Pontiac GTO - Changing a Tire Without a Jack
By: Ron McCluskey

From time to time it just seems like everything is going wrong. But when you surmount all of the obstacles, you have a great feeling.

That is what was challenging me on a trip in my 1968 GTO. I was heading home from my college one night. It was about a six hour trip. Having left after my last laboratory about 5 pm, I hoped to arrive home an hour or two after midnight.
A bit after midnight, the automobile started swerving all over the road when a tire blew.

There was no place to change a tire, so I drove about 3 miles on the rim into a small town. I found a closed filling station and was able to pull under some streetlights where i could see well.

When I set about to get the tools needed to change the tire out to change my tire I discovered that whoever had sold me the gTO had substituted the standard equipment jack with a bumper jack! With fiberglass bumpers, the 1968 Pontiac GTO needed either a scissor jack or a hydraulic jack. Scouting around the service station did nothing for me, so I went looking for a phone.

There was a barroom open a few blocks away, but there was no answer at my parents house. So, I headed back to the gas station.

Here is where all those math lessons came through. I discovered some timbers and concrete blocks and in addition some big rocks. I then set up a fulcrum and pry system. I put a concrete block about 12 inches from the side of the car and put a timber over the block and under the side of the car. Then, by standing at the end of the beam, I was able to lift the side of the car up a few inches. I heaped-up rocks up under the axle and then got off the railroad tie. By building up the blocks under the plank and tossing more rocks under the axle, I finally got the tire off the ground and was able to change it. It was easier to reverse the process and push the rocks out from under the axle with a board and eventually get the spare on the ground.

When I was at length able to continue on my journey, it was a couple of hours later. But even though I was quite wiped out, I had a warm feeling of achievement.

About The Author...
Ron McCluskey, Cheney, WA 99004 http://www.musclecarblues.com  Ron McCluskey is the proud (but former) owner of a 1968 Pontiac GTO and is now trying to relive his glory days through Muscle Car Blues