You're driving down the road, on the way home from the grocery store, and a tire of your 2004 Kia Sorento runs over a nail and pops. Would you know what to do to be back on the road within 10 to 15 minutes? Changing front or rear tires is not a difficult procedure, as long as you have the proper tools and know how.
Turn on the hazard lights, place the car in park on a flat surface and turn off the vehicle, safely to the side of the road. For manual transmission cars, pull the emergency brake and leave the car in gear after the vehicle is off.
Check mirrors to make sure there are no oncoming vehicles before opening the door. Head directly toward the trunk and open the rear hatch.
Remove the jack from its compartment on the right side wall of the trunk. Lift the cargo floor compartment hatch and pull out the straight jack handle and "L"-shaped wheel lug nut wrench.
Grip the lug nut socket of the wheel wrench and spin counterclockwise to lower the spare tire from the bottom of the vehicle until the tire sits flat on the ground.
Disconnect the spare tire from the metal wire and retainer that holds it in place underneath the car. Roll the tire over to the flat tire.
Place the wheel lug nut wrench on the first of five lug nuts holding the flat tire in place and spin counterclockwise one turn. Proceed to do this for each of the five lug nuts. Do not spin them off completely--just loosen them.
Find the solid sub-frame rail running along the length of the car nearest the flat tire and move the car jack underneath it. Insert the jack handle into the jack to lift the vehicle.
Pump the jack up until the flat tire rises two inches off the ground. Once secure, unscrew the loose lug nuts and pull off the wheel, placing it on the ground.
Lift the spare tire and slide it onto the lugs before tightening the five lug nuts back into place with the wrench. Tighten by spinning the nuts clockwise.
Lower the jack slowly until the car rests back on the ground with the newly mounted spare tire. Further tighten each of the lug nuts now that the full pressure of the vehicle is on the spare tire. Kia recommends a tightening torque of 65 to 87 foot pounds for each.
