2008 DODGE CARAVAN warning

WARNING!
Carefully follow these tire changing warnings to
help prevent personal injury or damage to your
vehicle:
²Always park on a firm, level surface as far from
the edge of the roadway as possible before raising
the vehicle.
²Block the wheel diagonally opposite the wheel to
be raised.
²Set the parking brake firmly and set an automatic
transmission in park; a manual transmission in
reverse.
WARNING!
Carefully follow these tire changing warnings to
help prevent personal injury or damage to your
vehicle:
²Never start or run the engine with the vehicle on a
jack.
²Do not let anyone sit in the vehicle when it is on a
jack.
²Do not get under the vehicle when it is on a jack.
²Only use the jack in the positions indicated and
for lifting this vehicle during a tire change.
²If working on or near a roadway, be extremely
careful of motor traffic.
²To assure that spare tires, flat or inflated are
securely stowed, spares must be stowed with the
valve stem facing the ground.
²Turn on the Hazard warning flasher.
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1. Loosen (but do not remove) the wheel lug nuts by
turning them to the left one turn while the wheel is still
on the ground.
2. To remove the compact spare tire/cover assembly,
assemble the winch handle extensions to form a ªT' and
fit the winch ªTº handle over the drive nut. Rotate the
nut to the left until the winch mechanism stops turning
freely. This will allow enough slack in the cable to allow
you to pull the spare tire out from under the vehicle.
CAUTION!
The winch mechanism is designed for use with the
winch ªTº handle only. Use of an air wrench or other
power tools is not recommended and can damage the
winch.3. Assemble the winch handle extensions to form the
Spare Tire Hook and pull the compact spare tire/cover
assembly from under the vehicle.
WARNING!
Getting under a jacked-up vehicle is dangerous. The
vehicle could slip off the jack and fall on you. You
could be crushed. Never get any part of your body
under a vehicle that is on a jack. If you need to get
under a raised vehicle, take it to a service center
where it can be raised on a lift.
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CAUTION!
Do not attempt to raise the vehicle by jacking on
locations other than those indicated in Step 5.
6. Place the wrench on the jack screw and turn to the
right until the jack head is properly engaged in the
described location.Do not raise the vehicle until you are
sure the jack is securely engaged.
7. Raise the vehicle by turning the jack screw to the right,
using the swivel wrench. Raise the vehicle only until the
tire just clears the surface and enough clearance is
obtained to install the spare tire. Minimum tire lift
provides maximum stability.
WARNING!
Raising the vehicle higher than necessary can make
the vehicle less stable. It could slip off the jack and
hurt someone near it. Raise the vehicle only enough
to remove the tire.
8. Remove the wheel lug nuts, for vehicles with wheel
covers, remove the cover from the wheel by hand. Do not
pry the wheel cover off. Then pull the wheel off the hub.
9. Install the compact spare tire. Lightly tighten the lug
nuts. To avoid the risk of forcing the vehicle off the jack,
do not tighten the lug nuts fully until the vehicle has been
lowered.
NOTE:Do not install the wheel cover on the compact
spare.
Do not use a hammer or force to install the wheel covers.
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10. Lower the vehicle by turning the jack screw to the
left.
11. Finish tightening the lug nuts. Push down on the
wrench while tightening for increased leverage. Alternate
lug nuts until each nut has been tightened twice. Correct
wheel nut tightness is 95 ft lbs (130 N´m). If in doubt
about the correct tightness, have them checked with a
torque wrench by your authorized dealer or at a service
station.
12. Lower the jack to its fully-closed position.
WARNING!
A loose tire or jack thrown forward in a collision or
hard stop could endanger the occupants of the ve-
hicle. Always stow the jack parts and the spare tire in
the places provided. Have the deflated (flat) tire
repaired or replaced immediately.13. Place the deflated (flat) tire and compact spare tire
cover assembly in the rear cargo area.Do not stow the
deflated tire in the spare tire location.Have the full
sized tire repaired or replaced as soon as possible.
14. Stow the cable and wheel spacer before driving the
vehicle. Reassemble the winch handle extensions to form
a ªT' and fit the winch ªTº handle over the drive nut.
Rotate the nut to the right until the winch mechanism
clicks at least three times.
15. Stow the jack, jack handle and winch handle tools.
16. Check the compact spare tire pressure as soon as
possible. Correct pressure as required.Wheel Nuts
All wheel nuts should be tightened occasionally to elimi-
nate the possibility of wheel studs being sheared or the
bolt holes in the wheels becoming elongated. This is
especially important during the first few hundred miles
422 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

of operation, and after each time a tire is changed, to
allow the wheel nuts to become properly set. All nuts
should first be firmly seated against the wheel. The nuts
should then be tightened to recommended torque.
Tighten the nuts to final torque in increments. Progress
around the bolt circle, tightening the nut opposite to the
nut just previously tightened until final torque is
achieved. Recommended torque is 95 ft lbs (130 N´m).
Secure The Spare Tire As Follows:
1. To stow the compact spare tire/cover assembly on
vehicles equipped with Stow 'n Go seating, assemble the
winch handle extensions to form a ªT' and fit the winch
ªTº handle over the drive nut. Rotate the nut to the left
until the winch mechanism stops turning freely. This will
allow enough slack in the cable to allow you to pull the
wheel spacer out from under the vehicle.
WARNING!
A loose compact spare tire/cover assembly, thrown
forward in a collision or hard stop could endanger
the occupants of the vehicle. Always stow the com-
pact spare tire with the cover assembly in the place
provided.
CAUTION!
The winch mechanism is designed for use with the
winch ªTº handle only. Use of an air wrench or other
power tools is not recommended and can damage the
winch.
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6

2. Assemble the winch handle extensions to form the
Spare Tire Hook and pull the wheel spacer from under
the vehicle.
3. Turn the compact spare tire so that the valve stem is
down and place the tire into the spare tire cover assem-
bly. Slide the wheel spacer through the center of the
wheel and spare tire cover assembly so that the two
retainer tabs snap out and engage the spare tire cover on
the opposite side.
CAUTION!
The compact spare tire cover assembly must be used
when the compact spare tire is stored. Failure to use
this cover could drastically reduce the life of the
compact spare tire.
WARNING!
Verify that 'both' retainer tabs of the wheel spacer
have been properly extended through the center of
the wheel and spare tire cover assembly. Failure to
properly engage both retainer tabs could result in
loss of the spare tire & cover assembly, which will
cause vehicle damage and may cause loss of control
of the vehicle.
4. Using the winch ªTº handle, rotate the drive nut to the
right until the compact spare tire/cover assembly is
drawn into place against the underside of the vehicle.
5. Continue to rotate the nut to the right until you hear
the winch mechanism click three times. It cannot be
overtightened. Check under the vehicle to ensure the
compact spare tire/cover assembly is positioned cor-
rectly against the underside of the vehicle.
424 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

CAUTION!
For vehicles equipped with Stow 'n Go seating, the
Winch Mechanism is designed specifically to stow a
COMPACT Spare Tire ONLY. Do not attempt to use
the Winch to stow the Full Size 'Flat' Tire, or any
other Full Size Tire. Vehicle damage may result.
JUMP-STARTING PROCEDURE
WARNING!
²DO NOT attempt to push or tow the vehicle to get it started. Vehicles
equipped with an automatic transmission cannot be started this way.
Unburned fuel could enter the catalytic converter and once the engine has
started, ignite and damage the converter and vehicle.
²If the vehicle has a discharged battery, booster cables may be used to obtain
a start from another vehicle. This type of start can be dangerous if done
improperly, so follow this procedure carefully.
²Battery fluid is a corrosive acid solution; DO NOT allow battery fluid to
contact eyes, skin or clothing. Don't lean over battery when attaching
clamps or allow the clamps to touch each other. If acid splashes in the eyes
or on the skin, flush the contaminated area immediately with large
quantities of water.
²A battery generates hydrogen gas which is flammable and explosive. Keep
all flames or sparks away from the vent holes. DO NOT use a booster
battery or any other booster source with an output that exceeds 12 volts.
²During cold weather when temperatures are below freezing point, electro-
lyte in a discharged battery may freeze. DO NOT attempt jump-starting
because the battery could rupture or explode. The battery temperature must
be brought up above freezing point before attempting jump-start.
²Take special care to avoid the radiator cooling fan whenever the hood is
raised. The cooling fan is electrically operated and can start anytime the
ignition switch is ON. You can be hurt by the fan.
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When jump-starting, proceed as follows:
1. Wear eye protection and remove any metal jewelry
such as watch bands or bracelets that might make an
inadvertent electrical contact.
2. When a boost is provided by a battery in another
vehicle, park that vehicle within booster cable reach and
without letting the vehicles touch. Set the parking brake,
place the automatic transmission selector lever into
PARK and turn the ignition switch to the OFF position for
both vehicles.
3. Turn OFF the heater, radio and all unnecessary elec-
trical loads.
4. Connect one end of a jumper cable to the positive
terminal of the discharged battery. Connect the other end
of the same cable to the positive terminal of the booster
battery.WARNING!
DO NOT permit vehicles to touch each other as this
could establish a ground connection and personal
injury could result.
5. Connect the other cable, first to the negative terminal
of the booster battery, and then to the engine of the
vehicle with the discharged battery. Make sure there is a
good contact on the engine.
WARNING!
DO NOT connect the cable to the negative post of the
discharge battery. The resulting electrical spark could
cause the battery to explode.
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