I am trying get the front wheel off -- got all five bolts off, put one of those wheel assist things in, and tried tugging at the wheel and it just won't budge. I don't want to jerk it too hard and have the wheel come down on the ceramic rotor. Any advise?

 

I would suggest keeping a bolt or two threaded into the rotor to keep it from dropping and then rock the wheel fairly hard. Most likely the wheel as 'seized' to the rotor and will need some force to break it free.

Another way to break it free is to have all of the lug bolts loose by a turn and then lower the wheel back to the ground a bit and turn the steering wheel. If the wheel is not seized to bad it may break loose.

 

With the wheel off the ground and the lugs loosened (but not necessarily off), put something like a moving blanket over the tire and outer edge of the wheel, sit down on your behind and kick the wheel at 12 o'clock then 6 o'clock then 3 o'clock then 9 o'clock, etc. Repeat until wheel is loose. This method has always worked for me when a wheel has seized up.

 

Thanks guys, a little brute force did the job!

 

I'm not sure of others will agree with me, but I've always put a coat of WD-40 on the back side of the wheel before remounting. This ,imho, helps to prevent seizing.

 

996turboonmaui
i do the same thing, and have the same experience

 

I cleaned it with some WD 40...

 

I would recomend you not to do this. Because it is not the lugs that hold the wheels really, it is the friction between the wheel and the hub. Otherwise centerbolts would not work...

 

Wow...really? So I should save time and not put the lugs on.

 

Haha, yes really. The bolts are only holding the wheels sideways. But if not for the friction the bolts will shear faster than I sink a shot of jaeger when accelerating...