How to Change a Tire on a Jetta VW

by Kyle McBrideUpdated November 07, 2017

Items you will need

  • Floor jack

  • Jack stand

  • Socket set

  • Ratchet

  • Torque wrench

  • Tire gauge

Your 2015 Volkswagen Jetta comes with a vehicle tool kit. It's with the spare tire under the floor panel in the trunk, and contains everything you need to change a tire. After changing the tire, you'll have to recalibrate the tire pressure monitoring system, even if the new tire is the same brand and model and it is inflated to the same tire pressure as the old one.

Park your Jetta on solid ground and as far away from traffic as possible. Put the gearshift in "Park" if you have an automatic transmission or in gear if you have a stick. Set the emergency brake. Turn off the ignition and remove the key. Chock the wheel diagonally across from the one you want to remove.

Remove the center medallion on wheel, if one is equipped, or the wheel cover. For the pop-off medallion, use the wire clip from the Jetta's tool kit. Hook the end of the clip in one of the holes around the edge of the medallion and pull toward you to pop it off. For the twist-off medallion, press in and turn it counterclockwise to remove it. If you have individual bolt caps, use the wire clip. Insert it into the hole on each bolt cap and pull it toward you to remove them. If you have the full wheel cover, hook the wire clip in a vent slot at the top of the wheel cover. Slip the lug wrench up through the loop in the clip. Brace the top end of the lug wrench against the tire and pull up on the lower end to pop the wheel cover free.

Loosen the wheel bolts one full turn. Position the jack under the jacking point on the vertical rib indicated by the arrow on the lower rocker panel. The jacking points are just behind the front wheels and just forward of the rear wheels. Lift the Jetta up and support it on the jack stand.

Finish removing the wheel bolts and remove the wheel. Install the replacement wheel. If you're mounting the unidirectional compact spare, make sure you install it with the rotation arrow pointing forward at the top of the tire. Install the wheel bolts and snug them.

Lower the Jetta to the ground and tighten the wheel bolts to 88 foot-pounds in a star pattern. Install the wheel cover, bolt caps or wheel medallion.

Check all four tires with a tire gauge and inflate them to the pressure given on the label inside the driver's door. Check the tire pressure when the tires are cold. If you have to adjust the tire pressure when the tires are warm, inflate them to 3 psi over the recommended tire pressure to compensate. Open the glovebox and press the "Set" button to recalibrate the TPMS.

Tips

The wheel bolts are matched to the wheels installed at the factory. Different wheels may require different length bolts or different shaped bolt heads. Don't assume the wheel bolts are interchangeable between Jettas even if they are the same year and trim level.

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