How do you keep the front wheels locked?
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
How do you keep the front wheels locked?
I was trying to remove the front wheel, driver side, for new rim fitment tonight and noticed the front wheels rotate when they're on the car jack. How do I prevent them from rotating? The car's emergency brake was engaged and it still rotated. Help. I have a 2015 GLK 350.
#2
Member
Most likely you had both front wheels up. I would put e-brake on and lift one wheel at a time. E-brake will lock the rear wheels but not the front ones. Before that I would break loose lug bolts while a wheel is still touching the ground. Once bolts are loose you can lift the wheel up.
Hope this helps
Hope this helps
#3
MBWorld Fanatic!
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Toronto, Canada
Posts: 3,728
Received 796 Likes
on
547 Posts
W204 C63 Coupe, W166 ML350 BlueTEC, 928GT, C5 Z06 & IS300 race cars, EQE 4Matic+ on order
First of all, I suspect you mean the parking brake, not the emergency brake (there is an emergency brake, but it can't activate unless you're pressing on the pedal and your main brakes fail). The parking brake only holds the rear wheels locked.
If you actually need to have the front wheels locked, you have to have someone holding the brake pedal down in the car. Now, as dzl_benz said, for your own safetly the car has to be on the ground on all four wheels when you "break" the wheel bolts if they're seized (you DON'T loosen them completely - you just get the bolt to rotate and then gently re-tighten it back, one at a time - before you raise the car). If you're using a jack to raise one side or corner at a time and can't get the bolts loosened, I'd think the last thing you want is have the car come crashign down from the jack.
If you actually need to have the front wheels locked, you have to have someone holding the brake pedal down in the car. Now, as dzl_benz said, for your own safetly the car has to be on the ground on all four wheels when you "break" the wheel bolts if they're seized (you DON'T loosen them completely - you just get the bolt to rotate and then gently re-tighten it back, one at a time - before you raise the car). If you're using a jack to raise one side or corner at a time and can't get the bolts loosened, I'd think the last thing you want is have the car come crashign down from the jack.
#4
Member
^What Diabolis said.
'Break' the lugs while the car still has all four wheels on the ground. Don't loosen them much, but just to the point at which you can loosen them further while the car is up.
'Break' the lugs while the car still has all four wheels on the ground. Don't loosen them much, but just to the point at which you can loosen them further while the car is up.
#5
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Philly area
Posts: 861
Likes: 0
Received 37 Likes
on
34 Posts
350 GLK, C280
Being from California, you probably don't have all wheel drive. TPete19 is correct that you need to loosen the lug with the car on the ground. Even with the brakes on, you may not be able to loosen them once in the air. If some jerk used an air gun set to high, you may twist the lug wrench into a pretzel even with the car on the ground. In that case you need to use an impact air gun to get them off.
You want to tighten them fully once the car is back on the ground to insure that they don't come off.
You want to tighten them fully once the car is back on the ground to insure that they don't come off.
#6
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Thanks for the info. Here's the rim for the fitment test.
<a href="http://s588.photobucket.com/user/dbr9tifosi/media/Persp.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss321/dbr9tifosi/Persp.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Persp.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s588.photobucket.com/user/dbr9tifosi/media/Side.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss321/dbr9tifosi/Side.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Side.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s588.photobucket.com/user/dbr9tifosi/media/Persp.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss321/dbr9tifosi/Persp.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Persp.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s588.photobucket.com/user/dbr9tifosi/media/Side.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss321/dbr9tifosi/Side.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Side.jpg"/></a>