If A Tire Goes Flat; Changing A Flat Tire - Chevrolet TRACKER 2003 Manual

If a Tire Goes Flat
It's unusual for a tire to "blowout" 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 inj-.j. 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 an automatic transmission shift lever
in PARK (P), or shift a manual
transmission to FIRST (1) or
REVERSE (R).
3. If you have a four-wheel-drive vehicle, be
sure the transfer case is in a drive
gear--not in NEUTRAL.
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.
4. Turn off the engine. To be even more
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