1997 CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving,
especially if
you maintain your tires properly. If air goes
out
of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But if you should ever have
a “blowout,” here are a few
tips about what to expect and what to do:
If a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel firmly.
Steer
to maintain lane position, and then gently brake to
a stop well out of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve, acts much like a
skid and may require the
same correction you’d use in a
skid.
In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake to a stop
-- well off the road if possible.
If a tire goes flat, the next part shows how to use your
jacking equipment to change a flat tire safely.
Changing a Flat Tire
If a tire goes flat, avoid further tire and wheel damage
by driving slowly
to a level place. Turn on your hazard
warning flashers.
Changing a tire can cause an injury. The vehicle
can slip off the jack and roll over you or other
people. You and they could be badly injured.
Find
a level place to change your tire. To help
prevent the vehicle from moving:
1. Set the parking brake firmly.
2. Put the shift lever in PARK (P),
3, ’Ibrn off the engine.
To be even more certain the vehicle won’t move,
you can put blocks at the front and rear of the
tire farthest away from the one being changed.
That would be the tire on the other side of the
vehicle,
at the opposite end.
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The following steps will tell you how to use the jack and
change a tire.
Removing the Spare Tire and Tools
I The equipment you’ll need
is in the trunk. Pull the
carpeting from the floor of
the trunk. Turn the center
nut on the compact spare
cover counterclockwise to
remove it. Then lift and
remove the cover.
Turn
the wing nut
counterclockwise and
remove it. Then lift
off the
spacer and remove the spare
tire. See “Compact Spare
Tire” later in this section for
more information about the
compact spare.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine F '1
" .A
Turn the nut holding the jack and wrench
counterclockwise and remove it. Then remove the jack
and wrench. The
tools you'll be using include the jack (A),
socket (B) and wheel wrench (C).
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine ..... ..
If there is a wheel cover, loosen the nut caps with the
wheel wrench. They won’t come
off. Then, using the
flat end
of the wheel wrench, pry along the edge of the
wheel cover until it comes off. Be careful; the edge may
be sharp. Don’t try to remove the cover with your
bare hands.
I
To remove a center cap, use the wrench to pry gently at
the notch. Don’t
use a tool that is narrower than the
wrench to pry at this notch.
If your vehicle has wheel nut caps, remove them using
the wheel wrench.
5-27
-

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Removing the Flat Tire and Installing the
Spare Tire
1. Using the wheel wrench, loosen all the wheel nuts.
Don't remove them yet.
2. Turn the jack handle clockwise to raise the jack lift
head a few inches.
3. Position the jack under
the vehicle and raise the
jack lift head until it fits
firmly into
the notch in
the vehicle's frame
nearest the flat tire.
Put the compact
spare
tire near you.
A CAUTION:
Getting under a vehicle when it is jacked up is I
dangerous. If the vehicle slips off the jack, you !
could be badly injured or killed. Never get under i
a vehicle when it is supported only by a jack.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A CAUTION:
Raising your vehicle with the jack improperly
positioned can damage the vehicle and even make
the vehicle fall.
To help avoid personal injury
and vehicle damage, be sure to fit the jack lift
head into the proper location before raising
the vehicle.
4.
Raise the vehicle by turning the jack handle
clockwise. Raise
the vehicle far enough off the
ground for
the spare tire to fit under the vehicle.
5. Remove all wheel nuts and take off the flat tire.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 6. Remove any rust or dirt
from the wheel bolts,
mounting surfaces and
spare wheel.
A CAUTION:
Rust or dirt on the wheel, or on the parts to
which it
is fastened, can make the wheel nuts
become loose after
a time. The wheel could come
off and cause an accident. When you change a
wheel, remove any rust or dirt from the places
where the wheel attaches to the vehicle. In an
emergency, you can use a cloth or a paper towel
to do this; but be sure to use a scraper or wire
brush later, if you need to,
to get all the rust or
dirt off.
I A CAUTION:
Never use oil or grease on studs or nuts. If you
do, the nuts might come loose. Your wheel. could
fall off, causing a serious accident.
1

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 7. Replace the wheel nuts
with the rounded end
of the nuts toward the
wheel. Tighten each nut
8. Lower the vehicle by turning the jack handle
counterclockwise. Lower the jack completely.
5-31