Hopefully by now everyone have switched to Winter tires but have you checked your lug nuts since they were switched? Well if you haven’t switched to Winter tires yet, you’re long overdue but it’s not too late and that’s something you should get done as soon as possible. The next thing to think about is making sure your nuts are tight.

All tire nuts need to be torqued to a specific tightness. If they are too loose, they could unwind on the stud and fall off leaving nothing to stop your wheel from flying off. If they are too tight, they could snap the studs and again, your wheel could fly off.

It’s not something we tend to think about but we’ve all heard a story on the news of some driver loosing a wheel and many times that rogue wheel causes a lot of damage, injuries and even death to others on or near the roadway.

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If you take your vehicle to a mechanic, tire shop or a dealership, they will will tighten your nuts properly. If you change your own tires, refer to your manual for the proper specs for your vehicle. If you are unsure, TireRack.com has a nice guide for your reference which you can find by clicking here.

What’s important to realize is that you should have your nuts re-checked 80-150km afterwards. It’s very common for nuts to become loose due to metal expanding and contracting from vast temperature changes that your wheels are subjected too. It only needs to be done once and takes two minutes. Call the place/person who changed your tires for you and drop in to have your nuts re-torqued. If they try and charge you for it…go somewhere else and never go back.