How do wheel covers work

Rusty brakes means a strip down and or replacement of parts, this will be expensive and could have been avoided. Inside the brake hub or disc you have wheel bearings , this is normally well greased and has a seal that is designed to keep water out which is great when the car was new but your old classic is far from new. Water will find its way into the bearings and again will cause damage. Replacement and repairs will be the only way forward at this point and again your hand will be reaching for your wallet!

Now we get on to the tyres. Tools are not required for this process, only your bare hands. It happens sometimes that tools cause breakage on the wheel covers. The proper way to do this is to work on installing each cover by applying pressure to two parts at once. Using other techniques may possibly damage the cover. Make sure that before driving your vehicle, the wheel covers are securely snapped in place.

Hubcaps are added to the wheel. It by definition covers the hub or center of the wheel, but the hubcap can cover the entire wheel. Rims and hubcaps have very different functions. The rim is there to support the tire and hold it firmly to the wheel. The hubcap at best protects the lug nuts from rust or captures them when they fall out. This practical use is why you still find hubcaps on heavy-duty trucks; it keeps out dirty and protects the wheel bearing. A hubcap may be purely decorative, too.

You can change out the hubcaps without changing the wheels. Be careful not to misplace any lug nuts. It is not safe to drive your vehicle with fewer than the provided amount of lug nuts. Line up the ring indent with the valve stem.

The retention ring on the back of the wheel cover will have an indentation in it, as well as a hole through the wheel cover in the same area. This gap is intended to allow the valve stem to pass through the cover for you to access when adding air to your tires.

Many wheel covers will have a drawing of a valve stem on the back intended to help you identify where the valve stem passes through. Press the wheel cover directly onto the wheel.

With the valve stem properly aligned through the wheel cover, press the wheel cover directly onto the wheel. If you did not need to remove your lug nuts, the wheel cover should pop into place and not come back off the wheel easily. The wheel cover should not feel loose, nor should it be easily pulled off. Screw on the lug nuts. If you removed the lug nuts previously, use your hands to thread each nut onto a lug stud passing through the wheel and wheel cover.

Once you are confident the lug nuts are properly threaded, use a wrench or tire iron to tighten them. Be sure all lug nuts are tight before attempting to drive the vehicle. Part 2. Place the wheel cover face down. You can place the wheel covers in grass or on a soft material like cloth or Styrofoam. Line up the bend with the valve stem notch. The retention ring will have a bend in it designed to allow the valve stem to pass through it.

Line that bend up with the hole in the wheel cover that is also intended for the valve stem to pass through. There will be only one bend in the ring, making it easy to identify the parts to line up. If the ring is not lined up properly, it will mount on the wheel cover, but will not be able to mount on the wheel itself.

Press the metal ring downward onto the first few clips. Use your thumbs to press the ring down onto the clips that will hold it in place. Different wheel covers will have a different number of clips, but there are usually at least six.

Simply pressing down on the ring will snap the clips into place. Continue to press the ring into each snap all the way around the wheel cover. Bend the ring slightly to secure the last clips.