Changing the wheels on your Volkswagen (VW) Rabbit is necessary if the wheel itself is damaged or if the tread on the tires has worn down. Here are some tips on how to remove and reinstall a wheel on your VW Rabbit.
Pull the emergency brake. Place the tire wrench over one of the lug nuts on the driver's side front wheel. Break the lug nut loose by turning counterclockwise. Do this for all of the lug nuts, but do not remove them. The wheel should sit firmly against the wheel hub assembly, but make sure that the nut can be removed when the car is up in the air (the wheel is allowed to turn freely).
Repeat this process for each wheel on the vehicle. Place the jack under the car and jack up on the front jack point. You will need to turn the handle of your hydraulic jack to the right or engage the locking mechanism. Then, pump the handle up and down to lift the car off the ground.
Place the jack stands under the pinch welds of the car located on either side of the vehicle. They are located under the doors of the vehicle. Lower the vehicle onto the jack stands and check to make sure the vehicle is stable. To do this, gently push on the vehicle from the front and sides to make sure the vehicle does not shift or move on the jack stands.
Jack up the vehicle using the rear jack point and place more jack stands under the rear pinch welds. Again, lower the vehicle onto the jack stands and check for stability. Remove all of the wheels.
Install your new Rabbit wheels. Tighten the lug nuts on the wheels. Installation is the reverse of removal. Tighten the lug nuts, but do not fully torque the wheels down. Make sure that the wheel does not wobble and will not come loose by grabbing the wheel and shaking it back and forth (toward and away from you).
Lower the car to the ground. Then, place the torque wrench over the lug nuts. Torque the lug nuts to 100 ft lbs. Tighten the lug nuts in a criss-cross pattern. For example, tighten one nut and then tighten the nut across from it.
