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About This Quiz
Can you change your tires without busting a lug nut or your knuckles? Do you laugh at how long it takes Formula One pit crews to get the job done? Are you always looking at tread depth as you walk up to your vehicle?Â
Even the most car-oriented people often overlook their tires. That's unfortunate, because tires make a huge impact on performance. They're the only piece of a car's equipment that actually touches the road. As a result, they directly impact acceleration, stopping distances, handling, and fuel efficiency. In other words, ignoring the tires can have a huge effect on how your vehicle drives, and not for the better.Â
Properly maintaining your tires involves rotating and balancing them regularly. Staying on top of these often-forgotten items will make your tires last longer, saving you money, too.Â
Even well-maintained tires might need to be changed in an emergency. Knowing how to change a tire properly can save you from being stranded, so it's a good skill to have.Â
Just how much do you know about these three valuable maintenance items? Take the quiz now and find out!Â
Before you start jacking up the car to change the tires, what should you do?
kick the wheels
take off the tires
loosen the lug nuts
Initially loosening lug nuts requires quite a bit of torque, and that likely is enough to cause the jack to tip over, so it's best to do before you raise the car.
balance the tires
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Which way do you turn the lug nuts to loosen them?
counter-clockwise
Remember that lefty is loosie or that turning the lug nuts will back them off the bolts.
clockwise
right
toward the front bumper
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When raising the car, what do you do with the wheels on the opposite end you're jacking up?
lock them by turning the steering wheel
secure then with chocks
Wheel chocks are inexpensive and designed to keep the tires from rolling at all, so the car doesn't fall off the jack.
tap them with a hammer
nothing
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Which of the following do you not want for the place where you'll change tires on your car?
plenty of distance from traffic
a completely flat surface
curving ground
It's key that you find the right surface to jack up your car, otherwise you might have trouble with the car falling off the jack or other problems that could lead to injuries.
a solid surface
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Where do you place the jack under the vehicle?
anywhere
at the jack points
You can find the exact location of the jack points by looking in the owner's manual, if you're unsure.
just behind the wheels
under the front and rear bumpers
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How high should you jack up your car?
only 6 inches
exactly 4 inches
as high as the jack will go
high enough the tire is no longer touching the ground
Exactly how high really depends on your vehicle and the size of the tires, but there needs to be room to remove the wheel freely.
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Where is the spare tire located in most sedans and coupes?
under the hood
under the backseat
in the trunk
On most cars, the spare tire is hidden under the trunk floor, so you'll have to remove everything to take it out.
next to the gas tank
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On most trucks and SUVs, where is the spare tire often mounted?
on the underside in the rear
This is the common placement for trucks and SUVs, although a few have the spare mounted to the back or sitting upright on one side of the cargo area.
under the rear seats
on the roof
on top of the hood
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Once you put the new wheel on the bolts, what do you do next?
lower the jack
tighten the lug nuts by hand
You'll need to tighten the lug nuts by hand, ensuring the wheel doesn't come off when you lower the car.
tighten only the top lug nuts
nothing
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Once you've lowered the car, what else do you need to do?
nothing
kick the tire
tap on the hubcap
tighten the lug nuts the rest of the way
Some people just stomp on the tire iron to get the lug nuts all they way tightened, but if you have a torque wrench and the owner's manual, that's even better.
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Before driving off, it's always a good idea to do what?
check the spare tire's pressure
Since your spare tire has been sitting out of sight and mind, you likely haven't been keeping it aired up properly. Now's a good time to check the tire pressure and make adjustments, if necessary.
a big burnout
rev the engine
nothing
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Before you balance a tire, what safety equipment should you have?
a cup
glasses and gloves
When working with a tire balancer, your eyes and hands are at risk without proper protection.
shoulder pads
a face mask
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After you turn on the balancer, what must you need to ensure for accurate readings?
calibration
Exactly how you verify the balancer has been calibrated depends on the device, which you should be familiar with.
clip sizing
rotational velocity
safety cover operation
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Prior to installing a wheel and tire in the balance machine, what should you do?
remove the tire
polish the wheel
remove any weights
The whole point of the balance machine is to test if the wheel and tire are fully balanced without the use of weights.
roll the tire five times
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What should you install in the wheel hub once the wheel is in the balancer?
pin
plug
cone
The balancer should come with cones that will fit securely in the center of the wheel hub. You must select the correct one for your wheel hub, ensuring everything works correctly.
tape
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What do you use to secure the wheel to the balancer?
wing nut
pressure cup and wing nut
When you use the pressure cup and wing nut, you must also ensure the wheel is going on straight, otherwise the balancing reading won't be entirely accurate.
pressure bar
security nut
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Before you start up the balancer, what safety measure must be in place?
wheel lock
harmonizer
equalizer
hood
The hood keeps debris from flying out and hitting you or someone else. Some balancers won't start until the hood is lowered.
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If the wheel isn't balanced, what should you do?
nothing
install wheel weights
The machine will indicate where the imbalance is on the wheel, so you can install weights there. But, you should always turn on the balance machine again to confirm you've balanced the wheel properly.
replace the tire
hit the tire with a hammer
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If the wheel is an aftermarket model or has no lip in the front, what kind of weights do you use?
magnetic
low center
tape
Tape weights have an adhesive backing, plus they come in squares that are a quarter ounce each, so you just add the appropriate number to the wheel in a discreet location.
low profile
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When putting on clips, what do you need to consider?
wheel contour
weight size
Unlike tape weights, clips come in a whole range of sizes, which determines how much they weigh. You must select the proper one for each wheel.
weight contour
weight finish
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Which wheels need to be balanced?
all four
Balancing wheels is something you need to do for all four wheels, otherwise you might run into problems with performance and tire wear.
only the drive wheels
only the front
only the rear
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What would prevent you from following the traditional rotation patterns for tires?
all season tires
different sizes on the front versus rear
In some cars, the front and rear tires aren't the same size, so you can't swap them. Also, if your car's equipped with directional tires, you can't follow the traditional patterns.
snow studs
uneven wear
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Which rotation pattern is recommended for front-wheel-drive cars?
forward cross
A forward cross pattern involves swapping the front tires to the same side on the rear, while swapping the rear tires to the front and opposite sides.
rearward cross
double cross
X-pattern
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If a car is equipped with directional tires, what kind of rotation pattern should you follow?
sidewinder
side-to-side
front-to-rear
Like the name suggests, the front-to-rear pattern involves swapping the wheels from the front to the rear and vice versa, keeping them on the same side of the vehicle.
frontsies
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With a car that has front and rear tires that don't match in size, how should you rotate them?
sidewinder
side-to-side
Because you can't mix sizes, this requires you to swap the left and right tires, keeping them at the same end of the car.
frontwinder
shifty
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What about cars that have full-size spare tires?
It doesn't mean anything.
Include the spare in the tire rotation each time.
Unless a tire is labeled for temporary use only, if it's the same size as the other tires, you should work it into the rotation by placing it on the right rear wheel.
Keep the spare where it goes.
Always put the spare on the front left.
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If a vehicle has dual rear tires and all six are the same size, how should you swap them?
rotate them all clockwise
rotate them all counterclockwise
swap every other one
outside rear to the inside, front to outside rear, inside rear to front.
This is a fairly complex swap, but it's still not too bad, as long as the tires are all the exact same size.
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What can happen from not rotating the tires on an all-wheel-drive car routinely?
nothing
driveline damage
If the tires on your vehicle have different levels of grip, that can cause the all-wheel-drive system to engage too much, resulting in different parts wearing out entirely.
The tires wear out even faster.
You bend a wheel.
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When rotating studded tires, what consideration must you take into account?
the size of the studs
the type of metal used
stud length
the rolling direction
You should never change the rolling direction of studded tires, which means a front-to-rear rotation pattern is necessary.
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If you don't have a lift, how can you support the car while rotating tires?
bottle jack
jack stands
Jack stands are designed to keep the car lifted up off the ground, and you can even use them at all four corners.
butterfly jack
bricks
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How often should you be rotating the tires on your car?
every 3,000 to 5,000 miles
To keep tread wear even, it's a good idea to rotate the tires within this mileage.
every 10,000 miles
once a year
every other year
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When tightening the lug nuts, what pattern should you follow?
star
By tightening one lug nut, then tightening the next one diagonally from that, you create a star pattern that ensures you tighten everything evenly.
square
circular
none
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If you don't tighten the lug nuts evenly, what's one possible consequence?
The struts will blow.
The tire will explode.
nothing
The brake rotor warps.
Taking the time to ensure proper and even tightening of the lug nuts is worth the extra effort.
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If you rotate but don't balance the tires, what could happen?
nothing
uneven tread wear
Not only can unbalanced tires lead to uneven tread wear, they can also cause premature suspension component failure, because the wheels are constantly moving up and down.
The tires explode.
The tires won't keep air.
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Which of the following would speed up the process of changing, balancing and rotating tires?
a breaker bar
air impact wrench
Using an air impact wrench speeds up the job big time, because you can remove and tighten the lug nuts quickly and with precision.
oil-resistant boots
gloves
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You Got:
/35
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