When you need to lift the car, the first thing that you need to make sure of is that you are on level ground. If you try and lift your car with a jack and the ground isn't level, you risk the jack slipping and you don't want that, especially whilst working on the car! The handbrake (parking brake) should always be on when needing to lift a car and ideally the wheels chocked so that the car isn't likely to roll. You need to find the jacking points either at the front, rear or sides of the car, if you try and engage the jack in the wrong area, you risk damage to the car and also risk your safety. Which points you need depend on where you are working, if it's underneath the car then front or rear, if your changing a tyre or wheel, then the sides.
If you are changing a wheel, then once the jack is in place and wound up so that it starts to take the pressure of the car, it may be necessary to slightly loosen the wheel nuts, this can sometimes be difficult especially if the wheel hasn't been removed for some time. The car should then be ready to lift. If you are working under the car, then once it has been lifted you can put either the front or rear on jack stands and you should be ready to go. Give the car a shake first however, just to double check that it's not going anywhere. As an extra safety precaution you could always also put a car tyre under the raised wheels, just in case there is a problem with a stand. The more you do, the safer the job becomes!
Good quality jacks and jack stands are available from good retailers. There is a great 2 ton hydraulic jack and stand set currently available via our motor care website, click here to visit the site and to purchase.
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