolts in a crisscross pattern rather than clockwise.
- Now you have to get out from the hole you dug under your tire. Take two big rocks and put them in front and behind the wheel, and refill the hole back with the soil.
- Then get in your vehicle, start the engine and release the handbrake. Slowly move forward to raise the axle or threshold off the obstruction and get out of the hole. After that, do not forget to gather your items and clean the area.
- Check your replaced tire`s nuts (or bolts). If needed, tighten them once again but don’t overdo it.
Hanging method
- Find a spot with a hill or slope on it. Drive your vehicle at a certain angle to lift your side with a flat tire.
- Turn off the engine and put the handbrake on. To prevent the vehicle from rolling, place bricks, wooden blocks, stones, etc. In front and behind the wheels except for the one you are to remove.
- Unscrew the nuts (or bolts, depending on the vehicle) with a wheel wrench. To ease a process, use a metal bar as a better lever.
- Take off a flat tire and replace it with a spare one. Screw the nuts (or bolts) back with your hand. Use a wheel wrench to tighten all of them, and resort to a crisscross pattern.
- Remove wheel obstructions, start the engine, release the car`s handbrake and slowly leave the hill. Reach your replaced wheel once again to ensure that you have fastened it correctly.
In any situation, safety measures are the priority. When changing a tire, make sure that the area where you are working is secured.
Do not make a tire change in spots with oncoming traffic, narrow roads, or dark places where other drivers may not see you. Turn on the hazards, wear a reflective vest (if you have one), and place a warning triangle to make you and your vehicle visible to anyone on the road.
Is It Possible To Change A Tire Without the Necessary Tools?
Well, if you only don`t have a jack, you can lift your car using the surface, but tire removal without a wheel wrench gets much more complicated. Spend some time and check your trunk to have all the equipment, like the wheel wrench or jack to be present all the time in case of an issue.
To Sum Up
Even if you don’t have a car jack, you can still change your flat tire. In the article, we have considered two-way outs of how to change a flat tire without a jack – burrowing and hanging methods.
These techniques are used by many seasoned drivers who have ever stumbled upon a flat tire and no jack availability. Burrowing and hanging methods have proved their effectiveness in emergencies.
