It’s a ritual that Canadians perform each year as late fall approaches.
Soon, drivers across the country will be taking their dusty winter tires off and putting them on their vehicles before the snow arrives.
When it comes to safety, drivers need to consider several things when making sure the wheels of their vehicles are properly secured.
Many shops will retorque a customer’s wheels for free – that is, they will inspect each lug nut on the wheel to see if they are too loose or too tight – after driving a certain distance after a tire change. Others may not recommend it at all.
But as some point out, the timing of re-tightening varies depending on who you ask, while cleaning is something drivers sometimes overlook.
WHEN SHOULD I tighten?
CTVNews.ca contacted several car service companies and industry associations to find out when and why you should tighten your wheels after a tire change.
Most recommendations ranged from 50 kilometers of driving after a tire change to more than 100 or 150 km.
The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) said in a statement that most unintended wheel separations while driving are caused by fastener failure or when the lug nuts or bolts that hold the wheel in place loosen. .
CAA recommends that drivers retorque the wheels of their vehicles within 100 and 150 km of a tire change, clean the rim and hub mating surfaces, and verify that the correct fasteners are used and properly tightened.
A spokesperson said this recommendation should be used as a general rule and that some service providers may suggest tightening sooner based on their assessment of a vehicle.
Tire Dealers Association of Canada (CTMA) Vice President Charley Kriksic said in a statement that a retightening should be carried out to the automaker’s specifications within 50 and 70 km.
A spokesperson added that TDAC is working with the US-based Tire Industry Association, which has conducted studies and worked with tire manufacturers on when retightening should take place.
“While industry recommendations may vary, with some stating that re-tightening should occur before 100 km, TDAC and other provincial tire associations make our recommendations based on advice and information from the Tire Industry Association “, the spokesperson said in a statement.
Greg Lawrence, general manager of Ontario-based Active Green + Ross Complete Tire & Auto Centre, said that while a retorque is usually completed within 100 km or seven days, “it really doesn’t make a difference.”
Some stay-at-home clients, he said, may take a month to travel 100 km, while others like him may travel up to 200 km a day to and from work.
“It’s a store-specific decision,” he said in an email to CTVNews.ca.
CLEANING AND COLD
While retightening can help, it’s not the only thing drivers need to watch out for.
Lawrence told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview Tuesday that there was no harm in making a second couple.
But what drivers need to remember is that the contact points between the wheels and the hub are cleaned of all oil and dirt.
“There’s corrosion that builds up over time between the two and if that’s not cleaned up you can retighten the wheels as often as you want, but they won’t adjust properly, and that’s is what makes the wheels come off,” he said. . “It’s not necessarily a wheel torque issue.”
The problem is bigger with alloy wheels than with steel, Lawrence said, with the latter not corroding as badly or as often.
“But even if it is only a light sanding or a light cleaning of the surfaces, they are sometimes very badly corroded if the wheels have not been removed for several years, and then it becomes more difficult to clean them. But that’s the only reason we’ve seen wheels coming off or coming loose,” he said.
Cleaning may incur an additional charge and drivers can ask their garages if they clean contact surfaces before putting the wheels back on a vehicle.
Another thing drivers should consider, Lawrence added, is whether a shop uses calibrated manual torque wrenches, which they prefer in order to achieve proper torque. It is equally important to ensure that the correct lug nuts are in place.
“If you put on a bad lug nut, you can clean it up and tighten it all you want, but it won’t install properly. So there’s a lot of engineering behind even something as simple as a wheel nut.”
Chris Reynolds, field expert and vice president of advertising at Canada Drives, said retightening would help if a few days after changing a tire the temperature drops significantly or a driver goes over a hard bump, which could affect a vehicle’s wheel nuts. .
Even if you don’t change your tires, doing a spin could give someone an excuse to get their wheels checked, he said.
And then there’s making sure your tires have enough tread, which Reynolds said a simple parts test could help determine.
“If you never change your tire, which is also a scenario, I would recommend that you go at least once a year and have it serviced and checked,” he said.
TORQUE CHECK AFTER INSTALLATION
A Kal Tire spokesperson said in a statement that the company routinely performs a torque check 50km after an installation or the next business day.
Now this happens immediately after an install, to prevent a driver from forgetting to follow.
“While driving a distance will reveal poor joint settlement, there are other ways to identify when this issue will occur,” the spokesperson said.
After removing the wheels, inspecting the components and cleaning the mating surfaces, the spokesperson said the lug nuts are torqued below their recommended torque and hand-tightened while the vehicle is suspended.
“Before handing the vehicle over to the customer, we lower the vehicle to the ground from its suspended position and replicate the joint settlement process, similar to what would happen when the vehicle is being driven,” the spokesperson said.
“We then re-tighten the lug nuts to specification. In the final torque check of the vehicle’s wheels, if any lug nuts are loose, we take the vehicle back and go through the whole process again.”
For drivers installing their winter tires and rims at home, the spokesperson says it is strongly recommended to check their torque within the first 50 kilometers of driving.
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