How To Change a Flat Tire in Paramus, NJ
Getting a flat tire while driving down Route 17 can be frustrating, but fortunately, with the right tools and knowledge, you can get back on the road quickly. We’ll go over how to accomplish this common repair, and if you have any questions, contact our team at Toyota of Hackensack today!
Gather Your Tools
From potholes to sharp objects in the road, getting a flat tire is all too common with the obstacles New Jersey drivers face. For this reason, you ought to be prepared for this incident. There are a few necessary tools you’ll need once you pull over to the side of the road. You can keep these items in the trunk of your Toyota Rav4, Camry, or Prius. For starters, you’ll need a jack and a lug or torque wrench. Also, imperative in this process is the spare tire. Though your Toyota may come with a Tire Pressure Monitoring System, having a tire gauge is helpful. Wheel wedges, while not totally necessary, are useful in hilly areas, as they prevent your vehicle from rolling.
Get Started
Now that you have all of your tools ready, it’s time to get started. The first step you need to take is to find a safe, well-lit area to pull over. If you need to park on the side of a road, put your hazard lights on to ensure approaching vehicles can see you. After that, you’ll want to loosen the lug nuts and place the jack in the area indicated in your Owner’s Manual. Now, use this tool to lift your Toyota model off the ground by several inches. You can finish unscrewing the lug nuts at this stage and remove the flat tire. If you need a spare tire, our Parts Department has you covered!
Finish the Final Steps
After removing the flat, you need to put on the replacement. Line up this new one and screw the lug nuts in slightly using your hands. Once this is accomplished, turn your attention back to the jack and gently lower the wheel back to the ground. Finish tightening the lug nuts. After everything is back in place, use your tire gauge to check its pressure. It should be filled to the recommended PSI. This number can be found in your Owner’s Manual if you are unsure. You should now be able to return to your cabin and get back on the road. However, it’s important to remember that your spare isn’t designed for long-term use. At most, you should only drive it for 50 miles. This should be enough mileage to get you to our Service Center near Paramus for a long-term tire replacement!
When Should You Call Roadside Assistance?
- Unsafe environment
- Inclement weather
- Poor road conditions
Dealership Information
Testimonials
“ Liam helped me purchase my 2026 GR Corolla and the process was enjoyable. He was well spoken, light hearted yet efficient and looks out for your best interest. The experience was balanced with guidance and autonomy allowing me as the customer feel in charge and secure about my decision. VIP treatment. ”
“ Toyota of Hackensack is AMAZING! The entire team was professional, friendly, and incredibly efficient. From the moment I walked in, everything moved quickly and smoothly—no long waits, no stress. They respected my time and made the whole process easy and pleasant. If you’re looking for great service that’s fast and reliable, this is definitely the place to go. Highly recommend! ”
“ Toyota of Hackensack is AMAZING! The entire team was professional, friendly, and incredibly efficient. From the moment I walked in, everything moved quickly and smoothly—no long waits, no stress. They respected my time and made the whole process easy and pleasant. If you’re looking for great service that’s fast and reliable, this is definitely the place to go. Highly recommend! ”
“ Effective and courteous ”
“ Great experience getting a lease through Paulo at Hackensack Toyota. We will absolutely be coming back and recommend our friends/family to go here as well! ”
“ Susana was really nice and very helpful ”
“ (Translated by Google) Excellent service, very specific diagnoses. Excellent customer service. (Original) Muy buen atención, diagnósticos muy específicos. Excelente servicio al cliente ”
“ The process was smooth and pleasant because of staff, from Pops to Franks and the Finance guy with the fancy desk. I’ve been a loyal customer for years because of the. ”
“ Excellent customer service! ”
“ Excellent service advisor Susana. Had emergency with low battery and required replacement as well as routine service and a recall. Even without appointment completed quickly. Great place to service your Toyota! ”
“ Liam helped me through the whole process of purchasing my new car. He was professional, responsive, and respectful. Mike in financing was also fantastic in explaining my options and helping pick what worked in my budget. Overall 10/10 time. ”
“ Paul was fantastic ”
“ Great experience! Always ”
“ I’m satisfied with the service ”
“ Diana was very efficient knowledgeable, and courteous. The facility was clean and run like clock work. Our finance director Steve E. made the purchase process quick and easy. We have been to several Toyota dealerships over the years and Toyota of Hackensack is by far the best. Will definitely go back there in the future. ”
“ This is the third time I’ve bought here. I’ve always appreciated the no-BS approach, and Kellen was terrific about making the whole process as easy as possible. Highly recommended. ”
“ Melvin was very helpful, was able to explore different options easily, whole process was smooth. Thank you! ”
“ I have leased 5-6 different vehicles & have found Toyota of Hackensack provides exceptional customer support and excellent service! If recommend them to anyone. ”
“ Excellent experience at Toyota of Hackensack. Everyone from the manager Jay, Kellen in sales and Juan in finance made the experience super easy and took the stress out of buying a car here. 10/10 would recommend ”
“ As always, the entire service team was professional and friendly. ”
“ I have an amazing experience buying a vehicle in this dealership everything was smooth and very easy! Thanks to Tony Munoz and his whole sales team they have an amazing customer service, the whole transaction was clean and clear they made me feel like family I’m very happy with my new vehicle 🚗 ❤️ ”
“ All of them at Toyota Hackensack are respectful and nice. I hope that it will continue to be like that way even when the sale is over. Mr Michael Park is awesome. He show us all possible RAV 4 that’s on their place, even my son’s wish to see a Supra, he pulled it out from the garage to show my daughter for my son and I have to mention Mr John Ramirez who’s equally nice and very helpful from the beginning to the end of the sale. Mr Mike in the financing dept is so welcoming and very accommodating as well. As a whole , Toyota Hackensack is the place to go!! We need respectful people these days and Toyota Hackensack has it all!! 🙏♥️ ”
“ (Translated by Google) undefined (Original) TOYOTA OF HACKENSACK IS THE BEST!!!!! Marrisa and her team went Above and Beyond To Provide The Best Customer Service Experience!!! From start to finish she kept me updated and informed about everything going on with my car repairs!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! ”
“ (Translated by Google) undefined (Original) Excellent and speedy service. Did extra work to find a vehicle I wanted. Kellen is a fine professional. ”
“ Overall had the service done without issues. But wish customer service was better. Service advisor Joseph was not friendly and acted like I were bothering him. ”
“ (Translated by Google) undefined (Original) Quick and good job ”
“ I had a very frustrating experience with Hackensack Toyota, despite ultimately being happy with the vehicle itself. Purchased a 2024 Toyota Prius LE 01/31/2026 The car was advertised online as Certified Pre-Owned, which was a major reason I made the trip. Once I arrived, I was told it could not be sold as CPO due to a recall. This was not disclosed ahead of time, and it felt misleading — as though the CPO listing was used simply to get me in the door. I was also very clear before arriving that I had limited time and could not spend several hours at the dealership. To help speed things along, I completed my insurance paperwork in advance while on the way and had financing approval in place prior to arrival. Despite all of this, the process still took over three hours, which was extremely disappointing given the advance notice and preparation. I made it clear from the beginning that I did not want add-ons, GAP, or extended warranties. Despite declining three to four times, I continued to be pushed and was even pressured to explain why I didn’t want them. Comments were made implying I was irresponsible or “crazy” for declining certain coverages, which was unprofessional and unnecessary — “no” should have been sufficient. One additional detail I noticed only after getting home was that a Hackensack Toyota dealership sticker had been placed on the back of the vehicle. The car did not have this branding prior to purchase, and it was added without my knowledge or consent. While minor on its own, it contributed to the overall feeling that customer preferences were not being respected. That said, I do want to be clear that the vehicle itself is exactly as described and I am happy with it, and Liam, the salesperson, was polite and professional throughout the process. My frustration is with the overall lack of transparency, time management, and high-pressure tactics — not with him personally. Buying a car should not feel this exhausting, especially when a customer comes prepared and communicates clearly. I expected a smoother and more respectful experience. The final photo confirms the adhesive residue left after I removed a Hackensack Toyota sticker that was added to the vehicle without my consent. This was discovered only after I got home. 02/01/2026 Update: It is now the day after I posted this review, and I still have not received the warranty coverage information I requested. 02/03/2026 10:15am Update: They’ve sent over the documentation of the warranty 02/03/2026 3:22pm “Response to dealership reply” - The dealership was aware in advance that my wife would be signing remotely, and all pre-approval and insurance paperwork was completed prior to arrival. The extended wait time still occurred. I also have not yet received the warranty coverage information I reached out about after purchase. The defensive nature of the dealership’s response, rather than acknowledgment or follow-up, reinforces the one-star rating based on my overall experience. Update: This was originally a two-star review. After the dealership’s initial response, I lowered it to one star due to how my concerns were addressed. The General Sales Manager Mario has since reached out, handled the situation professionally, and took the time to listen and follow up. Because of that, I’ve updated the rating back to two stars. While I appreciate the GSM Mario’s professionalism and accountability, the overall experience still wasn’t an enjoyable one, so I don’t feel a higher rating would be accurate. 02/04/2026 9:35am ”
“ Edit to respond: when picking up the car, it showed ~2k miles on the dashboard so there was a discrepancy in accounting for the mileage, since it was stated it was "915" on paper. So someone must have driven it between the time "915" was noted and when I picked it up. Additionally, I called the front desk and was transferred around to sales and financing to discuss the missing key a while back. Purchased a vehicle in May and there were a few things that happened that would make me not recommend this dealership to anyone looking to purchase a car. First, the process was what you would expect. Minimal flexibility on pricing and high interest rates. There was an error on my title due to admin on their end. This error could only be amended in person so i had to return to the dealership, which was frustrating but I went in the middle of a weekday and the staff was prompt and fixed it. When i picked up the car, there were dirty footprints all over the interior. I assumed it would have had a basic cleaning before the customer picked it up but thats on me for assuming incorrectly. Additionally, during the purchase, i was told that they only had one car key and the second would arrive "in the fall." I found this odd, but they blamed this on supply chain issues and reassured that i would get it eventually. When fall and winter approached, I called the dealership to check on the status of my 2nd key and was passed around on the phone until someone hung up on me. All I wanted was an answer on where my 2nd key is. The salesperson I was assigned to is no longer with the company so that made it more challenging with communications. Overall, would not recommend due to poor communication and a missing key. ”
“ Terrible service. I took my car in for an oil change and they never did it. They also didn’t rotate the tires as they said they would. In fact, I have a dash cam that activates when the car is turned on, and after checking the videos I only have footage of when I dropped it off and they drove it to the parking lot, and then when they turned it on again to bring it back to me. At no point did I see any videos inside the shop showing any work being done. It’s really sad and very disappointing that this happened. ”
“ Terrible service. I took my car in for an oil change and they never did it. They also didn’t rotate the tires as they said they would. In fact, I have a dash cam that activates when the car is turned on, and after checking the videos I only have footage of when I dropped it off and they drove it to the parking lot, and then when they turned it on again to bring it back to me. At no point did I see any videos inside the shop showing any work being done. It’s really sad and very disappointing that this happened. ”
“ The worst experience ever, I don't recommend it at all, be aware with dealing with them ”
“ (Translated by Google) Very good service. (Original) Muy buen servicio. ”