How To Rotate Tires With One Jack? (Explained For Beginners)

Experts on vehicles would advise that you rotate your tires regularly and do it as a routine. Then, you can either do the job for yourself, or you can also consult a service center. Either way, you must do the right thing. 

So how to rotate your tires with just one jack? First, before you lose the studs of the tires on your vehicle, you have to park your vehicle and use the gear handle so that the tires will not move and then use your car jack or jack stands in lifting your car to a level that you want to and then after that, loosen the nuts of the wheels. Then, rotate them according to the pattern of your vehicle, and if you have placed the tires back, the nut and the studs must be screwed again; tighten it properly and then remove the jack stands. 

Experts would always recommend that you should regularly rotate your tires. You can rotate your tires if you have a truck, car, or SUV, and this can lengthen the life of your vehicle’s tire. It can also optimize your safety. 

This is why you must rotate your tires in the right way. Many people are asking how they should do their tire rotation with just one jack. With that, we have created this article for you. 

In this article, we will be talking about how to rotate your tires with just one jack. You will learn how to do the job even if you are just at home and have just one car jack. All your tires will experience wear, and this is because of the friction between your tire and the road. 

So you have to rotate your tires regularly, which will help them to last longer. It will also be more durable. So let us start talking about how to rotate your tires with just one jack.

How To Rotate Tires With One Jack

Can You Rotate Your Tires With One Jack?

Yes, you can rotate your tires with just one jack. The rear tires will get used with the acceleration and the traction on a rear-wheel-drive vehicle. The front tires will stay responsible for the steering and the traction but not the acceleration. 

But you can rotate your tires with just one jack. Many people are already doing it and know how to do it also. You have to learn about it. 

How To Rotate Tires With One Jack?

It’s always recommended to consult a professional in servicing your truck, car, or even SUV, including the rotation of your vehicle. The greatest struggle and challenge in doing the tire rotation by yourself. If you do it yourself, you will even have a tough time with just the lack of a car lift. 

If you do not have a lift, this will create a challenge in taking off a lot of tires, and this also is very tricky if you only have just one jack. So in this situation, you might want to have a jack stand. In just forty dollars ($40), you can have a set of four. 

So you have to make sure that you park your vehicle on a level surface. Before you jack up any tire, you have to go around and loosen the lug nuts first. If your tires are already up in the air, the tires can spin, and it will be complex and complicated for you to lose them. 

After that, you can jack up on one side, the rear of the front, and then you can lower the axle so that you can rest on the jack stand. You can then proceed to another tire. You have to repeat the procedure in all four of your tires until your vehicle will remain entirely supported by the jack stands. 

If it is in the air and is secure, you can take the tires away. The way you rotate your tires will depend on whether you have directional tires or non-directional tires. The directional tires are made to rotate in a single direction using a tread pattern designed to optimize the steering and releasing of water. 

On the other hand, the non-directional tires can rotate in both directions with equal effectiveness. And due to this, the directional tires will always remain on the same side of the vehicle. You then have to rotate your directional tires. 

You can do this by swapping the front right for the rear right and on the left side again. If you rotate your non-directional tires, you have to move the rear tires forward and to the same side. You then have to take the front tires and put the front tires on the opposite side of the rear axle. 

If you are done with the rotation of your vehicle, you can then tighten the lug nuts and keep on tightening them until your tires will start to spin. After that, you have to carefully jack up one axle and then remove the jack stand. After that, lower the tire into the ground. 

Do this process again for the other tires in the vehicle. If they are all in the ground, you can go back around each tire and then securely tighten the lug nuts. After doing that, you are now done. 

How Long Does It Take To Rotate Tires With One Jack?

If a well-trained person is doing the tire rotation, they can do it in about ten minutes, and some expert people can do it in just a few minutes. However, the checking and the correction can take over five minutes on each tire. Sometimes, people do it for about an hour.

Is It Better To Get Another Jack?

Well, this depends on you. For example, some people say it is dangerous to use just one jack, but many people use one. 

Summary

In summary, many people are asking if they can rotate their tires with just one jack. You can rotate your tires with just one jack. 

Some people are good about tire rotation, even if they only have one jack. You can always consult an expert.

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Image credits – Canva

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My name is Hank, and I've been in the automotive industry for 27 years. I've been working in my own auto repair shop for the last 13 years, and now I want to help you here, on my blog. Let me know if you have any questions. Read more