Support Your Car Safely!

Car safety on your mind? Use jack stands.

Jacking your car up is no trivial matter when it comes to car safety, so be sure to support it safely with jack stands. You're taking thousands of pounds and dangling it over your body while you tinker underneath. I've been lucky enough over the years never to have seen a horrific jack accident, but I have seen a car fall off a jack, and it ain't pretty. The force of the car hitting the ground is enough to get your attention, so much that it takes you a minute to realize you might have damaged part of your car. It's definitely a car safety and repair wake-up call!

It only takes a second to securely support your car safely while you work on it. A pair of jack stands should be one of the first things you buy when equipping yourself for home auto repair.

With your car supported by the factory jack, carefully peak underneath. Behind the front wheel, underneath the car, you should see a jack point or a length of heavy duty frame. If you don't see an obvious spot, you can put the jack stand next to the factory jack point (see your owner's manual). Start lowering the car toward the jack stand, watching to be sure you are still on target. Once the weight of the car is off the jack and onto the stand, you're ready to work - safely.