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About Cars The Safe Way to Use a Jack Once you've observed the safety precautions just listed, follow these stepi 1. If you're going to remove a wheel to change a tire or check your brakes, remove the hubcap (if there is one) and loosen the lug nuts, before you jack up the car. Once the car is jacked up, the wheel will turn freely, which makes get>~ a hubcap off harder and makes starting the nuts almost impossible. Instructions for removing a hubcap and loosening lug nuts are in the ~ next section, "How to Change a Tire." 2. Place the jack under the part of the vehicle that it should contact when raised. If you are using jack stands, place them near the jack. Where you place your jack depends on whether you're planning to do! one-wheel job, such as tire changing or brake checking, or a two-whed whole-end repair job. To find out the proper place to position the jack for your particular vehicle, check your owner's manual. If you have nt manual, ask the service department at your dealership to show you ttt proper place, or follow these rules: Never place the jack so that the weight of the vehicle rests on somethl~ that can bend, break, or give. If your manual is incomprehensible or + lacks this kind of information, try to place the jack so that it touches I either the car frame or the big bar that supports the front wheel susp~ sion. You can also place jacks near the rear-wheel axle. Until you ; become more proficient at this, I'd stick to jacking up one wheel at a time. It may mean more work, but the practice is good for you. 3. Lift the vehicle by using the jack. How you accomplish this depends on the type of jack you're using (see Figure 1-1): • If you have a hydraulic jack, place the handle into the appropriate location and pump up and down. Use nice, even strokes, taking tl jack handle from its lowest to its highest point on each stroke to cut down on the labor involved. • If you have a tripod jack, turn the crank. • If you have a scissor jack, insert the rod or wrench over the knob and then crank.         1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14

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