How to Do a Tire Rotation Yourself

Whether you choose to rotate your tires yourself or take your to a local service center, tire rotation is an important maintenance step you don’t want to skip. Rotating your tires regularly can provide you better traction on roads and extend the life of your tires. Follow our guide on tire rotation to keep your tires rolling for as long as possible. 

Why is Tire Rotation Important for Your Vehicle?

Due to driving habits and road conditions, not all tires wear evenly. Thanks to the impact tires experience while turning, the outside edges of the front tires show greater wear while the rear wheels wear more evenly. This means if you leave your tires in place, over time they will wear down at different rates and you will have to replace them sooner. 

How Often Should You Rotate Your Tires?

Front and rear wheel drive vehicles generally need their tires rotated every 5,000-7,500 miles. All-wheel drive vehicles require more frequent changes at every 3,000-5,000 miles since all tires are actively engaged and that results in faster wear. As with any vehicle service, we always recommend checking your owner’s manual for more specific recommendations. 

Learn More About the Importance of Tire Position

• 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 tires.
• 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 tires.

How to Rotate Your Tires at Home

If you want to attempt rotating your tires, you will need a car jack, lug nut wrench, and a set of car jacks. Once you have acquired the necessary tools follow these six easy steps:

1. Engage your parking brake as a safety precaution.
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 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 tire. 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 Your Tires Rotated at Kempthorn Motors 

Not ready to rotate your tires yourself? The trained technicians at Kempthorn Motors can perform the service for you. We offer a variety of service specials at our Canton service center for you to take advantage of. Schedule your service today!