How To Mount and Balance Tires Without A Tire Machine. | Change Tires At Home - DIY, by Repair Geek on YouTube. 28 min 46 s.
- Video length
- 28 min 46 s
- Time to do it
- 1 hour
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Park on flat, solid ground and chock the wheels. Loosen the lug nuts before lifting, then raise the car with a proper jack and put it on jack stands. Never work under a car held only by the emergency jack.
Let the air out of the old tire. Place the base of the emergency jack on the tire sidewall close to the rim and crank it down to break the bead. Repeat around the tire and on both sides.
Push the tire into the rim's drop center, the recessed groove in the middle. This gives the bead room to slide over the rim edge.
Slide one spoon under the bead and hook the other to it. Work around the rim in small bites to lift the first bead over the edge, then pull the tire off.
Flip the wheel and free the second bead the same way, then lift the tire off the rim.
Pry out the old valve stem and clean the bead seat area on the rim so the new tire seals without leaks. Fit the new valve stem.
Check the tire's directional arrow or outside marking and line it up with the rim. Coat both beads with tire lube.
Press the first bead over the rim with the spoons, working into the drop center. Repeat for the second bead.
Inflate with the compressor to pop the beads onto the seat. If they won't seat, add lube and a little more air, but never exceed the tire's max pressure.
Mount the wheel on the bubble balancer, add weights at the heavy spot until the bubble centers, then refit the wheel and torque the lug nuts to spec.
Tips and common mistakes
This method works best on taller sidewalls; very low profile or stiff tires are much harder by hand.
Clean and lube the bead area well or the new tire may leak air at the rim.
Check the tire's directional arrow before mounting, or you will have to remove it again.
Have a shop check the balance if you feel vibration at speed after fitting.
Questions
Can I do this without an air compressor?
Seating the beads usually needs a fast burst of air, so a compressor with a tank is the practical choice. A hand pump rarely seats a bead.
Is a bubble balancer accurate enough?
It gets you close for normal road driving. For high speed or track use, have the wheel spin balanced at a tire shop.
Will this work on low profile tires?
It is much harder. Very low or stiff sidewalls are best left to a tire machine.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
