How to Install Your Wheel and Tire Package
Before You Start
Installation of your wheel and tire package is required to be completed by a professional technician. Please read this entire guide before installation and make sure the fitment is correct for your application.
- Always use new lug nuts when installing new wheels.
- Never use lubricants on lugs or studs. This may result in loss of torque or failure of wheel studs.
- Do not use air/electric impact wrenches to fully tighten your lugs. This may result in improper torque to the lugs causing them to fail while driving.
01 Checking Lug Nut Fitment
The first and most important step to installation is making sure you have the right fitment for your vehicle and wheel application. Failure to use the correct lug nuts will cause unsafe driving conditions that can result in wheel loss while driving. Only use lug nuts designed to fit your specific vehicle and wheel application.
Use the checklist below to verify your lug nut fitment prior to installation.
- Thread Size and Thread Pitch - Each lug nut has a specific thread size and thread pitch determined by your vehicle specifications. The thread size of the lug nut must match your vehicle’s wheel studs.
- Seating Style - There are three common types of lug nut seating styles determined by your type of wheels: (1) cone or tapered seat, (2) mag or shank seat, and (3) radius or ball seat. The seating style of the lug nut must match the wheel lug seat. Using the wrong seating style will cause vibration, loosening of lug nuts, or damage to your vehicle.
- Lug Style - Different types of wheels require different styles of lug nuts. For example, most aftermarket wheels will require a small diameter lug while most factory style wheels will require a larger diameter lug. These would have been included in your wheel and tire package, or if purchased. However, most small diameter lugs will be unsafe to install on factory wheels.
- Minimum Thread Engagement - The thickness of a wheel can differ from factory wheels to aftermarket wheels. For that reason, it’s essential to verify that the lug nuts will properly engage the threads on your vehicle’s wheel studs.
02 Checking Wheel Clearances
Making sure that your wheels fit properly is a necessary step in any installation. The following steps will help you in making sure there are no clearance issues prior to mounting your tires onto your wheels.
- Ensure you are wearing the appropriate protective gear. We recommend gloves and eye protection during the lug nut installation process.
- Park on a hard, level surface and apply the parking brake.
- Loosen the lug nuts one quarter turn but do not remove them from the wheel.
- Raise up your vehicle following the process outlined in your vehicle owner’s manual.
- Secure the wheel and remove the lug nuts, then the wheel.
- Take the new wheel for both the front and rear, placing them on and securing them with at least 1 lug nut.
- Check to make sure the wheel spins freely. Make sure to reach behind and check there is adequate clearance between the wheel and any moving parts.
- If there are any clearance issues, package the wheels in their original boxes and please reach out to our team for support on the next steps. If no issues are found, you’re ready for installation!
03 Install Your Wheels and Lug Nuts
Once you have verified clearance and lug fitment, its time to install your new wheels and tires onto the vehicle. Follow all instructions in the order presented.
- Clean and inspect all stud threads and mounting surfaces before installation. Threads must not be lubricated and must be free of corrosion, rust, burrs, fractures, and damage. Replace studs if they are corroded, stripped, damaged, or if any fractures are found.
- Place the wheel back onto the vehicle hub. Match the bolt circle of the wheel to that of your vehicle. The wheel must make full contact with the mating surface of the hub.
- Install your lug nuts and tighten with your hand in a star, or criss cross, pattern until you cannot hand tighten anymore. Do not force your lugs on with a wrench. If they cannot be turned by hand, stop installation and contact us for more information.
- Once all lug nuts have been tightened to meet minimum thread engagement and your wheel is sitting flush against the mating surface, lower the vehicle to ground and tighten all lug nuts to the proper torque specifications shown in your vehicle owner’s manual. We recommend using a calibrated torque wrench for this step. Apply torque evenly by repeating the star, or criss cross, pattern until the desired torque is reached.
- Always re-torque your lug nuts after the first 25 miles of use each time the lug nuts are removed and installed. Failure to re-torque could result in unsafe driving conditions.
04 Post Installation Checklist
You’re almost there! We recommend that the following safety checklist be completed after installation. This checklist is not intended to replace the installation guide above. Instead, we’ve included this checklist to help ensure major safety points were checked before, during, and after the installation process.
- Lug nuts are verified to be the correct fitment for your vehicle and wheel application, including thread size, seating style, lug style, and minimum thread engagement.
- All threads and studs are free from rust, corrosion, fractures, lubricant, etc.
- Air impact wrenches were not used to torque the lug nuts.
- All lug nuts are tightened to the proper torque specification with a calibrated torque wrench.
- All lug nuts have been re-torqued after the first 25 miles or driving.
