I recently saw a driving school instructor teaching his pupil how to change a punctured wheel. Wow. Is this part of the syllabus and test, or was this just a particularly diligent teacher? KBH
Hats off to that instructor. Thumbs down on the teach-and-test syllabus…if such a specific document exists. Where is it? What is the law that insists on its existence, universal availability and diligent application?
That information would be welcome, to both new candidates and existing drivers who need to know what their fellow-road users don’t know.
Of course, every licensed driver should know how to change a wheel –safety precautions before the process starts (safe location, off the road, on level ground, full handbrake, in-gear, chock options and warning sign positions if necessary); how the jack, wheel brace and spare wheel and warning triangles work.
How they are mounted and removed from stowage, jacking points, firm base and verticality of jack, partial loosening of nuts before lifting the car, jacking up, monitoring stability before a wheel is removed, sequence of nut removal, sure and clean stowage of nuts.
Removing the punctured wheel, where to put it (under the doorsill) for extra safety, checking inner hub of spare is clean, techniques for aligning a heavy spare, replacement of nuts (the right way round) using fingers (to avoid cross-threading), sequence and degree for tightening nuts with a spanner before lowering the jack, final tightening sequence and torque force, visual (at least) check of spare tyre pressure, packing the tools and punctured tyre, finally - when ready to go - recovering the warning sign.
At-the-ready Formula One crews do that for four tyres in 2.6 seconds; an experienced rally driver and navigator might manage one tyre from start to finish in 2 minutes, and a competent motorist will take about 10 minutes.
No big deal, if you know what you are doing. The principles should be taught (physically) and preferably tested (at least verbally).
There’s a lot to learn about owning and driving a car beyond starting it, engaging gears, making it move, steering it, making it go faster, or slower, and how to stop.
In the same way as anybody licenced to carry a gun needs to know more than how to load it, point it in roughly the right direction, and pull the trigger.
There’s a reason why vehicles and guns and the people who use them have to be licensed. Motor vehicles, like guns, are potentially lethal weapons.
And “licensed” needs to mean comprehensively “taught and tested”. On all aspects of care, maintenance, storage and safe use.
Not every motorist is expected to be a mechanic. But every motorist needs to know enough to recognise when something is wrong, hopefully some idea how to put it right, and when a mechanic is needed.
