I tried doing a search but coudn't find what I was looking for, so I thought it easier to ask my Canadian brethren.

Does anyone swap their rims at home? I'm getting tired of spending $40 twice a year to put the other set back on. So I decided to look into other options.

So, I spent the entire day yesterday buying the attachments for my buddy's battery powered 18V impact gun (Ryobi) only to discover that it didn't have enough torque to loosen the lugs. It's rated at about 120 ft/lbs torque and they didn't budge. I noted at Cdn Tire that most air tool impact guns were around 400 ft/lbs.

But, I'm just wondering, if I couldn't even get it off with an impact wrench, how the heck would I have gotten the tire off if I had a flat on the side of the road.?? I even took the tire iron/crank out of the trunk to see if I could get more leverage and still nothing. I guess I could've really stomped on it and gotten them off - but then could anything I had at home have had enough force to tighten them back to what the stealership does?

(btw, what are we supposed to torque our wheel lugs to? One tire place told me that the force of the air gun is good enough - so what 400?!! )

So all that being said, I guess I'm wondering, what do any of you guys do at home (if any)? Is my only option getting an air tank and an air tool? Or would a long enough torque wrench give me the leverage I needed to both remove and tighten lugs?

Any input would be appreciated - thanks all!

Albert

 

Hey Albert,

I've always switched over my winters/summers at home.
I do have an electric impact wrench that I purchased at Cdn Tire some time ago. Periodically it is on sale so have an eye. Not once have I had any issues removing the rims.

You're friends impact gun should have got the rims off unless they have been sitting on there for a while. Some people carry a longer hollow pipe that would fit over top of the tire iron so you would have more leverage.

Our rims should be torqued to 85 to 90 ft/lbs. It states this in your owners manual.

A torque wrench is only used after your rims have been put on. It is used for final torquing of the lug nuts. Do not EVER put the rims on using an impact wrench. Only for removal!!!

Also, invest in some wheel blocks/chalks for added safety when your car is in the air.

Any more questions, feel free to ask.

Bill

 

LOL, Albert, I'm cringing and wincing while reading your post.......

This subject of tightening lugnuts has been a bug-bear for me ever since I started driving......(and that's many moons... )

You can't move those nuts because they were most likely put on with an air gun and cranked to hundreds of ft lbs....... ...
Hopefully when you do get them off, the studs won't give way necessitating replacement..... (that's happened a lot).

Mechanics know they shouldn't use the air gun to put the nuts back on but usually nobody is watching so they do as they please.
When I get service and the wheels come off, I explain that I'd like them installed carefully and with a torque wrench and torqued to about 80-85 lbs.

-- and I very nicely explain that I'll be checking the torque myself when the ride gets home.....so they better be installed properly.
With cast wheels that's all that required.... Steel wheels can take about 100 lbs.
-- anything in excess of 80 lbs for cast wheels and it bends the rotors, strips the threads and possibly breaks the studs, -- in any case makes it very difficult to remove the nuts for subsequent service....

Yes I, and many of us here, do our own wheels changes and feel much better for doing so, tho it's a tedious dirty job. All you need is a decent half in drive socket set and a half inch drive torque wrench -- as you can imagine torque wrenches are very handy tools and a must for any level of mechanics.

I'd suggest first that you return to you friendly dealership who last replaced your tires/wheels and explain your prdicament and have them loosen those nuts again for you so that you can then go home and do a decent job yourself of putting your summers on.

Kudos for wanting to do your own work.....You need a few tools, but you'll benefit in the long run and you'll feel very confident that the job was done properly and to your satisfaction.
Saving a few $$$ in the process is good too....

G/L and let us know how it goes. Any further questions, just post up.....

Colin

 

Hi Albert, I too change my own wheels and also do it for a couple of friends.
You do not need an impact of any sort. That is the same as people can't do calculations anymore unless the use a calculator, . Jeeesh.

All you need is a socket (21mm in my case), a 1/2' drive breaker (Johnson) bar, 1/2" drive extension, and a 1/2" drive torque wrench. The manual for my G specifies 80 ft-lbs of torque. So I torque between 80-85 ft-lbs.

Do it right and do it yourself, it is very easy.

Wayne

 

I have Blizzaks and Firestone swaps them for free.

 

I'm lazy...what can I say

 

^+1...

 

To loosen the lugs, I use this:

Road Xpedition Lug Wrench Kit or something similar. It's available at Canadian Tire for 29.99. The handle is telescopic to give you more leverage.

For even more leverage, you can use a long steel pipe but can't imagine that you would need to.

 

Appreciate it guys. I will look into getting the dealership to loosen these puppies. I'll bet they'll find some way to charge me for that too.

Anyone have any suggestions on what kind of torque wrench for me to pick up? I'm not looking at top of the line, but reliability and cost-effectiveness.

Thanks in advance,
Albert

 

Last week in Crappy Tire I saw they were getting rid of their Master Plus line of torque wrenchs. They were discontinuing that particular model to bring in a new line. 1/2 inch was $90ish ( reg $139 ). While I was in the seasonal section keeping an eye on my wife's purchases someone scooped the last two. He who hesitates is lost. The tire place I got my winter's from store my idle set($30) and charge the same to change em up. If you find one, let me know.

 

I change three sets at home, the G, my wife's and my son's cars. My son and I do all three cars in less than two hours, including washing the tires as they come off and storing them away. I hang them between the rafters in the garage on padded steel rods, and use a spreadsheet to log the mileage, tread wear and track the positions for rotation.
Up till now I've just used a cross wrench and torque wrench to change them but I just bought a compressor, so I can use an impact from now on to spin them off.

 

Sam's right, CTC usually has them on sale , they go on sale a few times each year. They were on sale a few weeks ago for approx $79 .
What you want is a ratcheting, click-type 1/2" drive torque wrench,

 

This brought back some bad memories. When I first tried to change my own tires a few years ago, I asked someone at Canadian Tires how much torque I was suppose to use with the torque wrench I had just purchased from them and they said use the max. Stupidly I listened to them and broke 2 lugs. It was a $200 mistake and was lucky a mechanic friend was able to do a home call as it saved me $$$ in towing fees. Moral of the story, trust no one wjo works in such places.

 

Wayne,

Next time we meet up, could you have a look at my torque wrench. I'm not sure if its working properly.

Thx,

B.

 

Sure Bill.

I found the thread where they were on sale (they were only $47.99)
Here it is : https://g35driver.com/forums/showthr...=torque+wrench