It is very important to determine in time that a wheel puncture has occurred. While driving, pay attention to the behavior of the car: if it began to accelerate poorly, the effort on the steering wheel increased when maneuvering, or the directional stability worsened, be sure to check the pressure in the wheels.
The easiest way to repair a wheel is to go to your nearest tire shop, where the repair will be done quickly, professionally, and usually at a very affordable price.
Attention! Do not try to get to the tire shop with a completely flat tire: it is enough to drive a few tens of meters and the tire will have to be thrown away.
You need to replace the damaged wheel with a spare. However, this rather simple operation requires some skills.
In case of a tire puncture, turn on the alarm, brake the car slowly to a speed of 2–3 km/h, in 1st gear try to carefully move to the edge of the carriageway and stop as far to the right as possible at the curb, and if possible, outside the carriageway. If road conditions allow and this does not contradict the requirements of the Rules of the Road, in case of a puncture of any wheel on the right side of the car, pull over to the right side of the road, in case of a puncture on the left - to the left. Try not to stop the car in places where the road is poorly visible: in sharp turns, on descents and ascents, bridges, in tunnels. If the car is left on the roadway, first of all, ensure your own safety and the safety of other road users! Turn on the hazard warning lights and set the warning triangle.
Wheel replacement
Attention! Be careful when replacing a punctured wheel. Perhaps it was pierced by intruders to steal valuables from the car while you are busy replacing it.
1. Open the trunk (it contains everything you need to change a wheel) and remove the trunk floor mat (or lift its back).
2. Unscrew the spare wheel lock..
3.... remove the latch..
4.... and remove the spare wheel niche cover from the trunk.
5. Remove the spare wheel from the trunk and place it next to the wheel to be replaced.
6. Pry with the pointed end of the wheel nut wrench (balloon wrench) decorative cap..
7.... and remove the trim, overcoming the force of its fixing spring.
8. Engage 1st gear and parking brake and secure the vehicle on the opposite side by placing wheel chocks under the front and rear wheels so that the raised vehicle cannot move forward or backward.
9. Use a wheelbrace to loosen the four wheel nuts and place a jack under the vehicle next to the wheel to be changed (see «Using a jack»).
Note. In order not to get dirty when changing a wheel, put on gloves and overalls, if your car has them.
Note. To make it easier to loosen the nuts, we recommend purchasing a special wheel wrench with a telescopic handle. It is convenient to work with a cross-shaped balloon wrench.
10. Raise the car with a jack so that the wheel is off the road, then completely unscrew the nuts, remove the wheel, and then its decorative cap.
Attention! Try to keep the car as little time as possible in a suspended state with the wheel removed.
Attention! Raise the vehicle with a jack only to the height necessary to remove and install the wheel.
Warning! If working on soft ground, place a thick board under the base of the jack. Do not use bricks for this purpose: they break easily and the car can fall off the jack, seriously injuring you.
11. Install the spare wheel in place of the removed one, install the decorative cap and screw the fixing nuts until they stop, but do not tighten them.
Attention! When screwing on the nuts, make sure that their conical parts are aligned with the conical surfaces of the holes in the wheel disk, otherwise the nuts will loosen during movement and the wheel may be lost.
12. Lower the car and finally tighten nuts. Tighten the wheel nuts through one around the circumference. To avoid damage to the wheel rim, do not attempt to «hold out» wheel nuts by pressing the wrench handle with your foot.
Note. In order to feel the necessary tightening force of the wheel nuts (tightening torque 130 Nm), use a torque wrench for the first time.
13. Establish an overlay of a decorative cap.
14. Before you continue driving, be sure to check the air pressure in the tire of the installed wheel.
Note. The car has tubeless tires. If you do not have enough tire mounting skills, we advise you not to try to do this work yourself. One damage to the sidewall - and you have to buy a new tire or insert a tube.
Note. In a hopeless situation, you can use a special first aid kit for repairing tubeless tires without stripping or a tire sealant. They must be used in accordance with the attached instructions.
Note. Why is a tubeless tire better than a tubed one? Firstly, a tubeless one descends very slowly during a puncture: you can, pumping up, drive for weeks with a nail in the wheel until it becomes possible to repair it. Secondly, when, with a very significant mileage, steel cord wires begin to protrude from a tubeless tire, it can still be used as a spare wheel. It is useless to insert a camera into such a tire: it will pierce already during the first inflation.
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