How to Remove a New VW Beetle Tire

by Edwin Thomas

Home maintenance is a time-tested way to make ownership of a New Beetle cheaper, and there are a variety of routine maintenance and repair tasks that can be performed on a Volkswagen with ordinary tools. An example is fixing a flat tire, although many people who would think nothing of repairing the flat on their bicycle are daunted by doing the same thing to their car. In reality, taking the tire off the wheel of a New VW Beetle is a simple, albeit often dirty procedure.

Step 1

Insert a hubcap key under the holes in the hubcap and pull the hubcap off. If you do not have a hubcap key, improvise a substitute that can grip the underside of the hubcap on both sides of the hole, like a pair of Allen wrenches. Try to avoid prying the hubcap off with a screwdriver, since this will probably scratch the hubcap.

Step 2

Wedge a block under the other tire that you are not removing on the same side as the tire you are removing, for extra stability. If you are removing the rear driver's side tire, put the block under the front driver's side tire.

Step 3

Loosen the lug nuts on the wheel with the wrench-end of the tire iron before you jack up the car. If the nuts are stuck, the stable position of the car resting completely on the ground is safer to work with than having a quarter of the car in the air. Apply WD-40 to badly stuck nuts.

Step 4

Place your jack under one of the proper, weight-bearing points next to the Beetle's tires. If you are using your factory jack, insert the tire iron into the turning mechanism and turn it to lift the car. If you are using another jack, follow those instructions.

Step 5

Remove your tire iron from the jack, put the wrench end on top of one of the tire's lug nuts, and turn the iron to unscrew that nut. Repeat until all the nuts are removed. Pull the wheel off the car.

Step 6

Remove the valve stem from the tire by unscrewing it with a valve stem remover.

Step 7

Set the wheel down on the ground, so that it rests on its side. Jump up and down around the sidewall of the tire to break up the grip of the bead on the wheel rim.

Step 8

Wedge a flat-headed screwdriver under the tire sidewall, and pry the rubber out from under the rim until it sits over the side of the tire. Keep prying tire rubber out until all of one side of the tire is free of and resting outside the wheel rim.

Step 9

Flip the tire over and press down firmly on the other side of the tire wall with both hands until the other side of the tire comes free. This should be enough to free the tire, but you may need to pry loose stubborn areas with the screwdriver.

References

Things You'll Need