How to Rotate Tires at Home

Each of your vehicle’s tires wears down in a slightly different pattern due to its position. Over time, uneven wear patterns can result in lost traction and shortened tire life — which is why experts recommend rotating FWD and RWD tires every 5,000 to 7,500 miles. AWD tires, which experience greater torque, need to be rotated every 3,000 to 5,000 miles.

Whether you learn how to rotate tires at home in Buffalo or defer to the professionals, this is an important service that you don’t want to skip! Learn more about how to do a tire rotation in the guide below from the Joe Basil Chevrolet service center, or reach out to schedule a service appointment today.

Service Center Schedule Service How Often to Rotate Tires

How to Do a Tire Rotation: FWD vs. RWD Vehicles

• FWD Tires – To rotate tires on FWD vehicles, move the front right and front left tires to the rear right and rear left positions, respectively. When you move the rear tires to the front, switch their right/left positions: rear right to front left, and rear left to front right.

• RWD Tires – For RWD vehicles, you need to reverse the FWD rotation pattern. Keep the left/right orientation the same for the rear tires, moving rear right and rear left to the front right and front left positions, respectively. Then move the front left to the rear right position, and the front right tire to the rear left.

How to Rotate Tires at Home

If you have some experience with auto repair and maintenance, learning how to do a tire rotation yourself can save you the time and expense of service at a Cheektowaga-area service center. You’ll need a car jack, jack stands, and a lug wrench before following these steps:

1. Engage the parking brake.
2. Loosen the lug nuts on all four wheels, but don’t remove them all the way.
3. Raise a wheel using a car jack, and prop it up with a jack stand. Do the same with the other 3 wheels.
4. Remove the tires one by one, and rotate according to the proper rotation pattern for your drivetrain. While you do so, take the opportunity to check the tire pressure and tread depth.
5. When placing the tires in their new positions, screw in the lug nuts as far as you can by hand.
6. Use the jack to lower the car, and remove the jack stands one at a time. Working in a star pattern to ensure even tightening, tighten the nuts using the lug wrench. This step is important because unevenly tightened lug nuts can cause warping of the brake rotor.

Schedule Professional Tire Rotation Service in Depew

If you’re feeling uncertain about how to rotate tires at home, no worries! The team of expert Chevrolet technicians at Joe Basil Chevrolet can take care of it for you. Contact us today to schedule an appointment at our service center near Lancaster, and find out how much you can save with our current service specials.