2002 Oldsmobile Silhouette wheel

5-21
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.
CAUTION:
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. Turn 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.
The following steps will tell you how to use the jack and
change a tire.

5-24
3. To remove the compact spare tire from the cable, tilt
the retainer at the end of the cable so it can be pulled
up through the wheel opening.4. If your vehicle is an all
-wheel-drive vehicle, after
removing the compact spare tire, turn the wrench
clockwise to raise the cable back up.
On an AWD vehicle, you can not store a full
-size
tire under the vehicle. It should be stowed inside
the vehicle by the cable provided. See ªStoring the
Flat Tire on an All
-Wheel-Drive Vehicleº later in
this section.
If you have a front
-wheel-drive vehicle, the hoist
is used to store a full
-size or a flat road tire under the
vehicle. See ªStoring the Spare Tire and Toolsº and
ªStoring the Flat Tire on a Front
-Wheel-Drive
Vehicleº later in this section.
If the compact spare tire will not lower, check under the
vehicle to see if the tire is hanging loose and the cable
end and spring under the wheel plate are missing. If so,
the secondary latch system is engaged. See ªSecondary
Latch Systemº later in this section.
To continue changing the flat tire see ªRemoving
the Flat Tire and Installing the Spare Tireº later in
this section.

5-25 Removing the Wheel Covers
If your vehicle has
aluminum wheels,
use the handle of
the folding wrench
to pry the large
center cap off.
Then, with the other end of the folding wrench, loosen
the nuts.
If your vehicle has the plastic ªbolt-onº wheel covers,
loosen them completely using the folding wrench, and
remove the wheel cover.

5-26 Secondary Latch System (If Equipped)
Your vehicle may have an underbody mounted tire hoist
assembly equipped with a secondary latch system. It's
designed to stop a tire from suddenly falling off your
vehicle if the cable holding the tire is damaged. For the
secondary latch to work, the tire must be stowed with
the valve stem pointing down.
Front
-wheel-drive vehicles use the underbody tire hoist
assembly to store either the compact spare or a flat road
tire. See ªStoring a Flat or Spare Tire and Toolsº in
the Index for instructions on storing the spare or flat
tire correctly.
If your vehicle is equipped with all
-wheel-drive, the
underbody tire hoist assembly stores only the compact
spare tire. See ªStoring the Spare Tire and Toolsº in
the Index for instructions. To store a flat full
-size tire
correctly, see ªStoring the Flat Tire on an
All
-Wheel-Drive Vehicleº in the Index.
CAUTION:
Before beginning this procedure read all the
instructions. Failure to read and follow the
instructions could damage the hoist assembly and
you and others could get hurt. Read and follow
the instructions listed below.
To release the spare tire from the secondary latch,
do the following:
CAUTION:
Someone standing too close during the procedure
could be injured by the jack. If the spare tire does
not slide off the jack completely, make sure no
one is behind you or on either side of you as you
pull the jack out from under the spare.

5-27
1. Place the jack under the vehicle, ahead of the rear
bumper. Position the center lift point of the jack
under the center of the compact spare tire.
2. Turn the folding wrench clockwise to raise the jack
until it lifts the secondary latch devise under the
wheel plate.
3. Keep raising the jack until the compact spare tire
stops moving upward and is held firmly in place, this
lets you know that the secondary latch has released.4. Lower the jack by turning the folding wrench
counterclockwise. Keep lowering the jack until the
compact spare tire is resting on the folding wrench.
5. Grasp the compact spare tire with both hands and
pull it out from under the vehicle.
6. Reach under the vehicle and remove the folding
wrench and jack.
Have the hoist assembly inspected as soon as you can.
You will not be able to store a spare or flat tire using the
hoist assembly until it has been repaired or replaced.

5-28 Removing the Flat Tire and Installing
the Spare Tire
1. Loosen the wheel
nuts
-- but do
not remove
them
-- using the
folding wrench.
(Turn the handle about 180 degrees, then flip the
handle back to the starting position. This avoids
taking the wrench off the lug nut for each turn.)
For wheels with a wheel lock key, use the wheel lock
key between the lock nut and folding wrench. The
key is supplied in the front passenger door pocket.
NOTICE:
To help avoid damage to the lock nut or the
wheel lock key, do not use an impact wrench
with this key.

5-29
2. Near each wheel,
there is a notch in
the vehicle's body.
Position the jack
and raise the jack
head until it fits
firmly into the
notch in the
vehicle's frame
nearest the flat tire.
NOTICE:
Do not place the jack under the rear axle
control arms. Only use the areas shown for
proper jack location.
Do not raise the vehicle yet. Put the compact spare
tire near you.
CAUTION:
Getting under a vehicle when it is jacked up is
dangerous. If the vehicle slips off the jack, you
could be badly injured or killed. Never get under
a vehicle when it is supported only by a jack.
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.

5-30
3. Attach the folding
wrench to the jack,
and turn the wrench
clockwise to raise the
jack head a few inches.
4. Raise the vehicle by turning the folding wrench
clockwise in the jack. Raise the vehicle far enough
off the ground so there is enough room for the
compact spare tire to fit.
5. Remove all the wheel nuts and take off the flat tire.
6. Remove any rust or dirt
from the wheel bolts,
mounting surfaces and
spare wheel.
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.
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.