Hello! Welcome to the next lesson in your course on changing a car tyre.
In our previous session, you learned the critical first steps of securing your vehicle. By engaging the parking brake and correctly placing wheel chocks, you've created a stable, immobile base. This ensures the car won't roll while you work on it.
Now that the car is secured on the ground, our next task is to prepare for lifting it. This brings us to a crucial question: where exactly do you place the jack? Today's lesson is designed to answer that. Our learning outcome is to use the owner's manual to identify the correct jacking point for the flat tyre. Placing a jack in the wrong spot can cause serious damage to your vehicle or, far worse, lead to the jack slipping, creating a highly dangerous situation.
What are Jacking Points?
Think of your car's chassis as the skeleton of a building. It has specific structural columns and beams designed to carry immense weight. You wouldn't try to support a roof by pushing up on a plasterboard wall; likewise, you can't lift a car from just any point underneath.
Jacking points are these specially reinforced areas of the vehicle's frame, engineered by the manufacturer to safely support the car's entire weight during lifting.
To get a better understanding of what these points are and where they are generally located, please read the following sections from the VEVOR guide.
Where Do You Put A Jack On A Car: A Complete Guide To Safety
This article, 'Where Do You Put A Jack On A Car', will introduce you to the concept of jacking points, explaining why they are critical for safety and what they typically look like.
Please read the sections titled 'What Are Jacking Points on a Car?' and 'Common Locations of Jack Points on a Car'. Focus on understanding their purpose, common forms (like pinch welds or notches), and general locations near the wheels.
As the reading explains, jacking points are often found near the wheels and can take the form of notches in a metal seam (the pinch weld), flat reinforced pads, or other marked areas.
The Definitive Guide: Your Owner's Manual
While knowing the general location of jacking points is helpful, every car model is different. The single most reliable way to find the exact, correct jacking points for your specific vehicle is to consult the owner's manual.
The manual is your car's instruction book, written by the people who designed and built it. It will contain precise diagrams showing you exactly where to place the jack. This removes all guesswork and is the safest method.
The following reading selection will guide you on how to use your manual for this purpose.
Jack Points on a Car: A Complete Guide for Safe and Proper Lifting
This guide, 'Jack Points on a Car', directly addresses how to use your owner's manual and other visual cues to find the correct lifting points.
Please read the entire section titled 'How to Identify Jack Points on Your Specific Car'. Pay close attention to the subsections about checking the manual, looking for visual indicators, and using manufacturer diagrams.
What to Look For in the Manual
When you open your owner's manual, look in the index or table of contents for keywords like:
- "Changing a tyre"
- "Jacking" or "Jacking the vehicle"
- "Emergency procedures"
- "Lifting the vehicle"
In this section, you will typically find a diagram similar to the ones below. These diagrams use symbols to show the exact, manufacturer-approved points for lifting.
These diagrams are the "blueprints" for safely lifting your car. Take a moment to study them in the manual before you even get the jack out.
Common and Dangerous Mistakes to Avoid
Understanding where not to place the jack is just as important as knowing where to place it. As a beginner, it's easy to mistake a seemingly solid part for a safe lifting point. Placing the jack incorrectly can bend the frame, puncture components, or cause the car to become unstable.
Based on the reading and general best practice, NEVER place a jack under:
- Plastic body panels, like bumpers or side skirts. They will crack and offer no support.
- The engine oil pan or transmission housing. These are relatively thin metal casings that will be crushed by the vehicle's weight, leading to major fluid leaks and costly repairs.
- The exhaust system. The pipes and muffler are not structural and will be bent or broken.
- Suspension components like control arms or tie rods, unless explicitly identified as a jacking point in the manual (which is rare for roadside tyre changes).
Always trust the manual. If you cannot find the manual and are not 100% certain you've identified a proper jacking point, it is safer to call for professional roadside assistance.
Conclusion
Well done. You now have the knowledge to complete one of the most technical and safety-critical parts of preparing for a tyre change. By locating the correct jacking point, you ensure that you can lift the car without damaging it and, most importantly, without compromising your safety.
Key Takeaways:
- Jacking points are specific, reinforced areas on a car's frame designed to bear its weight.
- The owner's manual is the definitive source for locating the exact jacking points for your vehicle. Look for diagrams in sections related to tyre changes or jacking.
- Visually inspect under the car for notches, arrows, or reinforced metal pads that match the manual's diagram.
- Never guess. Lifting from the wrong spot can cause expensive damage and is extremely dangerous.
In our last lesson, you secured the vehicle on the ground. Today, you've identified the precise point to lift it. With the car still on the ground, our very next step will be to loosen the lug nuts on the damaged wheel before lifting the vehicle. We'll cover why this order of operations is essential in the next lesson.