One of the many things that I really enjoy about your videos is that you don't take for granted that your audience already knows what to do. The detailed explanations are wonderful. The videos are well edited. Thanks for being a great source of professional information for us VW guys and gals.
No kidding you are just changing it fast and tossing it all back in...worry about organizing it later too dangerous to hang around the Interstate. I only had my first flat in 43 years of my life. I was able to drive off the interstate and into a parking lot. It was sort of fun...LOL
@@Meekerextreme i did that on my mini cooper. I must have driven 3 or 4 miles on the flat cause ill be damned if some old person or some dumb teen girl on her cellphone kills me while im changing my tire
or when its 47 Celsius in Australia and your on bitumen cooking, and you leave the wheel spanner on the ground and burn off your hand when you touch it!
But maybe a black steel rim would look better :/ it's like they wanted it to look nice but then also wanted you to remove it as soon as possible. It's the one night stand (or Hooker) of spare wheels.
bad enough having to change a wheel , without having to wait an extra 10 minutes to to inflate it , not so long ago all cars came with a wheel that matched the other wheels on the car perfectly , SPACE SAVERS ARE A STUPID IDEA !
@@802Garage most trucks and SUVs have their spares under the rear of the vehicle. I'd rather have a full spare (that my 2 SUVs don't have) than a donut.
Sure it looks nice, but it is expensive to replace. Sure you dont use it that often but they need replacing, if the car is used not a bad idea to do so.
I’m glad my 06 Beetle came with a full size regular tire for a spare along with a regular scissor jack. I can’t believe they couldn’t fit the same in that vehicle.
This is why all the vehicles I own have full size spares, an exhaust inflated airbag jack, and a battery powered rattle gun with correct socket and adjustable torque, mounted in the boot on charge. A canvas bag also contains gloves, hand wipes, etc. Even my wife will happily change a tyre now. Quick, easy and very safe.👍👍
never knew the exhaust jacks existed, thanks for the topic to look up. I'm not in the off-road world, but it seems interesting. What brand do you have since there seems to be about 4-5 of them? Cheers.
@@K03sport Though mine is a few years old, I purchased the exhaust jack from Multispares, a heavy vehicle parts supplier, in Wingfield, South Australia. This airbag is manufactured with kevlar, so is extremely strong, flexible and puncture proof, but not idiot proof. Size is 1500mm long x 500mm wide, will expand to 800mm high fully inflated, and support 5000kgs. Just attaches to vehicle exhaust via hose. There are several on the market but mine is made in Australia. Hope this helps bro 👍👍
Better convert that battery powered rattle gun to one that can hook up to your car battery. The original battery will be dead by the time you need it. Nothing is more sure to work than a 100% metal manual wrench.
Same jack on my ford Figo 2013 model, was racking my head trying to open the damned jack, searched you tube got this video ! Ah, so we have to loosen up the jack a little bit AND THEN fix to the underside of the car. At first I didn't even know I could rotate the jack arm, I almost got injured trying to pry open the jack. Many thanks to this video !
That tire is some insane rubber tech. Wow, what a job! That jack is actually pretty clever though. Only thing I have done with a Touareg is take all the front subframe bolts from one in a junkyard. Someone had taken the engine and the bolts were long and super high quality. Gonna use it to space a subframe for a V10 swap! At least that's the hope.
Great advice at the beginning. Wish I watched this before it happened on a lonely country road in the middle of nowhere! Thanks for this vid dude, was a great help.😊
Before you were allow to drive in my family dad made you change a tire... I can not see my 5 sisters changing one of these tires... Oh they would have done it but there are way more steps to change that tire compared to the 1965 VW bug we drove. Nice video. I can see me making the sells man showing me the knobs and buttons of my new car. Also showing me how to change the tire.
used to change tyre's for a living, always amazed me how many people drove on flat tyres because they didn't know how to change a wheel 8:00 always make sure valves are pointing away from you if you're removing the core, rather lose a valve stem than an eye
those jacks are some serious death traps if used on gravel, i had to jack my car at home and used it (Audi A4 B5 Sedan) on tightly compact gravel and dirt, when the wheel was off the ground the car started to slide against me and fell over the jack.... had to get an another jack to get the car up and away from the Widowmaker. I have never seen those spare tires in Norway except for in an old 1990 ish Porsche, all VAG cars here get the compressor and a 1/2 Liter bottle of latex sealant goo
I replace the stock jack with a hydraulic jack and wooden plank, and to make my life easier I have a electric torque wrench to ease the tyre changing process
That wheel hanger is more important than people realize, I tried changing a tire on an Audi A6 without a wheel hanger, that'll make a Priest curse like a sailor.
@@IIGrayfoxII I'm not sure of the advantages of bolts vs lugs but most German cars have bolts and they're a lot more difficult without that hanger to hold the wheel in place.
@@gmax876 If your car has lugs you have 4, 5 or 6 small wheel hangers(depends on how many lugs your car has). Still a pain to get on but once you get one hooked on, you just have to rotate the wheel slightly and she'll fit
You said it Charles "practice at home". It harder to change a wheel when it's dark and it's cold and raining. But if you have practiced it will give you the confidence to deal with it. Great video.
You should chuck the tire diagonal to the one you are working one, if you do it on the same axle, although you are jacking one side, the other lifts as well, the car can or might run over the chucks and fall(been there done that :D)
Thank God in the first 2 minutes you explain how to open the cargo area and find the spare and show where the tools are, the average vw would have never figured that on their own
Tip: slide the tyre underneath the vehicle once taken off, that'll prevent damage to the brake disc/rotor and other parts if the car slips off the jack. Pull the tyre back from underneath the car after you have put the spare on and locked it in place with lug nuts. Then lower the car and you're good to proceed with tightening.
My wife's Volvo came with the same style jack. She parked her car with a flat front tire on sloped ground. There isn't much level ground in a lot of Atlanta, so not much choice in the matter of parking. I was able to lift the car properly per the manual's instructions. When I went to loosen the lug nuts, the jack slipped out and I would have lost my toes had they been any closer to the rim. My truck comes with a scissor jack, and with that I was able to remove the wheel safely. These jacks are garbage. How much more money and weight can it cost to add a proper and SAFE jack???
Had to do this yesterday morning in my taxi a Skoda Octavia mk2. Snowed overnight and was of course the coldest day yet of the winter. I fully understand why you call it the Widowmaker! Passenger wasnt too happy about being turfed out! Thankfully my space saver is already pumped up as the 'Octy' has a ginormous boot/trunk hence why they are so popular as taxis.
Perfect video, I have changed plenty of wheels in my life but never with the space saver spare. I have an allroad now and now I have the confidence if I ever need to use it. Keep up all the good work!
I wished you uploaded this video before. My sister used to have a ‘12 Tiguan and she got a flat tire once. We spent 10 minutes reading the owners manual to remove the bolt covers and 15 minutes figuring out how to use that jack without destroying the car.
When I bought my new vehicle Jetta 17 it came with a donut. That is the first upgrade I did to my car. Put a full tire in the back because it fits I might as well.
what is funny is that I wanted to purchase the car without the donut instead bringing the cost slightly higher at sale by asking for a full spare but they said they couldn't fulfill request. would you have any guesses why? manager couldn't explain.
I've had one of these for over 25 years and I use it for all kinds of stuff. It's showing it's age though. ANyone who has one of these and is scared of it, I'll gladly take it! I can't find one!!!
The most dangerous car to change wheels on would be a older Subaru, a front wheel drive with the parking brake on the front wheels. If your on a hill of any kind and have a flat on the front you have to block all the wheels or when you jack up the front it will just roll away.
At least my 80s Subaru better jack than, it is memory of the car and I still use it sometimes.. This horrible design was in Fiat 128, absolutely a death trap given the amount of rust.. Needless to say used it first and last time, lol..
In over 40 years of professional and personal experience with VWs and Audis, I have never ever heard this jack type called a "widow maker" except here on the internet. When I owned Touareg I found the jack so easy to use I used it to mount my winter tires every winter rather than drag out the floor jack.
@@jmeds_jammin That is true of every jack made. Any jack supplied with a car is only for changing the tire. I have never heard the term used before except here on the internet
This is why i always immediately take out the factory "tools" if you can call them that and replace them with real tools. A real jack, and tire iron. I also like to keep a breaker bar and some sockets too just in case someone else needs help.
I remember once I was changing my tires and the first time I used that shitty scissor jack it folded and fucked up my fender. I now throw that shit in the garbage whenever I see it
@@Xachremos yeah i feel the vw pain. I have a gti and i had to use the deathtrap of a jack they give you bc i let my dad borrow my actual one. It tends to slip out very easily. It isnt awful but never use it on a heavy vehicle and always use a jackstand, even just when changing a tire.
The handle of the screwdriver is designed to help spin the loosened wheel bolts in and out quickly. Also, as an added safety measure, I always slide the tyre under the rocker panel and I take it off. If the worst happens the flat tyre/wheel will support the car and save your leg/arm/whatever. Plus, you are still in a redeemable situation with space to reinstate the jack, rather than that corner of the car being slammed into the deck. Keep up the good work.
Lol I'm one of the weirdos that has a torque wrench in their trunk. Then again I have a small tool box with most of the tools I need to fix most things on my cars. Most of my cars have been beaters, so I keep tools with me to try to fix them when the eventually break. So far, I haven't needed to fix my 2002 DeVille on the side of the road.
I have a torque wrench, a breaker bar with 19mm socket, mini hydraulic jack, electric tire inflator, emergency tire plug kit, chocks, and a block of wood in my trunk. Everything I could possibly need to change a tire. And so far I’ve never had a flat tire....
Joel Ankeny all those tools are in my daily driver (‘99 Subaru). I would make a snide comment about the VW jack, but my 300D is a 1985 model and it has a jack that makes the Widowmaker look family friendly.
It's all about "Kraft durch Freude", the joy that only hard work can bring. I guess they want to share that joy with the car owners too, like some kind of "Fahrfegnugen".
@@buddyclem7328 "Fahrvergnügen" ;). I'm german and i don't think the procedure is complicated at all, very self explanatory if you are not really dumb. Most complicated part is the space saver, but ok, it saves space and how often do you really need to change the tire on the road?
I doubt I’d ever own one or need to know this. But I know some poor person is frantically searching the internet on the side of the road for this info, and I’ve been there. So thank you for this
Although it’s prolly been around forever...I’ve never even heard of a wheel hanger...great idea! großartiges deutsches einfallsreichtum und engineering
If you use wheel spacers, I'd suggest keeping a set of the "regular" length lug bolts in the spare compartment as well. It may be fine, but the thought of putting the spacer on with the spare so the longer bolts will work bothers me....just something to ponder.
Recon I will never complain about cranking a spare down from the back of my truck again. I bet if a person lost that little ring to remove the lug covers they would be hosed.
@@shhhdontshout yeah nah bro, the economy of scale doesn't apply to this, there is already designs that can be used, that are already machined, and tooled up it would in fact cost them more per unit for that jack, (tooling costs over already there and in supply designs etc) so, I can assure you, there is no cost saving to be had there
@@copuis mk3 vw Jettas came standard with these and amazingly mine still had the jack when I got mine. The outside section with the threaded rod going through it wore down and it struggled to stay in the correct form under pressure. After it almost killed me one time I never used it again
I think they were more interested in saving space, not weight. In most VWs, there is a hard styrofoam insert that sits inside the spare tyre. This contains all of the breadown tools, including the jack. Their design just takes up less space than the standard scissor-style ones that the other makes use.
@@copuis My 2002 Volvo has the same jack and my 1996 Mercedes had a similar jack just much more bulky looking so I'd guess the R&D has been long paid for these aswell as the tooling for them.
VW engineers have done a stupendous job! They took what should have been a simple, straight forward tire swap and completely over complicated it and introduced more points of potential failure. Job well done!
I also watched your video on taking the 2.0T engine apart and it also made me think how complicated that was as well. However I am a big fan of vehicles with manual transmissions and VW makes/made lots of them. Seeing how complicated they make things, makes me think twice about purchasing a VW, although I wouldn't mind a GTI or a SportWagen. I guess I got to watch more of your videos. Thanks
I'm not surprised that they call it the widowmaker. The jack from my B6 Passat is basically the same style, but even less stable than the one in the video. I should get myself a decent jack to keep in the car. Glad I have a full size spare tire at least!
First, who the thought it was a good idea with a space-saver spare wheel? Whoever it was must have had a serious mishap whilst thinking. Where are you supposed to put the wheel you just took off the car? It wont fit the space where the space-saver spare wheel was and it sure as wont fit in the boot (which is filled with all the stuff the family packed for the weekend/holiday trip). Second, that tire wrench is a joke. I seriously doubt it is useful for anything other than swearing at whilst failing to loosen the lug nuts. My experience is that for some reason lug nuts needs much bigger tools than that to loosen (even if they have been torqued to spec).
They probably design the lug nut wrenches to enable you to still loosen the lug nuts but not big enough so that you seriously over tighten the lug nuts even if you stand on the end of the wrench.
@@Nesten321 that's exactly it. They aren't on there all that tight. In the rain it might be a pain in the arse to get a good grip on, but otherwise it does the job fine. I don't like that jack though. You've to be cautious and familiar with its use to avoid setting it up wrong. I don't mind sticking the wheel I'm not holding under the frame, just in case.
I have found t bar lug wrenches to be the best and keep one with a 12 ton bottle jack in the truck. 4 different sized heads fit almost every car and the t shape always you to pull and push breaking lugs free easier
This is already stupid: space saver tire, hooking up the pump to the battery jump, and widow Maker, this is dumb, honestly should just be a normal tire spare, with a cigarette plug for pump, and there's no reason to put a cover for the jack point, if they engineer these extra things better, I'd probably only consider it won't try to buy
For example, Mercedes uses a similar Jack with a rectangle part that goes into a jacking slot, the tire is ready to use, and there's no pump, not nesacery cus at the time, Mercedes designed every thing to fit within the tire, and also, Mercedes also has different lug nuts, but that's because the spare is thinner, Mercedes c240(w203) 2002 base model,and it's still way better than this ridiculous process
My 2013 GTI came with a full size spare. It's a 205/55/16 V rated tire on a steel wheel. It has a sticker saying not to exceed 50 MPH and 80 KPH on it. A good surprise. I check it every so often.
Something that used to wind me up about my VW company car was the position of the AdBlue filler in the trunk, doing 110k miles a year meant I was having to fill it up quite often. An obvious after thought and only fitted becuase they got caught cheating on emissions atleast Mercedes put their AdBlue filler right next to the fuel filler so you don't end up with crusty AdBlue inside the car.
Gotta love Germans, they way over complicate EVERYTHING. Very novel way to go about things though. I cant believe they still use those Fing wheel bolts. I dealt with them on VW and Porsche's years ago, figured they stopped that lunacy by now.
There are several newer Jeep's and Dodge cars using lug bolts now. I don't mind them, the worst ones are the lug nuts that swell up from corrosion and you can't get a socket on to get them off.
I kind of like the wheel bolts. Then you can use a guide rod like they show. I'm getting older and its hard to lift the tire and line up the wheel studs. I keep the ends of the wheel studs painted white so they are easier to see.
It works fine if you use it properly. But I also thing buying an upgraded jack for your car is a good idea. The Touareg jack is a better jack than the ones in cars.
@@HumbleMechanic The little scissor jacks? I've never had a problem. I love the ones that come in Subaru vehicles. Always nice to have a few around from old cars to help with strange jobs.
@@HumbleMechanic Yeah its fine if you are in a nice level parking lot or garage but useless if your on the side of the road on the highway on some gravel uneven ditch it will fall right of the jack or on an icy drive way or hill then you are sol.
Great video explains how to change tyre really well. These jacks are garbage and are unsafe even on a flat surface just have someone lean on the opposite side of the car with the jack in place. Stand back as the car crashes to the ground. First thing I do is replace it with scissor lift type jack or bottle jack.
Hi #humblemechanic, good video. At one time I did stop to help a couple that where stranded on the road. Got to their tool kit, it was funny, I took my jack and fix the thing... Now I've learned how to help for the next opportunity.
1:01 Conveniently the VW lug wrench will always damage your alloy wheels in the area around where the bolts screw in... I would recommend throwing it away and replacing it with one that has a socket (which won't damage your wheels), and an extendable handle (which gives more leverage)
HumbleMechanic I worked in a Subaru shop for a week for school years ago and because I was basically useless all i did was rotate tires and do minor services, at the end of the day my back was destroyed from trying to line up the holes
And no matter how straight they look with car on the ground they start twisting or leaning as soon as they have any weight on them. Emergency use only, floor jack for home use
I bought a nice plug kit and compressor so i dont have to use the spare all the time. Just to get me to the tire shop. Got an impact and a good compact jack for flats where a plug just wont do. Live on a gravel road. Used to get like 3 flats a month. Got tired of changing them in the rain and snow.
Just what I want to do on the side of the interstate when it's -33°F. Which it is right now in Minnesota. Courious if that air compressor would work in the cold? And that Jack seems OK in a parking lot, but scary as hell on a loose shoulder with semis flying by at 70 plus mph. Might want to mention not putting your body under the car in the pinch zones.
I keep a breaker bar and proper socket and a wrench after getting 2 flats. I have an older style scissor jack and a ratchet makes it tolerable to use. I also have one of those portable compressors in the back seat for inflating tires as needed. Not really a big kit but makes the process much easier. I do like that wheel guide bar though.... That's a pretty neat idea.
One of the many things that I really enjoy about your videos is that you don't take for granted that your audience already knows what to do. The detailed explanations are wonderful. The videos are well edited. Thanks for being a great source of professional information for us VW guys and gals.
Too much work to do when it's winter/11pm/on the express way, because those are the conditions when you always get a flat tire 😣😂
No kidding you are just changing it fast and tossing it all back in...worry about organizing it later too dangerous to hang around the Interstate. I only had my first flat in 43 years of my life. I was able to drive off the interstate and into a parking lot. It was sort of fun...LOL
@@Meekerextreme i did that on my mini cooper. I must have driven 3 or 4 miles on the flat cause ill be damned if some old person or some dumb teen girl on her cellphone kills me while im changing my tire
or when its 47 Celsius in Australia and your on bitumen cooking, and you leave the wheel spanner on the ground and burn off your hand when you touch it!
Actually my experience is the opposite. It's always around 2 in the afternoon in 95 degrees with no clouds... Which is miserable for a creepy ginger.😂
Just got a flat tire yesterday.. And you're right, it was snowing as hell and I had to change that damn tire while I was in a suit...
That wheel is actually a pretty cool design. I’ve never seen one like that before. Neat!
But maybe a black steel rim would look better :/ it's like they wanted it to look nice but then also wanted you to remove it as soon as possible. It's the one night stand (or Hooker) of spare wheels.
😂😂😂 it does look cool but youd need 4 of them to look good
@@MrHeHim Thats the point
@@MrHeHim just rattle can it, it'll look ten times better than the red.
@@MrHeHim well, they no people are lazy af and theyll continue to drive on the spare for a month before getting it changed back lol
Best video on Audi/Vw/ Porsche space saver wheel/tire change out. TY so much!
Thank you
bad enough having to change a wheel , without having to wait an extra 10 minutes to to inflate it , not so long ago all cars came with a wheel that matched the other wheels on the car perfectly , SPACE SAVERS ARE A STUPID IDEA !
Considering how large the wheels and tires are on an SUV like this, it makes some sense it's hard to fit a full sized spare into the vehicle.
Its allot about weight savings.
@@KriegerDelfin24 Air doesn't weigh that much ya know.
@@802Garage most trucks and SUVs have their spares under the rear of the vehicle. I'd rather have a full spare (that my 2 SUVs don't have) than a donut.
They have using space savers since the 70s
I only ever owned one VW. Twenty years, and about three or four Honda’s later these videos serve as a great reminder why that is.
The 'saved space' 'saved' by the 'space saver tyre' is used by the compressor and needless extra steel around the tyre.
Good job, VW.
the width of the "space saver" is a couple inches shorter making it sit lower in the wheel well thats where the space is saved
That's neat how the sidewall folds up to take less space. I like how VW figures out how to use a regular size wheel & tire, instead of a donut spare.
Other makes do this too, Volvo does
Any awd/4wd vehicle has a full size spare.
My 2007 Passat has a full size spare. It's not even the AWD model. No need for that pool float in the trunk.
Sure it looks nice, but it is expensive to replace.
Sure you dont use it that often but they need replacing, if the car is used not a bad idea to do so.
@@TravisTLKmy Subaru does not...
Now do it in the rain, cause that's the only time me tire goes out. lol
Yeah it’s rarely flat in the driveway on a nice sunny day in the spring
I switched all of my tires to winter tires with that.
Cause im cheap.
In the snow.
Currently me.. 😂
Literally
this is me right now.
I’m glad my 06 Beetle came with a full size regular tire for a spare along with a regular scissor jack. I can’t believe they couldn’t fit the same in that vehicle.
This is why all the vehicles I own have full size spares, an exhaust inflated airbag jack, and a battery powered rattle gun with correct socket and adjustable torque, mounted in the boot on charge. A canvas bag also contains gloves, hand wipes, etc. Even my wife will happily change a tyre now. Quick, easy and very safe.👍👍
NICE!!!!
never knew the exhaust jacks existed, thanks for the topic to look up. I'm not in the off-road world, but it seems interesting. What brand do you have since there seems to be about 4-5 of them? Cheers.
@@K03sport Though mine is a few years old, I purchased the exhaust jack from Multispares, a heavy vehicle parts supplier, in Wingfield, South Australia. This airbag is manufactured with kevlar, so is extremely strong, flexible and puncture proof, but not idiot proof. Size is 1500mm long x 500mm wide, will expand to 800mm high fully inflated, and support 5000kgs. Just attaches to vehicle exhaust via hose. There are several on the market but mine is made in Australia. Hope this helps bro 👍👍
Class 👌🏽
Better convert that battery powered rattle gun to one that can hook up to your car battery. The original battery will be dead by the time you need it. Nothing is more sure to work than a 100% metal manual wrench.
Same jack on my ford Figo 2013 model, was racking my head trying to open the damned jack, searched you tube got this video ! Ah, so we have to loosen up the jack a little bit AND THEN fix to the underside of the car. At first I didn't even know I could rotate the jack arm, I almost got injured trying to pry open the jack. Many thanks to this video !
That tire is a grow-er, not a show-er.
...I'll show myself out.
AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
Get your mind out of the gutter. You're blocking my periscope.
Take that tire with you when you leave! Lol
Same
First u have to blow it
Inflating and deflating that tire was really satisfying to watch
I totally agree! It's one of the main reasons I wanted to do this video. LOL
That tire is some insane rubber tech. Wow, what a job! That jack is actually pretty clever though.
Only thing I have done with a Touareg is take all the front subframe bolts from one in a junkyard.
Someone had taken the engine and the bolts were long and super high quality.
Gonna use it to space a subframe for a V10 swap! At least that's the hope.
Great advice at the beginning. Wish I watched this before it happened on a lonely country road in the middle of nowhere! Thanks for this vid dude, was a great help.😊
Glad to help. Sorry it was needed
Before you were allow to drive in my family dad made you change a tire... I can not see my 5 sisters changing one of these tires... Oh they would have done it but there are way more steps to change that tire compared to the 1965 VW bug we drove.
Nice video. I can see me making the sells man showing me the knobs and buttons of my new car. Also showing me how to change the tire.
My wife said all the exact things. Lol kinda spooky really. Lol
used to change tyre's for a living, always amazed me how many people drove on flat tyres because they didn't know how to change a wheel
8:00 always make sure valves are pointing away from you if you're removing the core, rather lose a valve stem than an eye
Overengineered simple job 👎
The "wheel hanger" I find especially amusing
Not over engineered, over complicated. Engineering includes user friendly.
@@abdomar0528 you've never seen the German's before
@@JTLowry lol please explain.
@@zuilok Definately the most useless part in this IMO. Could easily have done the job without it.
I've never seen a tire like that before! That's a really fascinating design!
those jacks are some serious death traps if used on gravel, i had to jack my car at home and used it (Audi A4 B5 Sedan) on tightly compact gravel and dirt, when the wheel was off the ground the car started to slide against me and fell over the jack.... had to get an another jack to get the car up and away from the Widowmaker.
I have never seen those spare tires in Norway except for in an old 1990 ish Porsche, all VAG cars here get the compressor and a 1/2 Liter bottle of latex sealant goo
the jack did the same thing to me while working on my car, scariest thing!
Always have a 12 inch square of plywood handy for that piece of shit vw jack
Yeah hate those awkward jacks. I threw a nissans scissor jack in the back lol
I replace the stock jack with a hydraulic jack and wooden plank, and to make my life easier I have a electric torque wrench to ease the tyre changing process
unless you have a lowered car hahaha @@ainzooalgown7589
This is the best auto DIY video I have ever seen
That’s a cool spare, I like that it comes with a small compressor
It better do, unless they want you blow it up by your lung.lol
Thanks for making this. I'll pass it on to my VW driving friends.
Thank you
That wheel hanger is more important than people realize, I tried changing a tire on an Audi A6 without a wheel hanger, that'll make a Priest curse like a sailor.
Depends on the car.
If you use bolts sure, if you use lug nuts not so much
@@IIGrayfoxII I'm not sure of the advantages of bolts vs lugs but most German cars have bolts and they're a lot more difficult without that hanger to hold the wheel in place.
@@gmax876 If your car has lugs you have 4, 5 or 6 small wheel hangers(depends on how many lugs your car has).
Still a pain to get on but once you get one hooked on, you just have to rotate the wheel slightly and she'll fit
@@IIGrayfoxIIFacts! Well done...
After swapping out my tyres on my Golf weeks ago, I understood the importance of that tool.
I never seen such a over engineered spare system setup, I'm glad it takes me 5 min to change to a spare on my toyota.
Be safe out there friends. Also I hope you watch that other Tire change video... You will get a laugh of no beard Charles.
Wow I think your man bun was bigger than your beard. LOL
Yep. I am happy to have cut that before man bun was a thing.
@@HumbleMechanic the horror!! Put that beard back on their soldier!
the license plate for the r32 is unblurred at the last second of the video. edit and reupload maybe?
I don't own a VW anything. But it was worth it just to watch that tire deflate!
You said it Charles "practice at home". It harder to change a wheel when it's dark and it's cold and raining. But if you have practiced it will give you the confidence to deal with it. Great video.
You should chuck the tire diagonal to the one you are working one, if you do it on the same axle, although you are jacking one side, the other lifts as well, the car can or might run over the chucks and fall(been there done that :D)
from germany to united states with love ... the widowmaker
.
Hahahhahaha
Glad to see a few videos of basic roadside assistance, people need to know! #shiftwrenchrepeat
First time I've seen a space saver spare tire. I thought there's no way it was gonna fold up like that again. Pretty cool that it did.
Pretty ingenious design. Except for that jack. I don't know about that jack! lol
Thank God in the first 2 minutes you explain how to open the cargo area and find the spare and show where the tools are, the average vw would have never figured that on their own
That's one trippy spare tire!
I have watch it fill/deflate about 50 times.
Is humle mechanic the only one on RUclips that likes almost every comment? Awesome 👍
Lol I try. :) I appreciate anyone that takes a minute to watch a video or leave a comment. It’s freaking awesome.
Tip: slide the tyre underneath the vehicle once taken off, that'll prevent damage to the brake disc/rotor and other parts if the car slips off the jack. Pull the tyre back from underneath the car after you have put the spare on and locked it in place with lug nuts. Then lower the car and you're good to proceed with tightening.
I wish i had one of those wheel hangers when i have changed tires on anything with wheel bolts. Didn't know that existed. Thanks!
You can get them on Amazon amzn.to/2WsFSJi
Watching that tire inflate and deflate was strangely satisfying.
Right!!!
That's a nice solution to a problem that shouldn't exist.
My wife's Volvo came with the same style jack. She parked her car with a flat front tire on sloped ground. There isn't much level ground in a lot of Atlanta, so not much choice in the matter of parking. I was able to lift the car properly per the manual's instructions. When I went to loosen the lug nuts, the jack slipped out and I would have lost my toes had they been any closer to the rim. My truck comes with a scissor jack, and with that I was able to remove the wheel safely. These jacks are garbage. How much more money and weight can it cost to add a proper and SAFE jack???
Had to do this yesterday morning in my taxi a Skoda Octavia mk2. Snowed overnight and was of course the coldest day yet of the winter. I fully understand why you call it the Widowmaker! Passenger wasnt too happy about being turfed out!
Thankfully my space saver is already pumped up as the 'Octy' has a ginormous boot/trunk hence why they are so popular as taxis.
Perfect video, I have changed plenty of wheels in my life but never with the space saver spare. I have an allroad now and now I have the confidence if I ever need to use it. Keep up all the good work!
This is the apple of the car industry, so inconvenient.
I wished you uploaded this video before. My sister used to have a ‘12 Tiguan and she got a flat tire once. We spent 10 minutes reading the owners manual to remove the bolt covers and 15 minutes figuring out how to use that jack without destroying the car.
in europe it was normal at drivers lessons to get to change a tyre.
That spare tire is probably the coolest thing I've seen in a while
When I bought my new vehicle Jetta 17 it came with a donut. That is the first upgrade I did to my car. Put a full tire in the back because it fits I might as well.
I totally agree. My Passat has a full size spare. I was super bummed when VW went to the donuts.
what is funny is that I wanted to purchase the car without the donut instead bringing the cost slightly higher at sale by asking for a full spare but they said they couldn't fulfill request. would you have any guesses why? manager couldn't explain.
I'd imagine that compartment can't fit a full sized Touareg spare though!
So where would the damaged tire go? durty up my interior? what if the car is already full?
I keep a plastic trash bag in the car for that reason. If your car is full, it’s time to move some stuff.
I've had one of these for over 25 years and I use it for all kinds of stuff. It's showing it's age though. ANyone who has one of these and is scared of it, I'll gladly take it! I can't find one!!!
Volkswagen, solutions to solutions to solutions of problems that everybody else figured out a long time ago lol.
Hahahahha Hahahah well put.
I tought that was Apple
@@mariuschiriac1512 I thought that was government.
Marius Chiriac conspiracy theory they are the same company. Lol
Used the widow maker for working on my golf for ages. Few nervy moments haha. Now I use a trolley jack, much better
The most dangerous car to change wheels on would be a older Subaru, a front wheel drive with the parking brake on the front wheels. If your on a hill of any kind and have a flat on the front you have to block all the wheels or when you jack up the front it will just roll away.
Older SAABs (99 and "classic" 900 models) were also FWD and had the parking brake acting on the front wheels.
At least my 80s Subaru better jack than, it is memory of the car and I still use it sometimes.. This horrible design was in Fiat 128, absolutely a death trap given the amount of rust.. Needless to say used it first and last time, lol..
In over 40 years of professional and personal experience with VWs and Audis, I have never ever heard this jack type called a "widow maker" except here on the internet. When I owned Touareg I found the jack so easy to use I used it to mount my winter tires every winter rather than drag out the floor jack.
All scissor jacks are called widow makers because people have crawled under the car with them holding the car up and gotten killed
@@jmeds_jammin That is true of every jack made. Any jack supplied with a car is only for changing the tire. I have never heard the term used before except here on the internet
This is why i always immediately take out the factory "tools" if you can call them that and replace them with real tools. A real jack, and tire iron. I also like to keep a breaker bar and some sockets too just in case someone else needs help.
Cool
I remember once I was changing my tires and the first time I used that shitty scissor jack it folded and fucked up my fender. I now throw that shit in the garbage whenever I see it
@@Xachremos yeah i feel the vw pain. I have a gti and i had to use the deathtrap of a jack they give you bc i let my dad borrow my actual one. It tends to slip out very easily. It isnt awful but never use it on a heavy vehicle and always use a jackstand, even just when changing a tire.
@@Xachremos I used that thing for over 5 years now, my father used it for over 20 years and nothing ever happened. What are you guys doing?!?
@@peenusweenus3169 my vw has a scissor jack and a pre inflated tire, i would trust a block of wood over the jack to hold the car.
Wow, VW's are sophisticated vehicles. I like them even though I am more of a GM fan. Great video.
The handle of the screwdriver is designed to help spin the loosened wheel bolts in and out quickly. Also, as an added safety measure, I always slide the tyre under the rocker panel and I take it off. If the worst happens the flat tyre/wheel will support the car and save your leg/arm/whatever. Plus, you are still in a redeemable situation with space to reinstate the jack, rather than that corner of the car being slammed into the deck. Keep up the good work.
Surprised he didnt mention this. Its tyre changing 101.
@@aussieguy1012, agreed. I was surprised it wasn't mentioned.
It's the only way to have any confidence working with that jack
thumbs up for that wheel hanger
it is lifesaver
👍👍👍
Lol I'm one of the weirdos that has a torque wrench in their trunk. Then again I have a small tool box with most of the tools I need to fix most things on my cars. Most of my cars have been beaters, so I keep tools with me to try to fix them when the eventually break. So far, I haven't needed to fix my 2002 DeVille on the side of the road.
YESSSSS
I keep my floor jack and a jack stand back there too along with my tool box. Glad I’m not the only one that does that sort of thing.
I have a torque wrench, a breaker bar with 19mm socket, mini hydraulic jack, electric tire inflator, emergency tire plug kit, chocks, and a block of wood in my trunk.
Everything I could possibly need to change a tire.
And so far I’ve never had a flat tire....
300DBenz when you live the hooptie life you come prepared lol. Also I’m jealous of your 300D!
Joel Ankeny all those tools are in my daily driver (‘99 Subaru). I would make a snide comment about the VW jack, but my 300D is a 1985 model and it has a jack that makes the Widowmaker look family friendly.
Outstanding video quality and many important and not-so-obvious points covered, thank you!
Why can't VW be normal? lol
Lol that wouldn’t be fun 😂
Nothing normal about the Germans
It's all about "Kraft durch Freude", the joy that only hard work can bring. I guess they want to share that joy with the car owners too, like some kind of "Fahrfegnugen".
Because like 10 years ago, they started to do "French engineering"
@@buddyclem7328 "Fahrvergnügen" ;). I'm german and i don't think the procedure is complicated at all, very self explanatory if you are not really dumb. Most complicated part is the space saver, but ok, it saves space and how often do you really need to change the tire on the road?
I doubt I’d ever own one or need to know this. But I know some poor person is frantically searching the internet on the side of the road for this info, and I’ve been there. So thank you for this
Cool video! Thanks for sharing man!
Although it’s prolly been around forever...I’ve never even heard of a wheel hanger...great idea!
großartiges deutsches einfallsreichtum und engineering
If you use wheel spacers, I'd suggest keeping a set of the "regular" length lug bolts in the spare compartment as well. It may be fine, but the thought of putting the spacer on with the spare so the longer bolts will work bothers me....just something to ponder.
All the OEM stuff is meant to work together. If you’re running longer bolts because you’re modified, having the OEM bolts is a great idea
Just to save space, wow VW! Thanks Charles, this is is must-share!
Crazy huh! Thank you for the
Some of that stuff is really cool...
Recon I will never complain about cranking a spare down from the back of my truck again. I bet if a person lost that little ring to remove the lug covers they would be hosed.
that really seems like the most stupid jack, a huge increase in risk for extremely small saving in weight if that at all
Cost saving bro, selling hundreds of thousand or millions unit will save them million dollar more.
@@shhhdontshout yeah nah bro, the economy of scale doesn't apply to this, there is already designs that can be used, that are already machined, and tooled up
it would in fact cost them more per unit for that jack, (tooling costs over already there and in supply designs etc)
so, I can assure you, there is no cost saving to be had there
@@copuis mk3 vw Jettas came standard with these and amazingly mine still had the jack when I got mine. The outside section with the threaded rod going through it wore down and it struggled to stay in the correct form under pressure. After it almost killed me one time I never used it again
I think they were more interested in saving space, not weight. In most VWs, there is a hard styrofoam insert that sits inside the spare tyre. This contains all of the breadown tools, including the jack. Their design just takes up less space than the standard scissor-style ones that the other makes use.
@@copuis My 2002 Volvo has the same jack and my 1996 Mercedes had a similar jack just much more bulky looking so I'd guess the R&D has been long paid for these aswell as the tooling for them.
VW engineers have done a stupendous job! They took what should have been a simple, straight forward tire swap and completely over complicated it and introduced more points of potential failure. Job well done!
I wish my spare tire looked like that.
I wish I had a car at all
I like a spare tire to look exactly like the rest of the tires
I also watched your video on taking the 2.0T engine apart and it also made me think how complicated that was as well. However I am a big fan of vehicles with manual transmissions and VW makes/made lots of them. Seeing how complicated they make things, makes me think twice about purchasing a VW, although I wouldn't mind a GTI or a SportWagen. I guess I got to watch more of your videos. Thanks
one more reason to not by a VW yeeesh.
121bham 😂😂😂 burn
Eye wood never bye a VW..... Did i get it write! Lol
Eye buyed too vulkswiggins
ADR Volkswagen make good cars... whoever thought that spare was a good idea needs to be fired though...
What reason is this? Most modern cars don't even come with a space-saver spare tyre...
I'm not surprised that they call it the widowmaker. The jack from my B6 Passat is basically the same style, but even less stable than the one in the video. I should get myself a decent jack to keep in the car. Glad I have a full size spare tire at least!
First, who the thought it was a good idea with a space-saver spare wheel? Whoever it was must have had a serious mishap whilst thinking. Where are you supposed to put the wheel you just took off the car? It wont fit the space where the space-saver spare wheel was and it sure as wont fit in the boot (which is filled with all the stuff the family packed for the weekend/holiday trip).
Second, that tire wrench is a joke. I seriously doubt it is useful for anything other than swearing at whilst failing to loosen the lug nuts. My experience is that for some reason lug nuts needs much bigger tools than that to loosen (even if they have been torqued to spec).
Leif Simmons they designed it to make our lives hard and itll take alot of beeping to change a wheel. A simple job made difficult
They probably design the lug nut wrenches to enable you to still loosen the lug nuts but not big enough so that you seriously over tighten the lug nuts even if you stand on the end of the wrench.
@@Nesten321 that's exactly it. They aren't on there all that tight. In the rain it might be a pain in the arse to get a good grip on, but otherwise it does the job fine. I don't like that jack though. You've to be cautious and familiar with its use to avoid setting it up wrong. I don't mind sticking the wheel I'm not holding under the frame, just in case.
I have found t bar lug wrenches to be the best and keep one with a 12 ton bottle jack in the truck. 4 different sized heads fit almost every car and the t shape always you to pull and push breaking lugs free easier
its copyed from porsche. in the manual they write. after changing lose the bitch and place the flat in the bag on the front seat
That is an amazing system, even if the jack is crap.
This is already stupid: space saver tire, hooking up the pump to the battery jump, and widow Maker, this is dumb, honestly should just be a normal tire spare, with a cigarette plug for pump, and there's no reason to put a cover for the jack point, if they engineer these extra things better, I'd probably only consider it won't try to buy
For example, Mercedes uses a similar Jack with a rectangle part that goes into a jacking slot, the tire is ready to use, and there's no pump, not nesacery cus at the time, Mercedes designed every thing to fit within the tire, and also, Mercedes also has different lug nuts, but that's because the spare is thinner, Mercedes c240(w203) 2002 base model,and it's still way better than this ridiculous process
@@benzodiy4053 and after 5 years the spare is flat....
@@groenekever your not supposed to use a spare for daily use, only to get back home then you put an actual one on
@@tyronethetoad3752 but no one checks it.
Thanks so much for this video, it helped me steal some beautiful wheels easily and quickly!!
I wont be without a good bottle jack and block of wood-ever
My 2013 GTI came with a full size spare. It's a 205/55/16 V rated tire on a steel wheel. It has a sticker saying not to exceed 50 MPH and 80 KPH on it.
A good surprise. I check it every so often.
Do you ever have to open that AdBlue cap under your spare?
Yeah not too often. maybe once a year.
Something that used to wind me up about my VW company car was the position of the AdBlue filler in the trunk, doing 110k miles a year meant I was having to fill it up quite often. An obvious after thought and only fitted becuase they got caught cheating on emissions atleast Mercedes put their AdBlue filler right next to the fuel filler so you don't end up with crusty AdBlue inside the car.
Thank you for explaining this. I have a Q5 and always wondered why it had an air compressor. Also why the spare looked like that.
Some of the Audi's have the same exact tire.
Gotta love Germans, they way over complicate EVERYTHING. Very novel way to go about things though. I cant believe they still use those Fing wheel bolts. I dealt with them on VW and Porsche's years ago, figured they stopped that lunacy by now.
derweibhai
I dont think this is too complicate... maybe because i am german?
I actually like the wheel bolts. But the 15+ years of dealing with VWs has made it normal.HAHA
There are several newer Jeep's and Dodge cars using lug bolts now. I don't mind them, the worst ones are the lug nuts that swell up from corrosion and you can't get a socket on to get them off.
I kind of like the wheel bolts. Then you can use a guide rod like they show. I'm getting older and its hard to lift the tire and line up the wheel studs. I keep the ends of the wheel studs painted white so they are easier to see.
Great detail on the video well done can't fault it
How to change a tyre with a vw jack? You dont. You Buy a proper jack.
It works fine if you use it properly. But I also thing buying an upgraded jack for your car is a good idea. The Touareg jack is a better jack than the ones in cars.
HumbleMechanic
That jack is similar to ones supplied in some full size GM cars from the 80’s
@@HumbleMechanic The little scissor jacks? I've never had a problem. I love the ones that come in Subaru vehicles. Always nice to have a few around from old cars to help with strange jobs.
Lol exactly 😂
I always prefer the scissor-type jack.
@@HumbleMechanic Yeah its fine if you are in a nice level parking lot or garage but useless if your on the side of the road on the highway on some gravel uneven ditch it will fall right of the jack or on an icy drive way or hill then you are sol.
Great video explains how to change tyre really well. These jacks are garbage and are unsafe even on a flat surface just have someone lean on the opposite side of the car with the jack in place. Stand back as the car crashes to the ground. First thing I do is replace it with scissor lift type jack or bottle jack.
The second I saw the "widow maker" I thought, " I hate that jack!" even though I never used one, and I hope I never have to use one either.
Hahha I don’t think you’re alone
The first time I saw that jack on my 1987 VW Scirocco, I said, "Where's the other half?"
Hi #humblemechanic, good video. At one time I did stop to help a couple that where stranded on the road. Got to their tool kit, it was funny, I took my jack and fix the thing... Now I've learned how to help for the next opportunity.
I ditched the widow maker in my b5 and replaced it with a $40 AutoZone floor jack. Little too sketch for me.
NICE!
I couldn’t even figure out how to use mine lmao
love this channel! i'm just about to buy a second hand tiguan
1:01 Conveniently the VW lug wrench will always damage your alloy wheels in the area around where the bolts screw in... I would recommend throwing it away and replacing it with one that has a socket (which won't damage your wheels), and an extendable handle (which gives more leverage)
Wow that wheel hanger is a good idea
It really is. I didn’t use them at the dealer, it slowed down the process. But I kinda wish I would have. Lol
HumbleMechanic I worked in a Subaru shop for a week for school years ago and because I was basically useless all i did was rotate tires and do minor services, at the end of the day my back was destroyed from trying to line up the holes
Ralph Nader should write "Unsafe at any Speed 2" about nonsense like this tire kit.
We use the same setup on Cayenne’s and Macans. Great when they work. Sucks when they don’t fill like they should.
My golf mk2 jack scares me. Always looks like it has no grip on the floor.
And no matter how straight they look with car on the ground they start twisting or leaning as soon as they have any weight on them. Emergency use only, floor jack for home use
I had to use my Haynes manual under one of those once to keep it from pushing into the mud...
I bought a nice plug kit and compressor so i dont have to use the spare all the time. Just to get me to the tire shop. Got an impact and a good compact jack for flats where a plug just wont do. Live on a gravel road. Used to get like 3 flats a month. Got tired of changing them in the rain and snow.
Just what I want to do on the side of the interstate when it's -33°F. Which it is right now in Minnesota.
Courious if that air compressor would work in the cold? And that Jack seems OK in a parking lot, but scary as hell on a loose shoulder with semis flying by at 70 plus mph.
Might want to mention not putting your body under the car in the pinch zones.
I keep a breaker bar and proper socket and a wrench after getting 2 flats. I have an older style scissor jack and a ratchet makes it tolerable to use. I also have one of those portable compressors in the back seat for inflating tires as needed. Not really a big kit but makes the process much easier.
I do like that wheel guide bar though.... That's a pretty neat idea.
Anyone else was like what that fuuuuu when they saw that spare???
I love the VW jack. I’ll use it over a floor jack.
I carry a floor jack
good for you sir
but im genuinely curious, what kind of roads do you drive on to have to replace tires all the time?
@@darthtrump4428 he never said he had to replace tires all the time.
Good vid , i miss the old days.