Practical English: changing a tyre

Hello, I’m Jane at DailyStep English and welcome to our Audio Blog.

I’m happy to say that spring is finally here in London, after a long and freezing winter. The sun is out and the trees are in blossom!

This week Bren is going to show you how to change a car tyre. Even if you know how to do it (I didn’t!), perhaps you don’t know yet how to explain it in English. 

So, here is Bren changing a tyre!

Bren’s Blog #005 – How to change a tyre 
(by Brendan O’Connell at DailyStep.com)

 

Bren: Ok, everybody who drives a car knows that occasionally[1] you get a puncture[2]or a flat tyre[3]. So, it is important to know how to change a tyre in case of[4] an emergency.

So, today I’m going to show you how to change a tyre[5].

I’m going to need a few tools, first of all a wheel brace, which is just a big spanner[6] for undoing the bolts[7], and a screwdriver. Take the spare tyre[8] out of the boot[9].

Jane: That’s a brand new[10] tyre! Is it?

Bren: It’s never been used.

Jane: So, it’s brand new then.

Bren: It’s just for emergencies.

I’m just going to take the hub cap[11] off[12]. I use the screwdriver. Push it into the ___ Ok.

Now, with the wheel brace I’m going toundo[13] the bolts. The first thing I have to do is loosen the bolts[14], that’s turn[15] them anti-clockwise[16].

Just loosen them before you lift the car up. So, I put the spanner on the bolt. (Brendan loosens the bolts you can hear that the bolts are very tight and difficult to move) 

I’m going to use this tool, it’s called a jack[17], to lift the car up or to jack the car up[18].

So put the jack under the car.

Jane: How do you know where to put it?

Bren: If you look in the car, in the user’s manual[19] it tells you exactly where to put the jack. If you put it in the wrong place it will go through the floor[20] and damage the car.

Jane: Right, OK. Oh yes the car is going off the ground now. I can see the wheel coming up.

Bren: Lift it so the car is off the ground.

Jane: How far off the ground does it have to be?

Bren: It just needs to be a few inches of the ground. A few centimetres.

Jane: Ok.

Bren: I turn it anti-clockwise to undo the bolts. Now, that’s a bolt and it has got a thread on it like that. (Brendan shows the spiral form of the bolt thread) 

So, now the car is jacked up and the bolts are out, I’m going to take the tyre off, take the wheel off. So, that’s the old wheel.

Now I am going to put the spare wheel on. Now, we are going to put the bolts back in and tighten[21] them by turning them clockwise[22].

Jane: Make sure that[23] you get them nice and tight. We don’t want the tyre falling off[24] while we are driving.

Bren: Thank you Jane. (spoken with a sarcastic tone)

Jane: Always ready with a useful piece of advice[25].

Bren: Now the bolts are on but they’re not very tight yet, it’s better to tighten them (the bolts) after we have let the car down[26].

Jane: Why?

Bren: Because otherwise[27] the car can fall off the jack. It could be very dangerous,the car could fall on top of you.

Jane: Oh, because of the movement while you are tightening them.

Bren: Yes. So, let the jack down. So, now we tighten them. (Brendan tightens the bolts with wheel brace) Put the hub cap back on[28].

And that is how you change a tyre. Maybe one day in an emergency that will help you.

So, now you know how to change a tyre in English! Did you notice Brendan’s Northern English accent? He’s from a town near Manchester in Northern England, and I’m from Hampshire in Southern England.

So, Brendan says ‘hub cap’ /’hʊb kæp/ and I say ‘hub cap’ /’hʌb kæp/ , Brendan says ‘puncture’ /’pʊnktʃə/ and I say ‘puncture’ /’pʌnktʃə/, Brendan says ‘tighten’/’tæːtən/and I say ‘tighten’ /’taɪtən/.

It’s quite a similar accent in some ways but it’s just the vowel sounds that are different.

 

 

DailyStep Audio Word Study 067 – Changing a Tyre

 

Here are all the useful expressions from Bren’s Blog on how to change a tyre. To help you remember the phrases in this Word Study, try speaking along with my audio recording. 

1. occasionally = from time to time

2. a puncture = a hole in the tyre that causes the tyre to deflate, normally caused by something sharp such as a nail

3. a flat tyre = a tyre from which all the air has escaped / a tyre with no air in it

4. in case of = in the event of (more formal)

5. to change a tyre = to put a new tyre or wheel on the car

6. a spanner = a tool for loosening and tightening nuts and bolts

7. undoing the bolts = loosening the bolts (turning them in an anti-clockwise direction in order to remove them)

8. the spare tyre = the emergency tyre or wheel (usually stored in the boot or underneath the car)

9. the boot = the rear storage area of the car (note: in American English this is known as the trunk. The engine is under the bonnet or, in the USA, the hood)

10. brand new = totally new

11. the hub cap = the metal or plastic plate at the centre of a wheel that protects the bolts

12. to take something off (phrasal verb) = to remove something

13. to undo = to loosen / to disconnect

14. loosen the bolts = move the bolts slightly so that they are easier to take out

15. turn = rotate

16. anti-clockwise = in circular direction the opposite way to how a clock moves

17. a jack = a tool for raising a vehicle off the ground

18. to jack the car up (phrasal verb: to jack something up = to lift something using a jack) = to raise the car using the jack

19. the user’s manual = the instruction book that is provided with the car

20. it will go through the floor (phrasal verb: to go through = to puncture / to penetrate) = it will penetrate the floor

21. to tighten = to turn until fully in place / to fasten tightly into position / to make tighter

22. clockwise = in a circular direction, the same direction that the hands of a clock move

23. Make sure that… = Ensure that… (more formal)

24. falling off (phrasal verb: to fall off) = becoming disconnected from

25. a useful piece of advice = a good recommendation

26. we have let the car down (phrasal verb: to let down = to lower)= we have allowed the car to gradually become lower

27. Because otherwise … = Because if not… / Because if you don’t do that…

28. Put the hub cap back on (phrasal verb: to put something back on) = Replace the hub cap

Now, how many of these can you remember? Watch the video again, read the script and try to find all these words and phrases.

That’s all for Audio Word Study #067 on DailyStep.com.

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