Many of us are not familiar with the technical terms related to lifting trucks and changing their tires.
While some of us might actually be careful and treat their vehicles with care, there are many others who don’t really pay much attention when driving their cars or simply ignore the fact that a tire needs replacing – so in turn, not taking care of things.
If you’re the owner of a lifted truck, you’ve probably experienced that flat tires are more of a hassle than they should be to change.
That was certainly my experience! When I had to change my first tire on the roadside and realised how difficult it was to lift my truck enough to take off the wheel, I wondered: “How am I going to get this tire of mine changed?”
Choosing A Spot In Which To Work
There are some common places you can jack up your lifted truck. The first step in jacking up your vehicle is to choose the right spot to work in.
When working under a car, always lift from safe locations where the vehicle is level, never from the device that you’re using to lift with.
This means parking on solid ground or at least on asphalt or concrete, lifting from gravel will not only wear away your jack’s foundation but it is extremely dangerous as well.
Also make sure you’ve chosen hard ground; don’t try lifting a vehicle parked on grass or soft ground as this can be disastrous should the jack slip and slide off of it if working on an incline.
Chocking The Wheels
Once your vehicle is in position, it’s time to get the jack and jack stand ready. Jack stands prevent a vehicle from rolling if you have to support the weight of your vehicle with a jack or a ramp because you can’t put weight on a flat surface.
We suggest chocking the wheels or wheel opposite from where your jack will be positioned so that vehicle remains still and does not roll.
Checking Your Jack
To ensure the comfort and safety of your car, it’s vital that you know how to use your car jack properly.
Carefully check if your jack is damaged, leaking fluids or modified from its original design. If it shows any of these signs, never use it for performing routine maintenance or repairs.
You should always buy a hydraulic floor jack for heavier tasks and repairs as it’s able to withstand far more pressure than other bottle jacks and is built to last longer.
Finding A Jacking Point
Find a secure jacking point in the area of your vehicle now that needs to be raised. Your vehicle’s owner’s manual should list the locations of the jack points – usually near each of its wheels.
For a vehicle that is on the ground, avoid placing the jack at the point between tire and body.
Opening The Release Valve
After doing all the thing then open your jack’s release valve and lower the vehicle, resting it onto your jack stand. When the entire weight of the car is on the jack stand, you can remove your jack if you choose.
Using your floor jack, lift up the vehicle with one hand while slowly swivelling the other hand’s free arm up to open the valve at the bottom of the floor jack.
The moment your car is high enough you can remove it at this point and place it upon a stand and take a step back to catch your breath for a minute.
Removing The Jack Stand
After you have finished working on the truck, you should put the jack back into the same position as before if you removed it, then use your jack to slowly raise your vehicle up a couple of inches so the jack stand can be removed.
After you have finished working on your vehicle, make sure you return the jack to its original place before taking your vehicle off of it.
This way, you can be sure that it will still work when you need it next. After carrying out these steps and replacing the jack onto its rest, remove your vehicle from the jack and place your vehicle onto a jack stand.
Lowering The Vehicle
To lower your Vehicle, remove the jack stands, and slowly lower it to the ground. Once you’ve done that, it’s easiest not to just get in and start driving off.
Instead, check underneath your vehicle carefully while wearing sturdy shoes so that you make sure there isn’t any damage or oil spills.
You should try getting accustomed to maneuvering underneath an oversized vehicle such as a lifted truck as part of normal routine for you anyway.
So as long as you stay calm about the procedure itself and have already planned out what needs doing beforehand, then jacking up your vehicle shouldn’t be too daunting a task after all!
you remain safe and secure with no damage to your vehicle as you carry out the procedure.