A car jack lifts your vehicle off its wheels to give you the clearance necessary to perform a maintenance task. These sturdy devices may have enough power to lift up a car, but shouldn’t be used without jack stands. Find out how to safely use car jacks to avoid injury or auto damage during your routine maintenance tasks.
How To Ensure Your Car Jack Stand Is Properly Installed
If you’re changing a tire on the side of the road, you can use a jack without jack stands. For any maintenance or repair task that requires you to crawl under your vehicle, jack stands are essential. Even a properly installed car jack can fail or slip, causing your car to come crashing down on you if you don’t have sturdy jack stands properly installed. Park your vehicle on flat, firm ground before starting the jacking process.
Verify your jack stands can accommodate the weight of your vehicle. Locate the proper jack point on your vehicle before lifting it up. After carefully lifting your car, slide the jack stands under it at the OEM jacking points. Make sure the jacks are firmly under the vehicle and bearing weight before you remove the jack.
Order jack stands, a floor jack, seat covers and other accessories for your vehicle online or at your local auto parts store. A customer service agent can help you identify the best jack and stands for your vehicle.
After finishing your maintenance task, place the car jack under your vehicle and lift it until it’s bearing weight. Carefully remove the jack stands, being sure the car is balanced and secure on the car jack, before slowly lowering your vehicle to the ground.
Precautions To Look Out for When Your Car Is on a Jack Stand
The steps are relatively easy to lift up and lower your car, but there are a few precautions you should take while using a car jack and stands. Here are some steps to take as you prepare to work on your car.
Perform routine inspection of your jack and stands to ensure they’re free from damage. Use a floor jack instead of the included jack in your car, as these are typically more reliable and capable of holding more weight.
Consider asking a friend to assist you with any maintenance project that requires you to be under your vehicle. Perform a stability check by carefully moving the vehicle back and forth while no one is underneath it. This will help you identify any loose or crooked jack stands that may not be holding your vehicle securely.
Always verify that stands are placed on OEM jacking points. Improper jack placement can damage your vehicle and cause it to fall off the jack stand.
Prepare for Your Next Maintenance Project
Learn more about maintenance tasks you can perform with a car jack and jack stands today. Use a free VIN lookup to help you find the components needed for an oil change or other routine automotive repair. With a high-quality jack and jack stands, you can be confident in a safe, secure workspace.
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