Anyone have an easy way to do your own tire rotation?

I do mine in my garage every 5,000 when I do my oil changes. Just jack one side up, place jack stands, then do the other side.

I have a couple of jacks from Horror Fraught, the cheap 1.5 ton "racing" jack, and the yellow 3 ton Daytona which is actually really good. My jack stands are *not* HF though, mine are US Jack Jack stands, which are about the best on the market. They are made in America and Mil-spec.
 
I do mine in my garage every 5,000 when I do my oil changes. Just jack one side up, place jack stands, then do the other side.

I have a couple of jacks from Horror Fraught, the cheap 1.5 ton "racing" jack, and the yellow 3 ton Daytona which is actually really good. My jack stands are *not* HF though, mine are US Jack Jack stands, which are about the best on the market. They are made in America and Mil-spec.
You just switch front and back? No X pattern?

PS. I’ve never done it but curious.
 
Yeah, I do front to back. I worked in a tire shop in college, and that's all we did.

I routinely get >60,000 our of my tires too, so it does work just fine.
 
I do front to back keeping the tires on the same side of the vehicle. I did this for years and on my previous car which was a GMotors, I tried their factory recommended cross rotation. The tires developed 'feathering ' across the tread and 'heel and toe wear' which reminds me of a circular saw blade when I ran my hand around the circumference of the tread. Regardless of the cause, no more cross rotation for me.
 
I use two floor jacks (front/rear) to lift the whole car and stabilize with stands on the sides. The side supports are absolutely necessary because the rear lift point is narrow and makes things tippy. Been doing the x-pattern rotation every 4000 miles. Goes pretty quick with a pneumatic gun.
 
Where are the front and rear lift points? Ive never been comfortable having a car on 4 jack stands, mainly because I’ve never been comfortable with the jack points?

I know the jack stands go on the pinch welds, that’s not really an issue.
 
Where are the front and rear lift points? Ive never been comfortable having a car on 4 jack stands, mainly because I’ve never been comfortable with the jack points?

I know the jack stands go on the pinch welds, that’s not really an issue.
Jack @ front cross member and rear diff(pumpkin).

Jacksstands@ pinchwelds

May not be safe in any car over 8 to 10 years old especially if frame and rocker panels rusted.

Make sure frame is solid. Check pinch-welds and frame carefully (for rust decay) before raising up on all 4 welds.
If in doubt take to local tire shop.

Throw an old rim and some 4x4 blocks under the frame as well to function as a safety stop.
 
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With a good jack, you can jack up one whole side at a time, no problem.

Exactly how I do mine, I jack the car up on one side where both tires are off of the ground, then place a jack stand under the front jack point. I then rotate the tires on that side, and lower the jack (keeping the jack stand in place.)

Then go to the other side, so the same thing. At this point, the tires are rotated, and the front of the car is still in the air, safely supported by the jack stands. Now I change my oil and do any other routine maintenance.

Lower the car one side at a time, done and done.

I can do a tire rotation and oil change in well under 30 minutes like this.
 
I take advantage of the spare tire when I do wheel rotations and I use my floor jack exclusively for the job. It's also a good time to make sure that the spare tire is inflated properly and that the area where the spare lives is clean and dry.

I follow the recommended method for rotating the wheels in the Mazda manual.

After removing the spare from the CX, I loosen the lugs on one of the rear wheels and then jack up the entire rear using the floor jack, placing the jack at the lift point on the rear dif. I swap the spare for the wheel with the loose lugs. I snug up the lugs on the spare and lower the car.

This next step is optional but it's what I do. Now with one of the rear wheels off the CX I wash and wax the entire wheel before placing the wheel onto the appropriate front location.

For lifting the front of the car, I either use the center lift point under the car and lift the entire front end or I use the lift point on one side, using a floor jack pad that fits the jack points behind the front wheels. Don't forget to loosen the lugs before jacking. I continue in this way till all wheels are washed, waxed, and rotated.

Would it be easier to use my jack stands during this process? Maybe, but I like the way that I do it.

Some folks are going to read this and wonder why I'm risking injury since I'm removing the wheels momentarily and not supporting the car with jack stands. First of all, I don't get under the car during this process. Second, the wheel is off for under 30 seconds while I place the freshly waxed wheel in position. Thirdly, my floor jack is supporting the car for the brief time it takes to swap the wheels.

As for doing oil changes at the same time as TheBlooms above? He has a very good routine, but I don't change the oil at the same time as I do the wheel rotation and I use homemade ramps when I change the oil. It works out the best for me this way.

YMMV
 
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I follow the recommended method for rotating the wheels in the Mazda manual.

For what it's worth, page 8-36 of my owners manual states that front to back is acceptable. And I got Michelin factory certified training when I was working in the tire shop while in college, Michelin (which is what I still run to this day), also agrees that front to back is good.

The worst thing you can do is no rotations at all!
 
For what it's worth, page 8-36 of my owners manual states that front to back is acceptable. And I got Michelin factory certified training when I was working in the tire shop while in college, Michelin (which is what I still run to this day), also agrees that front to back is good.

The worst thing you can do is no rotations at all!

I guess that I should have been more specific. I crossover the wheels as suggested in the manual. Front crossed, rear crossed, whichever it says in the book is what I do.
 
I use All Season tires from about April until December, and winter tires from Dec - April.

I rotate them them when I change over.

If I were doing a full rotation, I would jack the front and put jack stands at the pinch welds, then jack the rear and do likewise.

For changeover I lay the wheels at the corners they will go to, then jack one at a time at the pinch weld, and just swap the wheel without using the jack stands.

The only catch is remembering to keep the hub centric rings with the summer wheels, and that my lug nuts are 19mm instead of the stock 21.

It's easier than driving to the tire shop and back, let alone waiting in line and/or making an appointment.

The biggest hassle is getting the tires to and from where they are stored, and getting the jack out.
 
I us a 4"x4" x4' and jack up one side at a time. Use jack stands front and rear. Do the same for the other side. do the rotation and drop using the reverse.
 
What are the torque specs for the lug nuts?
I may tackle this in a day or two.
I torque mine to 80. If you don't have one already, Harbor freight has a good cheap 1/2" torque wrench that works great for this. It's under $20.
 
What are the torque specs for the lug nuts?
I may tackle this in a day or two.
The manual states 80 to 108 foot-pounds, I split the difference at 90. BTW, I would never trust a $20 torque wrench….but heck, that’s just what holds the wheels on your vehicle, how important can it be?
 
I promise, with a range of 80-108, the HF torque wrench is plenty accurate.

Now, if I was building an engine and had to do bearing caps? Yeah, I'd want something a bit better. But for suspension components? Pfft. HF is more than good enough.
 
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