Hey guys, I know this is probably a noob question.
I rotated my tires from back to front on my 09 scion tc. Now the car is making poping sounds as i drive, as of somthing is loose. Do I have to Cross Rotate my tires ? Is anyone aware of this ?

 

You did the rotation right, you don't have to cross rotate. You might have lose lug nut so I would check that. Make sure you use a torque wrench so you can torque it to 76 ft/lbs.

 

sounds like loose nuts

 

You had to say it Alan......

 

yeah I just got off work im going to check now, I dont have a Torque wrench

 

Hehe it was so tempting.

I wouldn't drive the car any further until u make sure AT THE VERY LEAST its not the lug nuts.

 

you dont need a torque wrench...just use the one that comes with the car until you cant tighten anymore...by that i mean you really should put weight on it, not just hand tight.

and arnt you suppose to cross rotate...not just rear and front swap on same sides?

 

Well thanks guys for the help just making sure.

 

The owners manual says to just rotate rear to front on the same side. I believe the oem tires are directional. Defiantly try to tighten them up but over tightening is not good either since you can warp your rotors, but I did it without a torque wrench before I had one and I didn't have any problems.

 

That's a great way to strip the lugs when you try to loosen them...

 

^ True, and it's not too hard to actually crack the wheel either!

At least buy a cheap torque wrench.

 

it also depends if the tire has a certain rotation? you could probably take it to a tire shop and have them use their torque wrench? doesnt take but 15sec?

 

I have the OEM tires , What do you mean exactly by directional ?

 

Maybe take it to the dealer and have them look at it under warranty?

 

that is so incorrect lol

 

no, i dont think they would strip that easily...why else would they give you the tools to loosen all the nuts if it would end up stripping it. btw, it says to torque 70+ lb/ft (cant remember the actual number) for the lug nuts...with such a short handle, if you hand tighten only, theres no way itll be 70+ lb/ft.

im not saying freakin put the bar on the lug nut and jump on it or anything, just tighten to what you "feel" is right.

 

It means the tires can only turn one direction for traction, if you crossed rotated them that means some of them would be going in the wrong direction which would lead to wear and other damage. Like I said the owners manual says to rotate back to front, so I think you are fine there. Just go out and get a torque wrench or do what Yanki01 and go to a tire shop and get them to torque them. I doubt they will charge anything.

 

OK thanks for clarifying , i know i know it was a noob question just making sure guys. Thanks again.

 

I can tighten to over 120 ft lbs very easilly with the wrench that comes with the car, and I am no body builder by any means. 76 ft lbs is not nearly as tight as most think it is. My tq wrench is obviously longer than our stock lug wrench, but not by a huge amount. My son could put 76 ft lbs on a lug with it when he was 10 years old without straining.

I have tightened plenty of wheels without a tq wrench until I could get the car back home. But if you dont know what the correct tq feels like to some extent, you can get it too tight easily.

And it isnt just so you dont strip the lugs or break the studs, which an overly tight lug can do in no time. The idea is to get all the lugs the same. This is especially true on alloy wheels and/or disc brakes. If your lugs are unevenly tightened, you can end up with warped rotors and even warped rims over time.

TQ wrenches are cheap and a great tool to have around even if you do minimal work on a car.

 

No problem, it is better to find out then mess something up.