How to Rotate Tires Yourself

Tire rotation is an important maintenance step worth committing to regularly, regardless of whether you do the deed yourself or take your Honda to a local service center. Not only can you get better traction on Lynn roads from rotating your tires regularly, but you’ll also extend the life of your tires, too. Our guide below should help you efficiently rotate your tires and keep them rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ for as long as possible!

Why is Tire Rotation Necessary?

Tires don’t wear evenly. Your Burlington-area driving habits and the subsequent impact tires experience while turning ensures this. The outside edges of the front tires inevitably show greater wear while the rear wheels wear more evenly. Unchecked, this uneven wear will result in you having to replace your tires sooner. Thankfully, there is a solution: rotating your tires.

How Often to Rotate Your Tires

Vehicle specs will change the frequency of tire rotations. For example, front- and rear-wheel-drive vehicles generally need their tires rotated every 5,000-7,500 miles, while all-wheel-drive vehicles need more frequent changes, around every 3,000-5,000 miles. On AWD cars, all tires are actively engaged and that causes them to wear faster. Ultimately, your owner’s manual will have the most accurate recommendations for tire rotation.

Tire Position

Again, specs on your car changes the optimal way to rotate your tires. Do you know how to rotate the tires on a FWD vehicle? Do you know how to rotate the tires on an RWD vehicle? Read below:

• FWD Tires: You can move the front tires to the back of the car in the same left/right positions. When it comes time to move the rear tires to the front, you must switch the right and left tire.

• RWD Tires: The opposite is true with RWD vehicles. The rear tires can be moved to the front of the car in the same left/right positions, but when you move the front tires to the rear, you need to switch the left and right tire.

Rotating Your Tires

So you want to rotate your own tires! Congrats, taking on your own maintenance to keep your vehicle running smoothly on Lawrence roads is admirable. We’re certain that, with the right tools, you got this. You will need a car jack, lug nut wrench, and a set of car jacks. Once you have acquired the necessary tools follow these five easy steps:

1. Engage parking brake for an extra measure of safety.
2. Loosen the lug nuts on all four wheels, but don’t take them all the way off. This step makes unscrewing them when the tire is elevated much easier
3. Lift up one wheel with a car jack and place the jack stand underneath it.
4. Remove the tires one by one.
5. Take this time to make sure your tires are filled to the optimal tire pressure. Once filled, you can rotate them according to the appropriate pattern for your type of drivetrain. Place the tire back onto the wheel mount and screw the lug nuts on by hand as far as you can.
6. Lower the car from the jack stands and use the lug wrench to finish tightening the nuts. It’s best to work the lug nuts diagonally from one to another in a star pattern to ensure even tightening. If the lug nuts aren’t tightened evenly it can cause the brake rotor to warp.

Get Assistance With Tire Rotation at Honda North

If you have any questions about rotating the tires on your vehicle, or have decided you’d prefer trained technicians to do it for you, Honda North is here to help. Before coming in, you can learn more about how to how to check tire treads or check out our service specials to ensure you’re getting the best deal possible. Then schedule an appointment with our service center near Lynn!