2014-2022 Toyota Corolla flat tire change and spare installation

If the tire goes flat while driving, slow gradually and steer to the widest safe shoulder available. Never change a tire on the traffic-side shoulder of a highway - the risk of a passing vehicle drifting into the shoulder is high enough that AAA or a state DOT tow truck (usually free on the interstate) is the correct choice. Roll on the flat if necessary for a quarter mile to reach a safe exit or a wider shoulder. A flat tire is a $150 replacement; a passenger-side change on a highway shoulder can be fatal.

Turn on hazard lights. Set the parking brake. Place the transmission in Park (automatic) or first gear (manual). Chock the wheel diagonally opposite the flat - flat on the right rear, chock the left front.

On the 2014-2019 Corolla the spare tire lives under the trunk floor. Lift the trunk carpet and remove the styrofoam tool tray. The scissor jack and lug wrench sit in molded pockets. The spare is secured by a plastic wing nut through its center - twist counterclockwise to remove. Lift the spare out. On the 2020-2022 Corolla Hatchback and some sedan trims the spare has been deleted in favor of a tire inflator kit; if opening the trunk shows a Slime bottle instead of a tire, this procedure does not apply.

Steel wheels on base trims have a plastic hub cap that clips into the wheel. Pry it off with the flat end of the lug wrench inserted into the slot at the edge of the cap. Alloy wheels on higher trims have exposed lug nuts and require no cap removal. Some alloy wheels use decorative lug nut covers that pop off with the wrench's chisel end. Set the cover aside somewhere it will not roll away.

Fit the lug wrench squarely onto the first lug nut and turn counterclockwise. Loose lug nuts with the wheel on the ground so the tire cannot spin. Break each nut loose about a quarter turn. Do not remove them yet. Attempting to loosen lug nuts after the tire is airborne is how the vehicle gets thrown off the jack.

The 2014-2022 Corolla has four factory jacking points, one behind each front wheel and one forward of each rear wheel. The jack point is a reinforced pinch weld with a small indentation designed to receive the jack cup. Position the scissor jack directly under the pinch weld nearest the flat tire. Turn the jack handle clockwise to raise the jack until the cup contacts the pinch weld and confirms alignment. Do not lift on the plastic body sill trim - the trim will crack and the jack can slip off. Continue raising until the flat tire is about 2 inches off the ground.

Spin off each lug nut and set them in the wheel cover or in a rag so they cannot roll away. Grasp the wheel at 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock and pull straight off the hub studs. If the wheel is rusted to the hub, tap the tire sidewall firmly with a foot at the top edge, then bottom edge, to break the corrosion bond. Set the flat wheel flat under the rocker panel as a secondary safety measure - if the jack fails, the vehicle will fall a few inches onto the tire rather than to the ground.

Lift the spare tire onto the hub studs. Compact donut spares are lighter than full-size wheels and easier to handle. Align the stud bolt pattern with the wheel holes and press the wheel flush to the hub. Thread each lug nut on by hand, tapered side toward the wheel, two full turns. Snug them in a five-point star pattern using the lug wrench. Do not fully torque yet - the tire needs to be on the ground for the final torque so the wheel does not spin.

Turn the jack handle counterclockwise to lower the vehicle until the spare tire firmly contacts the ground and the jack cup lifts off the pinch weld. Withdraw the jack. Torque the lug nuts using the lug wrench in the star pattern - the factory lug wrench is short enough that pressing down with body weight on the end produces roughly the correct 76 ft lb spec. Torque the Corolla wheel lug nuts to 76 ft lbs (103 Nm). Verify against your service manual, and re-torque with a proper torque wrench at home within 50 miles.

Place the flat tire in the spare well, secure it with the wing nut, and replace the styrofoam tray, tool set, and trunk carpet. Store the removed hub cap in the trunk. Note the spare's mileage as of the change - compact donuts are rated for 50 miles maximum and 50 mph maximum speed, and driving beyond either rating overheats the tire and can cause a blowout.